Youth Mobility Scheme for Japanese Cooks: A UK Employer's Guide

The Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) is now the main legal route for a young cook from Japan to work in a UK restaurant. No sponsor licence, no certificate of sponsorship, no salary threshold. It also has a hard end date and an age limit, and restaurants that treat it as a normal hire tend to get caught out at month 22. This guide covers the rules as they apply to Japanese nationals and what an employer actually has to do.

1. Why this visa matters to Japanese restaurants

Since 22 July 2025, chefs (SOC 5434) are a medium skilled occupation that is not on the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List, so a restaurant cannot sponsor a chef arriving in the UK for the first time. The background is in our guide to hiring a Japanese chef in the UK after 2025.

YMS sits entirely outside that system. The visa belongs to the individual, not the employer, and it lets them work in most jobs. For a Japanese restaurant, that means a 25-year-old who has spent five years in a sushi bar in Osaka can start on your counter without you filing anything with the Home Office.

2. The scheme for Japanese nationals, in one table

The option to extend by a third year applies to nationals of Australia, Canada and New Zealand. GOV.UK does not list Japan among them, so treat 24 months as the maximum for a Japanese hire.

3. No ballot for Japan

Until early 2024, Japanese applicants had to register for a ballot and hope to be selected. The UK and Japanese governments announced on 1 February 2024 that, from 31 January 2024, Japanese nationals "will no longer need to register their interest in a ballot" and can apply at any time. At the same time Japan's allocation rose to 6,000 a year.

For employers this is a real change. It means you can hire a specific person for a specific start date, rather than waiting to see who wins a draw. The immigration rules appendix, updated 3 August 2026, still lists Japan at 6,000 places with no invitation to apply requirement.

4. What the candidate pays, and what you pay

The visa costs fall on the applicant: £340 to apply, the health surcharge of £776 per year (so roughly £1,552 for two years), plus proof of £2,530 in savings. For a cook earning a Japanese kitchen wage, that is a significant sum.

Nothing requires you to contribute. Many restaurants choose to, because it widens the pool and signals seriousness. Common approaches are reimbursing the visa fee after a probation period, an advance on the first month's wages, or paying for the first few weeks of accommodation. If you do reimburse, put the terms in writing, including what happens if the person leaves early. Our relocation package guide sets out typical items.

Your own direct cost to the Home Office is zero: no sponsor licence, no certificate of sponsorship, no Immigration Skills Charge.

5. What a YMS holder can and cannot do

GOV.UK says a YMS holder can work in most jobs. The exclusion that matters in practice is professional sport. They can also be self-employed, but only from rented premises, with equipment worth under £5,000, and with no employees.

That self-employment limit matters if your model relies on contractors. A YMS holder cannot set up their own sushi catering company and employ helpers. As an ordinary employee on your payroll, there is no issue.

You must pay them at least the National Living Wage (£12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over from April 2026) and treat them exactly as any other employee for tax, pensions auto-enrolment and holiday.

6. Right to work checks

Before the first shift, you must check that the person has the right to work in the UK. GOV.UK sets out three methods: an online check using a share code the applicant gives you, a manual check of original documents, or an identity service provider using document validation technology. For a YMS holder the online share code route is the normal one.

Keep a dated record of the check. Because YMS permission is time limited, you must check again before it expires. If you employ someone without a correct check, you face a civil penalty of up to £60,000 per illegal worker. Knowingly employing someone without the right to work is a criminal offence carrying up to five years in prison and an unlimited fine.

7. Timing an offer to someone still in Japan

A typical sequence for hiring from Japan:

1. Interview remotely, ideally with a practical element. See our guide to skills tests for remote chef hiring.
2. Send a written offer with start date, hours, pay, and any relocation help. The candidate does not need it for the visa, but they need it to decide.
3. The candidate applies online, up to six months before travel. Allow for the 28 days that savings must be held, then a decision usually within three weeks.
4. On arrival, they get their share code; you run the online check before day one.

Realistically, allow two to three months from offer to first shift.

8. Planning for the end of the two years

The YMS cannot be repeated, and a chef cannot switch into sponsored employment with you because the occupation is not eligible for new Skilled Worker entrants. When the 24 months end, the person leaves, unless they have acquired another basis to stay, such as a British or settled partner.

Three things help:

• Stagger your hires. If you rely on YMS, aim to have staff at different points in their two years so you are never replacing a whole section at once.
• Make knowledge transfer part of the role. Each YMS cook should leave behind prep lists, recipes and at least one trained colleague.
• Talk about the end date openly. Candidates know the rules. Being straightforward about what happens at month 24 builds trust and makes it more likely they recommend you to the next person. Our retention guide has more.

You can reach Japanese cooks, including those planning a YMS year, through a WashokuJob listing.

General information gathered from official sources in September 2026, not legal or immigration advice. Fees and rules change; confirm on GOV.UK before acting.