The Complete Kumamoto Factory Setup Checklist: 90-Day Landing Process

Why 90 Days Is the Right Timeline

Many manufacturers approaching Japan setup for the first time fall into two extremes: either rushing to land within two months, or dragging a "re-evaluation" loop for over a year. Both incur cost.

Yaoki has supported 11 Kumamoto factory setup cases since 2023. The average end-to-end landing time was 87 days. We structure it as three 30-day blocks: preliminary research, entity setup, and operational launch.

Why Not Faster?

For cases attempting under 60 days, Yaoki has observed:

• Insufficient due diligence: location comparison, land category check, and use district verification are skipped — only to discover after acquisition that the target facility cannot be built
• Contract gaps: the real estate agent (宅建士) has no time to fully review, missing restrictions in the Important Matters Explanation document
• Bank account delays: Japanese banks scrutinize foreign-capital entities — rushing leads to 4-8 week blocks
• Subsidy misses: many Kumamoto Prefecture and municipal subsidies must be applied before groundbreaking; rushing to construction can disqualify the entity

Why Not Slower?

For cases extending past 120 days, a different set of problems appear:

• Accumulating fixed costs: consulting fees, deposits, and rent burn monthly with no offsetting revenue
• Subsidy windows: some subsidies have annual quotas — missing the cycle pushes you to the next fiscal year
• Key talent attrition: Taiwan-side employees lined up for dispatch lose patience, family relocation planning is disrupted
• Customer commitments broken: Japan-side customers or partners lose confidence, affecting early-production orders

90 days is not a deadline — it is "a time budget for the correct sequence." The next three chapters break down what each 30-day block should contain.

Phase 1 (Day 0-30): Preliminary Research

The purpose of the first 30 days is to gather enough information to make the right setup decision — not to rush into contracts. Yaoki breaks Phase 1 into five key steps.

Day 0-7: Market Research & Initial Positioning

• Confirm demand structure and competitor landscape for your product/service in Japan
• Identify primary customers: JASM supply chain, major Japanese brand OEMs, or own-brand retail
• Estimate annual capacity targets and three-year investment scale
• Sign NDA with Yaoki to enable bilateral data exchange

Day 8-15: Location Selection & Regulatory Check

Primary candidate locations for Kumamoto factory setup:

• Kikuyo Town (菊陽町): semiconductor cluster core, scarce land, high prices
• Koshi City (合志市): strong spillover effect, new industrial parks being released
• Ozu Town (大津町): home of JASM's second plant, key area post-2026
• Higashi Ward, Kumamoto City: near Kumamoto Port, first choice for trading operations

Confirm use district zoning (用途地域), building coverage / floor area ratio, environmental impact assessment requirements, and utility capacity. This step requires accompanying real estate agent (宅建士) and Yaoki.

Day 16-22: Budget Planning & Subsidy Pathway

Three subsidy layers are evaluated in parallel (figures below are general reference ranges; defer to the latest prefectural gazette for actual amounts):

Day 23-30: Due Diligence & Decision

• Due diligence reports on 2-3 candidate sites (soil, land category, ownership, past use)
• Competitor and supply chain interviews (Yaoki arranges 2-3 sessions)
• Initial tax structure recommendation (with partner tax accountant)
• By end of Phase 1: clear location, clear budget, clear subsidy pathway

Phase 2 (Day 31-60): Entity Setup & Infrastructure

The second 30 days is the most administratively dense phase — entity registration, bank account, and facility contract must run in parallel, or the entire project stalls at one bottleneck.

Day 31-37: KK or GK?

Most manufacturing operations are recommended to choose KK, because KK remains the default form when transacting with major Japanese customers, and bank financing and government subsidies tend to proceed more smoothly.

