Questions we get from foreign founders in Japan.

Foreign-owned SMEs, expat founders and solopreneurs, real-estate investors managing properties from abroad, e-commerce sellers entering Japan, and small foreign-affiliated (gaishikei) teams without a full-time Japanese back-office. If your Japan workload involves phone calls, official paperwork, social media, or vendor follow-ups in Japanese, we are probably a fit.

No. You do not need to be based in Japan. Whether you are abroad or splitting time between countries, we can place calls, read mail, and chase local vendors on your behalf. We coordinate in English (or Japanese) and handle the Japan side remotely.

Four focused tracks: Business Phone & Reception (inbound/outbound calls in keigo, reservations, message summaries), Admin & Bureaucracy Support (scheduling, EN↔JA translation, ward-office and tax-office coordination, liaison with your accountant or lawyer), Social Media & Community Management (bilingual posting, scheduling, comment and DM responses for the Japan market), and Expat & Business Setup Support (relocation logistics, utilities, real-estate inquiries, daycare and visa document gathering). We deliberately do fewer things than a generalist VA — but do them properly.

Starter ($135–$200/mo, 5–8 hours) fits solopreneurs who mainly need phone reception and light admin, with basic social scheduling on one platform. Standard ($270–$400/mo, 10–15 hours) adds calendar management, government coordination, contract translation, full bilingual social media management, and an optional dedicated Japanese phone number — our most popular plan for small foreign teams. Add-ons (from $35/hour) suit one-off calls, social profile setup, urgent translations, or setup projects before you commit to a retainer. We almost always recommend the smallest plan that solves the problem — a free 20-minute consult is usually enough to decide.

Yes. Every operator is a native Japanese speaker with corporate or hospitality experience and is required to use sonkeigo and kenjougo on business calls. We tier formality to the counterpart — a ward office demands different language than a restaurant reservation. Inbound reception, outbound vendor calls, and government coordination all follow the same standard.

Generic offshore VAs cannot place a fluent keigo call on your behalf, cannot read a notice from the tax office, and cannot call a ward office to resolve a complex issue. We can. Our pricing assumes Japan-based, senior bilingual operators — not a low-cost overseas template. We also retain context across calls: your supplier should recognise the voice on the line.

For a quick draft, sometimes. For a keigo phone call to a vendor who owes you an apology, a ward-office escalation, or reading between the lines of a dunning letter — no. AI has no judgment, no memory of what your supplier promised last quarter, and no sense of which honorific level will keep the relationship intact. We use AI where it helps internally; you get a real person on the line when it matters.

For most foreign SMEs and small gaishikei back-offices: yes, at a fraction of the cost. A full-time Japanese assistant in Japan runs $2,300+/month with benefits, recruiting, and management overhead. Our Standard retainer covers most of that workload at roughly an eighth of the cost — with no payroll or headcount.

Yes. Our Social Media & Community Management track covers bilingual posting, scheduling, and comment/DM responses for LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and Facebook — adapted for a Japanese audience. We coordinate content calendars with your team, translate captions (EN ↔ JA), and reply in culturally appropriate Japanese. We are not a full creative agency or paid-ads manager; brand strategy, creative direction, and ad spend stay with you unless scoped separately as a project.

We are not a general inbox VA, a 100-seat call centre, or a substitute for licensed professionals. Social media support covers posting, scheduling, and community management — not large-scale influencer campaigns or paid advertising management unless pre-scoped. We do not provide legal, tax, or immigration advice — though we coordinate closely with your gyoseishoshi, accountant, or lawyer. We also do not take on work that requires physical presence only (e.g. standing in line at a ward office) unless pre-scoped as a discrete project.

Yes — this is common. We join calls in keigo, chase documents, translate correspondence, and close the loop so nothing sits unanswered between you and your professional. Many clients use us as the bilingual operational layer while their gyoseishoshi or tax advisor handles the licensed work.

NDA on day one, encrypted document handling, APPI-aligned data practices, and a single point of contact who never discusses your business externally. We do not name clients without explicit written consent. Minimum-data principles apply to every workflow.

Our team is Japan-based. Retainer clients set their priority business hours — including US or EU mornings when pre-arranged — and we align phone reception accordingly. We are a boutique team, not a 24/7 call centre. Day-to-day coordination and English summaries happen within JST business hours; urgent after-hours work is available on-demand at hourly rates.

Starter and Standard plans roll unused hours forward by one month. Beyond that, hours expire to keep the relationship financially predictable for both sides.

Yes. Start with a free 30-minute consultation, or hire us for a single project at our hourly rate (from $35/hour) — one difficult call, a contract translation, or a ward-office chase. Most clients who trial this way move to a retainer within a month once they see the time saved.

Most clients onboard in under a week. After the initial consult we send a scoped proposal, sign the NDA and agreement (English and/or Japanese), and assign a single point of contact. Simple phone-reception setups can go live within a few business days.

Yes. Our standard contract is provided in both English and Japanese. We can also work under your existing NDA or master services agreement.