Guides for companies in Japan · European companies in Japan
Your Japan entity needs IT — but nobody there speaks your head office's language?
The website of the Japanese subsidiary has to follow the corporate design, a tool must connect to head office systems, an app needs a Japanese version. At home, IT is fully booked, and Japanese providers work in Japanese. Every exchange with head office runs through translations and long email threads — often through one person in the Japanese entity who acts as interpreter on the side.
Does this sound familiar?
- The local agency doesn't understand what head office requires.
- Every change needs a translation — and usually you do it yourself.
- IT at head office has no capacity for the Japanese entity.
- A European provider won't sign with your Japanese company or invoice in yen.
- Because of the time difference, there is only a narrow window for calls with Europe.
Why this happens
Two languages, two ways of working
Japanese agencies work thoroughly, but in Japanese and to Japanese processes. Head office requirements on design, data protection and the system landscape are easily lost in translation.
Japan is a small site for head office
For IT at home, the Japanese entity is one site among many. Its requests end up far back in the queue.
Contract and invoice have to fit Japan
Your Japanese company needs a contractor that invoices in yen and whose invoices Japanese bookkeeping can post without detours.
Seven to nine hours of time difference
If you are only served from Europe, you often wait a whole day for every answer.
What to do now
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1
Write requirements down in their original language
Note what head office requires and what is needed locally — in the language the requirements were written in.
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2
Clarify who decides
The Japanese entity, head office or both? One contact on each side prevents conflicting instructions.
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3
Decide who signs
Which company orders and pays — the Japanese subsidiary in yen or head office in euros or pounds? Settle this before the first order.
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4
Collect the access details
Server, domain, CMS, app store accounts: they often sit with a former agency or with head office. Without them nobody can start.
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5
Start small
Begin with a manageable task. You will quickly see whether the collaboration works.
How we help
QkSkima K.K. (QkSkima株式会社) is a Japanese company in Kitakyushu. We talk to your head office in English or German, write to your team in Japan in Japanese or English, and sign the contract directly with your Japanese entity.
- Websites, web applications, desktop software and apps — new builds or taking over existing systems
- The bridge between head office and Japan: we write requirements down so both sides agree — in English or German for head office, in Japanese or English for your team
- Explaining Japan to head office: a short briefing at the start and decision papers people in Japan can agree to
- Managing Japanese providers: reviewing your agency's quotes and code, and organising the handover if a provider stops
- Documentation in English, German and Japanese with a fixed glossary — a native speaker checks Japanese final texts
- Contract under Japanese law and invoice in yen from a Japanese company — or in euros or pounds to head office
- We work on Japan time: in the Production plan, instructions received by 09:00 are done the same Japanese working day
- Japanese versions of European websites and apps — and the other way round
Frequently asked questions
Do you invoice in yen?
Yes. Customers based in Japan receive their invoice in yen, directly from QkSkima K.K. If head office pays, we invoice in euros or pounds, without VAT under the reverse-charge rules.
Which law governs the contract?
Japanese law, with Fukuoka as the place of jurisdiction. Our terms exist in English, German and Japanese; for your Japanese company the Japanese version applies.
Do you also work for head office?
Yes. Many tasks concern both sides anyway. We work for companies based in the EU, the United Kingdom, the rest of Europe and Japan.
Do you speak Japanese?
We work in Japanese in writing: requirements, tickets, documentation. Meetings are in English or German. If your team needs a conversation in Japanese, we bring in a Japanese native speaker.
Our Japanese site runs in head office's TYPO3. Can you look after it?
Yes. We have worked with TYPO3 since 2008, from version 6 to 13. For Japanese content we take care of language fallback, separate URLs, forms with furigana, search in Japanese and editors in Japan. That includes moving off TYPO3 12, which no longer gets free security updates since May 2026.
You are in Kitakyushu, we are in Tokyo. Is that a problem?
No. We work through our customer area, by email and by phone — from Tokyo, Osaka or Europe alike.