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Country Guide Known as “Rirekisho”

Japanese CV Format: How to Write a Japanese CV (2026)

Writing a CV for Japan means following a specific set of local rules. The Japanese CV format rewards clarity, the right level of personal detail, and a layout that recruiters and ATS systems both read easily.

Length is a key signal in Japan: Rirekisho is a single standardized A4 page (sometimes A3); the Shokumu Keirekisho adds 1–2 pages for experienced roles..

Unlike Western CVs, more pages are not expected.. The photo rule is Required. The Rirekisho has a dedicated photo box:.

a formal headshot (3x4cm or 4x3cm) on a plain white, blue, or grey background, taken within the last 3–6 months, with the applicant's name written on the back...

Dates follow Japanese era year or Gregorian, written YYYY年MM月 (e.g. 2026年3月 or 令和8年3月). Month-year precision is standard for work and education history.. These are the details recruiters notice first, so they anchor this guide.

Personal details follow a clear local standard: Date of application, name, date of birth, gender, address, phone, and email. Education comes BEFORE work history (chronological, not reverse-chronological)..

Never include your My Number (social security number), bank details, or religion.. Section order matters too: Application date → Personal details + photo → Education (chronological, oldest first) → Work history (chronological) → Licenses and certifications → Hobbies and interests → Self-PR (自己PR) and motivation..

Education always precedes work history in Japan.. Each section below explains the reasoning behind the rule, not just the rule itself.

This guide covers the Japanese CV format end to end, with example content for software engineer at every career level. Use it to write a cv that passes the first screening.

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Japanese CV Format at a Glance

Document type
CV: The standard document is the Rirekisho (履歴書), a standardized one-page form used across industries. Experienced candidates add a Shokumu Keirekisho (職務経歴書, work history sheet) for detail. A copy of the Rirekisho is usually paired with a cover letter (志望動機).
Typical length
Rirekisho is a single standardized A4 page (sometimes A3); the Shokumu Keirekisho adds 1–2 pages for experienced roles. Unlike Western CVs, more pages are not expected.
Photo
Required. The Rirekisho has a dedicated photo box: a formal headshot (3x4cm or 4x3cm) on a plain white, blue, or grey background, taken within the last 3–6 months, with the applicant's name written on the back.
Date format
Japanese era year or Gregorian, written YYYY年MM月 (e.g. 2026年3月 or 令和8年3月). Month-year precision is standard for work and education history.
Paper size
A4 (standard Rirekisho form).
Personal details
Date of application, name, date of birth, gender, address, phone, and email. Education comes BEFORE work history (chronological, not reverse-chronological). Never include your My Number (social security number), bank details, or religion.
Section order
Application date → Personal details + photo → Education (chronological, oldest first) → Work history (chronological) → Licenses and certifications → Hobbies and interests → Self-PR (自己PR) and motivation. Education always precedes work history in Japan.
ATS friendliness
Low by Western standards; most Japanese applications are still paper or PDF forms filled by hand or in Excel/Word. For foreign companies and gaishi-kei (foreign-capital) firms, an ATS-friendly English CV is standard.

Japanese CV Examples

Real Japanese CVs written to these conventions across three experience levels. Switch tabs to review each, then load it straight into the builder to make it your own.

H

Haruto Tanaka

Software Engineer (Graduate)

Entry Level [email protected] Tokyo, Japan

Professional Summary

Entry Level software engineer (graduate) with experience at LINE (Tokyo) and Rakuten (Tokyo) in Tokyo, Japan. Skilled in Go, TypeScript and React, with a focus on reliability and clean architecture. Following the standard Japanese CV format.

