Freelancing in Japan
I'll be moving to Japan in August or so of this year to live with my boyfriend who is a JET program ALT. I've been looking into my own employment opportunities in Japan. I'm a graphic designer / illustrator by trade and I was thinking of going full-time freelancer, or at least taking on some freelance jobs here and there to supplement income if I'm not able to find a teaching position.
My question is, what sort of business license would I need to do business in Japan? I'm guessing most of my work would actually be for American/English-speaking clients, not Japanese, with business done completely over the web. Does anyone have any advice or suggestions about how to go about doing such a thing? And would I need a Japanese work visa to do this (I'm guessing yes, but I have no idea how to get one for this type of work)? I know there is an "artist visa" available, but I'm not really sure what the requirements/needed documentation are for such a thing and all the information I can find on it is horribly vague.
If there are any freelancers (artists, writers, etc) working in Japan can you please tell me how you started out? I'd really appreciate it!
My question is, what sort of business license would I need to do business in Japan? I'm guessing most of my work would actually be for American/English-speaking clients, not Japanese, with business done completely over the web. Does anyone have any advice or suggestions about how to go about doing such a thing? And would I need a Japanese work visa to do this (I'm guessing yes, but I have no idea how to get one for this type of work)? I know there is an "artist visa" available, but I'm not really sure what the requirements/needed documentation are for such a thing and all the information I can find on it is horribly vague.
If there are any freelancers (artists, writers, etc) working in Japan can you please tell me how you started out? I'd really appreciate it!