Government Proposes Resuming Specified Skilled Worker Intake for Hospital and Welfare Facility Catering by Reclassifying It Out of Food Service
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The Japanese government convened an expert panel at the Ministry of Justice on October 19, 2026 on the Specified Skilled Worker residency status and the employment for skill development system that replaces technical intern training from April 2027, and presented a draft revision to the sector-by-sector operational policy for Specified Skilled Worker. According to Jiji Press and other outlets, the draft would move catering work performed at hospitals, welfare facilities and schools out of the "food service" sector — where new intake under Specified Skilled Worker (i) is currently suspended — and into the "food and beverage manufacturing" sector, which covers food factories, allowing intake to resume.
Kyodo News reported that the change is driven by disruptions to meal provision for hospital inpatients and others, with resumption envisaged from April 2027. The Nikkei reported that the government is considering switching from new applications in fiscal 2027 and is aiming for a cabinet decision during December 2026. Reports differ somewhat on the timing of resumption.
The food service sector has an intake ceiling of 50,000 through the end of March 2029, and new intake has been suspended since April 2026 as that ceiling came into view. According to the Nikkei, the suspension of intake in the food service sector itself would be maintained even after this revision. Meanwhile, the Mainichi Shimbun reported that the receiving sector — food and beverage manufacturing — is approaching 80% of its 133,500 ceiling, and that panel members at a September meeting had called for raising projected intake numbers.
Current status: The revision remains a government draft and has not been adopted by cabinet decision. The specific timing of resumption and the scope of covered work are not yet fixed as of this writing. This article will be updated as further details emerge.
Editorial Perspective
The Technical Intern Training Program is set to be replaced by the new Employment for Skill Development system in April 2027 (related article), and developments like this one can be seen as part of the institutional design process during that transition. Expanding acceptance also requires resolving practical issues such as broker problems in sending countries and building proper oversight systems among accepting employers. For the new system to work as intended rather than merely on paper, it will be important to continue examining how it actually operates once implemented.