Day 38-45: Registration & Seal

• Draft articles of incorporation (定款) — commission a judicial scrivener (司法書士)
• Notarization of articles (公証役場, required for KK)
• Capital deposit certificate
• Registration application (Legal Affairs Bureau / 法務局) — issued in ~2-3 weeks
• Corporate seals (representative seal, bank seal, square seal) — produced in parallel

Day 46-53: Bank Account (Largest Bottleneck)

Japanese banks are extremely strict on opening accounts for foreign-capital entities. Yaoki typically applies to 2-3 banks in parallel:

• Regional banks (Higo Bank, Kumamoto Bank) — core relationship
• City banks (MUFG, SMBC, Mizuho) — large-amount fund management
• Japan Finance Corporation (JFC) — if seeking policy financing

Key documents: articles of incorporation, registration certificate, seal certificate, Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) declaration, business plan, representative's passport and residence card (if any).

Day 54-60: Facility Contract & Real Estate Agent

• Confirm the contracted property (land purchase or facility lease)
• The real estate agent (宅建士) conducts the Important Matters Explanation (重要事項説明)
• Verify contract clauses: termination conditions, repair responsibilities, renewal terms, deposit return
• Formally sign and pay deposit / key money (敷金)

Phase 3 (Day 61-90): Operational Launch

The third 30 days centers on: ensuring the factory can operate by the end of Day 90 — not already in mass production, but with people, equipment, systems, subsidies, and visas all in place.

Day 61-68: Hiring & Labor Contracts

• Publish openings through Kumamoto Labor Bureau and local recruiting firms in parallel
• Core positions: plant manager (often a Taiwan-dispatched expat), QA, production supervisor, admin, finance
• Labor contracts (雇用契約書) — must comply with Labor Standards Act and work rules
• Work rules (就業規則) — mandatory submission to Labor Standards Inspection Office for ≥10 employees
• Enrollment in four social insurance schemes (health, pension, employment, workers' compensation)

Day 69-75: Tax & HR Systems

• Engage tax accountant (税理士) to establish bookkeeping and consumption tax filing workflow
• Set up payroll system (commonly freee, MoneyForward, or Yayoi)
• Engage labor consultant (社会保険労務士) to establish HR policies
• Register as qualified invoice issuer (適格請求書発行事業者 / Invoice System)

Day 76-82: Equipment Installation & Pilot Run

• Equipment arrives via sea/air at Kumamoto Port or Fukuoka Port
• Customs clearance and provisional consumption tax (refundable later)
• Equipment installation, utility connection
• Environmental impact confirmation (manufacturing) / fire safety inspection (all industries)
• Pilot run and QA process validation

Day 83-90: Subsidy Wrap-up & Visa Filing

• Submit actual application documents for all three subsidy layers (pathway planned in Phase 1, executed here)
• Apply for Business Manager visa (経営・管理) for dispatched employees (Certificate of Eligibility)
• File family visas in parallel
• Arrange housing (commonly company-leased corporate housing / 借上社宅)
• Build local relationships (mayor visit, Chamber of Commerce membership, local vendor onboarding)

Common Failure Modes & How to Avoid Them

Across cases Yaoki has supported and externally observed, the vast majority of setup failures cluster around 5 patterns — and all can be pre-empted through the 90-day structured workflow.

Failure Mode 1: Wrong Zoning / Land Category

The acquired land turns out to be "Urbanization Control Area," "agricultural land," or "quasi-industrial zone" — and the target facility type cannot be built. Re-zoning takes 6-12 months, and in some cases is simply not possible. Mitigation: real estate agent (宅建士) must verify use district during Phase 1.

Failure Mode 2: Bank Account Blocked

Rushing to apply without preparing UBO declaration, business plan, or representative in-person interview — blocked for 4-8 weeks, capital injection delayed. Mitigation: schedule at least one representative trip to Japan during Phase 2, apply to multiple banks in parallel.

Failure Mode 3: Visa Timeline Miscalculated

The Business Manager visa typically takes 1-3 months to issue. Adding family visas and housing arrangements adds another month. Many manufacturers underestimate this, leaving core talent unable to arrive by Day 90. Mitigation: file by Day 70, prepare Plan B (short-term business visa bridge).

Failure Mode 4: Missed Subsidy Window

Most subsidies must be applied before groundbreaking, with annual quotas. Without proper Phase 1 pathway planning, Phase 3 discovers "construction already started, ineligible." Mitigation: complete subsidy timeline at end of Phase 1.