Work Experience

Software Engineer (Graduate)
07/2025 – Present

LINE (Tokyo) · Tokyo, Japan

  • Ship customer-facing features in the search using Go, TypeScript and React, following team code review and CI/CD practice.
  • Reduced API response time by 22% by introducing response caching in a search endpoint.
  • Fixed 40+ production issues across two quarters, maintaining a 99.9% service uptime record.
  • Pair with senior engineers on system design and observability, contributing to the team's on-call rota.
Software Engineering Intern
01/2025 – 06/2025

Rakuten (Tokyo) · Tokyo, Japan

  • Built a reporting dashboard in React and Python that cut weekly report generation from 3 hours to 20 minutes.
  • Wrote 60+ unit and integration tests, raising feature coverage on the module to 92%.
  • Presented the project to 150+ staff at the local office; offer extended.

Education

BSc Computer Science
2021 – 2025

University of Tokyo · Tokyo

Focused on computer science fundamentals, distributed systems, and software engineering.

Skills

TypeScript & JavaScript (Experienced) React & Node.js (Experienced) Python (Skillful) SQL (PostgreSQL) (Skillful) AWS (S3, Lambda) (Skillful) Git & CI/CD (GitHub Actions) (Experienced)

Certifications & Links

  • AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials
  • GitHub portfolio with 25+ public repositories
  • LinkedIn profile linked in the header
Use This Example

How to Write a Japanese CV: Step-by-Step

1

Start With the Application Date and a Formal Photo

Write the application date (提出日) at the top.

The Rirekisho has a dedicated photo box:

a formal headshot (3x4cm or 4x3cm) on a plain white, blue, or grey background, taken within the last 3–6 months, with your name written on the back.

Photo quality matters in Japan:

professional, conservative, no selfies, no filters.

Example

"Application date: 2026年8月15日. Photo: formal headshot, white background, name on the back."

Entry Level

Use a recent graduation-style photo; a clean background and business attire are expected.

Mid Level

A current, professional photo is essential; refresh it every few years.

Senior Level

Senior photos should match the corporate dress code of the target company.

2

Fill in Personal Details Without Your My Number

List your name (family name first in Japanese), date of birth, gender, address, phone (use +81 from abroad), and email.

Fill every line of the form;

blank lines look careless to Japanese recruiters.

Never include your My Number (マイナンバー, social security number), bank details, or religion.

Example

"Name: 田中 陽翔 (Tanaka Haruto). DOB: 1990/05/15. Address: Shinjuku, Tokyo. Phone: 080-1234-5678."

Entry Level

Keep contact details current; recruiters use email and phone for interviews.

Mid Level

Ensure the address matches your residence certificate (住民票) if asked.

Senior Level

A professional email address matters; avoid personal handles.

3

List Education First, Chronological From Oldest

Unlike Western CVs, the Rirekisho lists education BEFORE work history, in chronological order starting from high school or the earliest relevant qualification.

Include the school name, faculty, and graduation date.

Add the expected graduation date for current students.

The format is consistent:

entry date, exit or expected date, institution, and degree.

Example

"2013年4月 – 2017年3月: University of Tokyo, Faculty of Engineering, BSc Computer Science (graduated)."

Entry Level

Start from high school or university and include the expected graduation date.

Mid Level

Keep education compact; lead with the degree and institution.

Senior Level

Education stays brief; the Shokumu Keirekisho carries the career detail.

4

Add Work History Chronologically, Then Licenses and Skills

Work history follows education, also chronological:

company name, employment period, and a short line on your role.

Then list licenses and certifications (基本情報技術者, AWS, JLPT levels) in a dedicated section.

Hobbies and interests (趣味) and a Self-PR (自己PR) section round out the form and are valued by Japanese recruiters as character signals.

Example

"2017年4月 – Present: Rakuten, Tokyo. Software Engineer. Licenses: AWS Solutions Architect Associate, 基本情報技術者 (FE)."

Entry Level

Include part-time jobs and internships; they count as work history.

Mid Level

Quantify achievements in the Shokumu Keirekisho with numbers.

Senior Level

Highlight leadership, architecture ownership, and mentoring outcomes.

5

Write a Concise Self-PR and Motivation

The Self-PR (自己PR) is a short paragraph on your strengths with evidence, and the motivation (志望動機) explains why you chose this company.

