Professional and advisory services
Consultations sold by the hour, where the first meeting decides whether there is a client at all. Below is how 26 of them actually set up online booking — the session length, the gap between clients, whether to take payment up front, and the one thing that trips each trade up in Japan.
Financial advisors#
A free discovery call qualifies the client, and the paid work that follows is a small number of long, valuable meetings that must not be missed.
| Duration | 30 minutes discovery, 90 for a planning session |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours |
| Buffer | 15 minutes after, to write up |
| Max bookings per day | Three substantive meetings a day |
| Location | Video, or in person for a first meeting |
| Payment | Discovery free, planning sessions paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 48 hours before |
Worth asking on the booking form: What would you like to talk about? · How long have you been in Japan? · Are you a Japanese tax resident?
Foreign residents want advice on NISA, iDeCo, overseas pensions and whether they are tax resident — and they want it in English. Naming those in the event description does more for bookings than any amount of general copy.
Wealth and investment advisors#
Few clients, high value, and an annual review that gets booked twelve months ahead.
| Duration | 90 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 72 hours |
| Bookable up to | 365 days |
| Location | In person or video |
| Payment | Fees invoiced separately; the meeting itself is free to book |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
NISA, iDeCo and pension advisors#
One well-defined question per client, answered in an hour, with strong seasonality around the tax year.
| Duration | 60 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 48 hours before |
Leaving Japan raises the lump-sum withdrawal question and a hard deadline with it. A dedicated event type for departing residents catches people at exactly the moment they search.
Tax advisors (税理士)#
Nine quiet months and then a wall of work between mid-February and 15 March, when every client wants the same three weeks.
| Duration | 60 minutes for a consultation, 30 for a follow-up |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 48 hours |
| Buffer | 15 minutes after |
| Bookable up to | 90 days |
| Max bookings per day | Use a daily cap in filing season or the whole day becomes consultations |
| Location | Video, or in person |
| Payment | Paid online — it filters out the browsing and keeps the diary for clients |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 48 hours before |
Worth asking on the booking form: Employed, self-employed or both? · Do you have foreign income or assets? · Which tax year?
The 確定申告 deadline of 15 March is the entire year in one line. Open the calendar wide from January, put the documents to bring in the confirmation message, and cap consultations per day so the filing itself still gets done.
Accountants and bookkeepers#
A monthly or quarterly rhythm with the same clients, punctuated by year-end, so the diary is predictable and then suddenly is not.
| Duration | 45 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Included in the retainer — free to book |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Worth asking on the booking form: Which company? · Which period are we reviewing? · Anything unusual this month?
Lawyers#
A paid initial consultation of a fixed length that both qualifies the matter and is itself a product, with clients who are often anxious and want to book without explaining themselves first.
| Duration | 60 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 48 hours |
| Buffer | 15 minutes after, for a file note |
| Max bookings per day | Two or three consultations a day |
| Location | In person or video |
| Payment | Paid online — a fixed consultation fee sets expectations before anyone talks |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 48 hours before, none inside 24 |
Worth asking on the booking form: Which area of law? · Brief description of the matter · Is there a deadline or court date?
English-speaking legal help in Japan is searched for by practice area, not by firm: divorce, visa, employment, landlord disputes, inheritance. One event type per area, each named plainly, is worth more than a single "consultation".
Immigration and visa consultants (行政書士)#
Clients arrive with a hard deadline — a visa expiring, a job starting, a family arriving — and they are anxious, overseas, or both.
| Duration | 45 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours |
| Buffer | 15 minutes after |
| Max bookings per day | Four consultations a day |
| Location | Video, so a client outside Japan can attend |
| Payment | Paid online — a fixed fee stops the free-advice call that never converts |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 48 hours before |
Worth asking on the booking form: Current status of residence and expiry date · Which visa are you applying for? · Nationality · Are you in Japan now?
Spouse visas, Highly Skilled Professional, permanent residency, business manager and the change of status of residence are each a different consultation with different documents. Separate event types let somebody book the right one and read the document list before they arrive.
Company incorporation consultants#
A single consultation that turns into a project, often booked by someone who is not yet in the country.
| Duration | 60 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Paid online, credited against the engagement |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 48 hours before |
KK or GK is the question behind almost every one of these calls, along with whether a resident director is needed. Naming both in the description answers the search directly.