Failure Mode 5: Ignoring Union and Local Relations

Some manufacturers assume "Japanese employees follow rules, no relationship-building needed" — only to face union pushback, environmental complaints, or vendor friction in early production. Mitigation: during Phase 3, visit town/city mayor, join Chamber of Commerce, build trust with local vendors.

Differences Across Manufacturer Types

"Setting up a Kumamoto factory" actually spans four quite different operational profiles. Yaoki maps their key differences below:

Manufacturing

Highest investment, most complex administration, but also the most generous subsidies. Key issues: environmental impact assessment, equipment import, union relations. We recommend at least one Taiwan-dispatched plant manager + one Japanese HR lead.

R&D

Mid-range investment, but talent acquisition is challenging — semiconductor R&D engineer salaries approach Tokyo levels. We recommend building industry-academia partnerships with Kumamoto University and Kumamoto National College of Technology.

Services

Lowest initial cost, but customer development cycles are long. We recommend starting from existing offices or coworking spaces, then evaluating a dedicated base 6-12 months later.

Trading

Simple to register, but actual operations depend on local clearance and logistics partners. We recommend prioritizing clearance relationships at Kumamoto Port or Hakata Port.

Complete Checklist Summary

All 90-day checklist items consolidated into a one-page format — recommend printing or saving as a screenshot for alignment with consultants, employees, and partners.

Phase 1 (Day 0-30): Preliminary Research

• □ Complete market research and initial positioning (customer, product, capacity)
• □ Sign NDA with consulting partner
• □ Compare 2-3 candidate locations (Kikuyo / Koshi / Ozu / Higashi Ward Kumamoto)
• □ Use district, building coverage, floor area ratio, EIA confirmed
• □ Three-layer subsidy pathway table (prefectural / municipal / national)
• □ Due diligence reports on 2-3 candidate sites
• □ Initial tax structure recommendation
• □ End of Phase 1: clear location, clear budget, clear subsidy pathway

Phase 2 (Day 31-60): Entity Setup

• □ KK / GK decision finalized
• □ Articles of incorporation drafted and notarized
• □ Capital deposit certificate
• □ Entity registration completed (Legal Affairs Bureau issued)
• □ Corporate seals produced
• □ Bank account opened (at least 1 regional + 1 city bank)
• □ Facility / land contract signed (with real estate agent's Important Matters Explanation)
• □ End of Phase 2: entity established, capital in place, facility confirmed

Phase 3 (Day 61-90): Operational Launch

• □ Core staff hired (plant manager, QA, production supervisor)
• □ Labor contracts and work rules submitted
• □ Four social insurance schemes enrolled
• □ Tax accountant and payroll system established
• □ Qualified invoice issuer registration
• □ Equipment arrived, installed, pilot-run
• □ Fire safety inspection passed, EIA confirmed (if applicable)
• □ Three-layer subsidy applications submitted
• □ Business Manager visa filed for dispatched employees
• □ Mayor visited, Chamber of Commerce joined
• □ End of Phase 3: ready for production / pilot operations

References & Sources

Key data on JASM, Kumamoto subsidies, and Japanese entity setup fees referenced in this article come from the public sources below. Yaoki internal data (11 cases, 87-day average landing time) reflects actual 2023-2025 engagements — please consult Yaoki directly for case-specific analysis.

• JASM (TSMC subsidiary) public information — Wikipedia / TSMC press releases (Fab 1 mass production Dec 2024, monthly capacity 55,000 wafers; Fab 2 opening late 2027; combined monthly capacity 100,000 wafers; ~2,400 employees; 3,400+ high-tech jobs created)
• Kumamoto Prefecture Industrial Support Division (subsidy information) — Kumamoto Prefecture Official (specific amounts subject to the latest prefectural gazette)
• Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) — METI Official (semiconductor and mid-tier enterprise capital investment subsidies)
• Japan National Notaries Association — entity setup fees — Notaries Association
• Immigration Services Agency — Business Manager visa requirements — Ministry of Justice (note: requirements substantially revised effective 2025/10/16)
• All Yaoki team estimates (11 cases, 87 days, etc.) reflect industry-experience ranges; please consult Yaoki for case-specific analysis.

Last updated: 2026.05.22 · Defer to the latest official announcements for any government policy or market data updates.