Keep both 2–4 lines each;

Japanese recruiters value humility, specificity, and company research.

Mention the company by name and reference something specific about their business.

Example

"Self-PR: I reduced API latency by 40% through caching at my previous role. Motivation: I want to apply this experience to Rakuten's global e-commerce platform."

Entry Level

Connect your university projects and internships to the company's work.

Mid Level

Show measurable impact: systems owned, latency cut, revenue grown.

Senior Level

Show leadership: teams led, architectures owned, and business outcomes.

6

Use the Official Rirekisho Form and Clean Handwriting or PDF

Use the official Rirekisho form (厚生労働省様式例 or a company template).

It is often filled by hand in black ink, but clean PDF exports are accepted, especially for tech roles.

Write in Japanese for local companies;

English is standard at gaishi-kei (foreign-capital) firms.

Proofread for errors;

mistakes on a standardized form are a common rejection reason in Japan.

Example

"Submit a clean PDF of the Rirekisho plus a Shokumu Keirekisho for experienced roles."

Entry Level

Practice the form on paper first; neat handwriting matters for traditional firms.

Mid Level

A clean PDF with the Shokumu Keirekisho is standard for tech roles.

Senior Level

Pair the forms with a tailored cover letter for each company.

What Makes the Japanese Cv Different

To stand out in Japan, match the local conventions exactly.

The cv here follows Rirekisho is a single standardized A4 page (sometimes A3);

the Shokumu Keirekisho adds 1–2 pages for experienced roles.

Unlike Western CVs, more pages are not expected., treats the photo as Required.

The Rirekisho has a dedicated photo box:

a formal headshot (3x4cm or 4x3cm) on a plain white, blue, or grey background, taken within the last 3–6 months, with the applicant's name written on the back., and formats dates as Japanese era year or Gregorian, written YYYY年MM月 (e.g.

2026年3月 or 令和8年3月).

Month-year precision is standard for work and education history..

Write every experience bullet with numbers.

Japanese recruiters compare candidates on measurable outcomes:

latency reduced, revenue grown, costs cut.

Each bullet should start with a strong action verb and end with a quantified result.

Finally, tailor the document to the specific job ad.

Identify the top three requirements and mirror them in your summary, skills, and experience bullets.

Generic CVs are screened out quickly in this market.

Tokyo software engineer salaries in 2026 run roughly ¥4–7 million for juniors, ¥7–12 million for mid-level, and ¥10–17 million+ for senior roles (WhatIsTheSalary, 2026), and Tokyo hosts Google, Microsoft, Rakuten, Sony, and LINE engineering offices.

Key Skills Valued in Japan

Technical Skills

Programming languages relevant to the roleCloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure)Container orchestration (Kubernetes, Docker)CI/CD and IaC (GitHub Actions, Terraform)Databases and data pipelines (PostgreSQL, Kafka)Observability (Prometheus, Grafana)

Soft Skills

Clear written and verbal communicationTeam collaboration and code reviewProblem-solving under pressureTime management and delivery focusStakeholder communicationContinuous learning

Keywords and Terminology for Japanese Cvs

Using the right keywords is the only way to pass an ATS screen and reach a human recruiter.

Extract them from the job description and mirror the exact wording:

job title, required skills, and tools.

Job-ad keywords (mirror the wording exactly)Languages and frameworks the team usesPlatforms and tools (cloud, CI/CD, databases)Practice terms (agile, testing, observability)Local qualification and certification terms

How Experience Is Presented in a Japanese Cv

Experience is the core of the document, written reverse-chronologically with the most recent role first.

Each role shows the job title, company, city, and dates, followed by achievement-led bullets with numbers.

Entry Level

Focus on internships, projects, and transferable skills; show reliability and a fast learning curve.

Mid Level

Show ownership: features shipped, systems run, and improvements measured in numbers.

Senior Level

Show scale: teams led, architectures owned, budgets or revenue impact, and mentoring outcomes.

Tailoring Your Cv to Japanese Employers

Tailoring means adjusting the lens, not rewriting your history.

