Food and beverage manufacturing under the Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) program in Japan represents a pivotal opportunity for addressing labor shortages within the industry. As Japan grapples with an aging population and shrinking workforce, the SSW program targets skilled foreign workers to fill critical gaps, particularly in food production sectors. These roles often entail rigorous standards of sanitation and quality control to match Japan’s high consumer expectations, requiring meticulous training that is supported by Japanese companies emphasizing both skill development and cultural integration. The SSW framework delineates clear pathways for occupational advancement and potential residency, reflecting both short-term economic imperatives and long-term demographic strategies. Additionally, the initiative allows the transfer of diverse culinary techniques, enriching local gastronomy while ensuring operational sustainability through enhanced manpower, thereby meeting domestic demands and fostering international cooperation in workforce fluidity.
| Exam Name | Agriculture Skill Assessment Test Level 1 (general crop farming) Agriculture Skill Assessment Test Level 1 (general livestock farming) |
|---|---|
| Languages available for the exam | English, Burmese, Japanese, Khmer, Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese, Nepali, Chinese, Mongolian, Uzbek, Sinhala, Tamil, Hindi, Bengali, Urdu |
| Eligibility | Be 17 years of age or older on the test date (18 years of age or older if your nationality is Indonesian). However, if you are taking the exam in Japan, you must meet the eligibility requirements listed in the “Agriculture Skill Assessment Test Implementation Guidelines.”Agriculture Skill Assessment Test implementation guidelines https://www.nca.or.jp/upload/Procedure_for_the_ASAT_url.pdfOther considerations ●If you are taking the exam outside of Japan When a person who does not have the nationality of the country where the exam is held applies for the exam in that country, the actual acceptance or rejection of the exam and the score report if passed will be properly recognized as “submitted documents related to various residence applications related to Specified Skilled Worker”. The National Chamber of Agriculture does not guarantee that this will be the case. ●If you are taking the exam in Japan Those with Japanese nationality are not eligible to take the test. |
| Retake Policy | You cannot take the same exam again for 45 days starting from the day after the exam date. (Even if the language is different, if the subject is the same, it will be considered the same exam and will be subject to Retake Policy.) |
| Implementation format | CBT（Computer Based Testing） |
| Question content | ● Agriculture Skill Assessment Test Level 1 (general crop farming) Academic and practical questions related to general general crop farming skills Listening questions about the details of agricultural work instructed in Japanese ● Agriculture Skill Assessment Test Level 1 (general livestock farming) Academic and practical questions related to general skills in general livestock farming Listening questions about the details of agricultural work instructed in Japanese |
| The number of questions | Approximately 70 questions (including non-graded questions. Non-graded questions are used for analysis of correct answer rate, etc.) |
| Test time | 60 minutes |
