How to Write a Japanese Resume履歴書の書き方 — a step-by-step guide for foreigners and first-timers

A Japanese resume (履歴書, rirekisho) is a fixed-format document — unlike a Western CV, you do not design it, you fill it in. Employers compare candidates on the same grid, so what matters is getting every section right. This guide walks through each field in the order it appears on the sheet. You can follow along in the free online editor and download the finished PDF when you are done.

1. Basic information (氏名・生年月日・住所)

Write your name exactly as it appears on your residence card or passport, and add the reading in the ふりがな line above it (hiragana if the form says ふりがな, katakana if it says フリガナ). Dates can use either the Western calendar (西暦, e.g. 2026) or the Japanese era (令和) — but you must use the same system everywhere on the resume. Include the postal code (〒) with your address, and write the address out fully, down to the building and room number.

2. The photo (証明写真)

The standard rirekisho photo is 30×40 mm, taken within the last 3 months, front-facing against a plain white, blue, or grey background. Wear business attire — a dark suit is the safe default — and keep a neutral, slightly pleasant expression. Photo-booth (スピード写真) pictures are acceptable for most jobs. In ResumeJP the photo is automatically resized to fit the standard cell.

3. Education history (学歴)

Write 学歴 in the centre of the first row, then list schools in chronological order — oldest first. The usual starting point is graduation from junior high school or entrance to high school. Each school takes two rows: one for entrance (入学) and one for graduation (卒業). Write official school names in full — no abbreviations. Foreign schools are fine: add the country and write the school name in katakana or as-is with a short note.

4. Work history (職歴)

After education, skip one line, write 職歴 in the centre, and list each employer in order. The standard phrasing is 「株式会社○○ 入社」 when joining and 「一身上の都合により退社」 (left for personal reasons) when leaving. If you are still employed, end with 「現在に至る」 on its own line, then 「以上」 right-aligned on the final line. Part-time work is normally omitted unless you are applying for arubaito or it is directly relevant.

5. Licenses & qualifications (免許・資格)

List qualifications in the order you obtained them, using official names: 「普通自動車 第一種運転免許 取得」 for a driver's licence, 「日本語能力試験N2 合格」 for JLPT. For foreigners, JLPT level is often the first thing recruiters look for — put it in even if you are still at N3. Nothing to list? Write 「特になし」 rather than leaving it blank.

6. Self-PR & motivation (自己PR・志望動機)

This is the only free-form section, and the one hiring managers actually read. Write 3–4 sentences in polite business Japanese: what you are good at, one concrete example or number that proves it, and why this company. Avoid generic lines like 「頑張ります」. If writing natural keigo is the hard part, type your points in English and let the editor's translate feature rewrite them into business Japanese.

7. Commute, dependents, and the request field

通勤時間 is your one-way commute to this employer, rounded to 5 minutes. 扶養家族 counts dependents excluding your spouse. In the 本人希望記入欄 (personal requests), unless you have a hard constraint, the convention is a single line: 「貴社の規定に従います。」 (I will follow company policy). Salary demands here are a common mistake — save them for the interview.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Mixing Western and Japanese era dates — pick one and use it everywhere.
• Abbreviating company or school names (㈱ instead of 株式会社).
• Leaving fields blank instead of writing 特になし.
• Reusing one resume for every company — tailor the 志望動機 each time.
• Submitting a photo older than 3 months or taken casually.
• Forgetting 以上 at the end of the work-history table.

Printing and submitting

The traditional rirekisho is printed on A3 paper folded once (so it opens like a book); A4 two-page printing is widely accepted now. Use plain white paper, never staple the pages, and put the resume in a clear file inside a white A4 envelope if submitting by hand or post. ResumeJP exports the PDF at the exact paper size of the template you choose, so it prints to scale with no adjustment. Mid-career applicants usually pair the rirekisho with a 職務経歴書 — here is when you need both.