Identify the top three priorities in the job ad and make sure they appear in your summary and your first skills.

Match the ad's language exactly.

Common Japanese Cv Mistakes to Avoid

Avoid these errors that regularly get applications rejected in Japan:

1. Getting the length wrong: Rirekisho is a single standardized A4 page (sometimes A3); the Shokumu Keirekisho adds 1–2 pages for experienced roles. Unlike Western CVs, more pages are not expected. is the local standard.

2. Ignoring the photo rule: Required. The Rirekisho has a dedicated photo box: a formal headshot (3x4cm or 4x3cm) on a plain white, blue, or grey background, taken within the last 3–6 months, with the applicant's name written on the back.

3. Using the wrong date format: use Japanese era year or Gregorian, written YYYY年MM月 (e.g. 2026年3月 or 令和8年3月). Month-year precision is standard for work and education history. consistently.

4. Including personal details that local practice excludes: Date of application, name, date of birth, gender, address, phone, and email. Education comes BEFORE work history (chronological, not reverse-chronological). Never include your My Number (social security number), bank details, or religion.

5. Listing duties instead of achievements; quantified results win every time.

Japan Job Market and Salary Outlook

The Japan job market in 2026 remains active for software engineers, with demand concentrated in the major cities.

Understanding the typical salary brackets for your level helps you calibrate your examples and negotiate with confidence.

LevelTypical annual salary (JPY)Typical CV length
Entry Level¥4–7 million1 page Rirekisho
Mid Level¥7–12 million1 page + Shokumu Keirekisho
Senior Level¥10–17 million+1 page + 2 page Shokumu Keirekisho

Source: WhatIsTheSalary Japanese software engineer salary data, 2026 (approximate gross ranges, see sources)

Key Tips for Writing a Japanese CV

  • Tip 1: Save as a clean, selectable PDF named FirstName_LastName_Role_Cv.pdf.
  • Tip 2: Use a professional email address; never a personal-sounding handle.
  • Tip 3: Include the correct international dialling code on your phone number.
  • Tip 4: Keep the length to the local standard: Rirekisho is a single standardized A4 page (sometimes A3); the Shokumu Keirekisho adds 1–2 pages for experienced roles. Unlike Western CVs, more pages are not expected..
  • Tip 5: Mirror the job ad's keywords verbatim for ATS screens.
  • Tip 6: Have a careers service or a trusted colleague proofread before sending.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a photo on my Japanese Rirekisho?

Yes. The Rirekisho has a dedicated photo box, and a formal headshot (3x4cm or 4x3cm) on a plain white, blue, or grey background is required. Take it within the last 3–6 months, dress in business attire, and write your name on the back.

Should I include my My Number or other personal data on a Japanese CV?

No. Never include your My Number (マイナンバー, social security number), bank details, or religion. The standard personal details are name, date of birth, gender, address, phone, and email, which the Rirekisho form requests.

Why does education come before work history on a Japanese CV?

The Rirekisho is chronological by design: education from high school onwards comes first, then work history, then licenses and certifications. This reflects the Japanese emphasis on formal qualifications and a complete, gap-free record.

What is the difference between a Rirekisho and a Shokumu Keirekisho?

The Rirekisho (履歴書) is the standardized one-page form with personal details, education, and work history. The Shokumu Keirekisho (職務経歴書) is a separate 1–2 page work history sheet with detailed achievements, used by experienced candidates alongside the Rirekisho.

What does a software engineer CV look like in Japan?

A one-page Rirekisho with a formal photo, application date, personal details, chronological education-first history, licenses, hobbies, and a Self-PR section, plus a Shokumu Keirekisho for experienced roles.

Tokyo tech salaries run roughly ¥4–7 million at entry, ¥7–12 million mid, and ¥10–17 million+ for senior roles, so tailor your examples to the level you are applying for.

Conventions verified for 2026 and based on well-established Japanese recruitment practice.

Sources

Facts on this page are checked against the following authoritative sources.

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