Labour and HR consultants (社労士)#
Retained clients with a monthly check-in, plus urgent one-off calls when something has gone wrong with an employee.
| Duration | 45 minutes standard, a separate 30-minute urgent event type with short notice |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours standard, 2 hours for urgent |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Retainer clients free, one-off calls paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 24 hours before |
Patent attorneys#
Consultations driven by filing deadlines, with a confidentiality concern that makes people reluctant to describe the matter on a form.
| Duration | 60 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 48 hours |
| Location | Video or in person |
| Payment | Paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 72 hours before |
Worth asking on the booking form: Technology area · Have you disclosed the invention publicly? · Any filing deadline?
Inheritance (相続) advisors#
Clients come in the worst week of their year, often several family members at once, and the ten-month filing deadline is running.
| Duration | 90 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 48 hours |
| Location | In person or video |
| Payment | Paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 72 hours before |
Worth asking on the booking form: Date of death · Where are the assets held? · How many heirs?
Japanese inheritance tax reaches worldwide assets for many foreign residents, and the ten-month deadline from the date of death catches people who did not know it existed. Say the deadline on the page.
Insurance brokers#
A fact-finding call and then a recommendation meeting, with nothing paid by the client at either.
| Duration | 45 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 12 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Free — you are paid by the provider |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Mortgage brokers#
Time-critical around an offer on a property, so short notice matters more than a tidy calendar.
| Duration | 45 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 4 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Free |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Worth asking on the booking form: Do you hold permanent residency? · Have you found a property? · Employment type
Whether a foreign resident can get a loan without permanent residency is the question behind nearly every enquiry. Answering it in the description will lose you the calls you were going to lose anyway, and win the rest.
Recruitment consultants and headhunters#
Candidates can only talk outside working hours or in a lunch break, and a first call is short, exploratory and often confidential.
| Duration | 30 minutes for a candidate call, 45 for a client briefing |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 4 hours |
| Buffer | 10 minutes after, to write notes |
| Max bookings per day | Eight candidate calls a day is a full day |
| Location | Video or phone |
| Payment | Free — the employer pays you |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Worth asking on the booking form: Current role and company · What are you looking for? · Notice period · Japanese level
Candidates in Japan are often job-hunting without their current employer knowing, so an invite-only event type and a single-use link keep the conversation off your public page entirely.
Career coaches#
A free introductory call that converts into a paid package, with sessions squeezed into early mornings, lunch breaks and evenings.
| Duration | 20 minutes intro, 60 for a session |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 12 hours |
| Max bookings per day | Five sessions a day |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Intro free, sessions paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 24 hours before, none inside — the slot was held |
Worth asking on the booking form: Current situation in one line · What would a good outcome look like? · Any deadline you are working to?
Clients are usually deciding between staying in Japan, moving to a foreign-owned firm, or leaving — and they want a coach who has actually navigated that. Say so on the page; it is the differentiator.
CV and resume consultants#
A short review call plus written work afterwards, where the document has to arrive before the meeting is useful.
| Duration | 45 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 48 hours, so you can read the CV first |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 48 hours before |
Worth asking on the booking form: Which roles are you targeting? · Send your current CV before the call · Western CV, 履歴書, or both?
A Western CV and a Japanese 履歴書 are different documents with different rules, and clients often need both. Two event types, priced separately, says that more clearly than a paragraph.
Executive coaches#
A standing fortnightly slot with a small number of senior clients, rearranged often and at short notice.
| Duration | 60 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Invoiced to the company |
| Cancellation policy | Agreed in the engagement |
Business and management consultants#
A free scoping call decides whether there is a project, so the only thing that matters is that it is easy to book.
| Duration | 30 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 12 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Free |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Marketing consultants#
Discovery calls from a website, plus recurring reviews with retained clients — two different event types on one page.
| Duration | 30 minutes discovery, 60 for a review |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 12 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Discovery free, ad-hoc sessions paid online |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 24 hours before |
SEO and web consultants#
An audit call booked straight from a landing page, which means the booking widget needs to sit in the page rather than on another site.
| Duration | 30 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 6 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Free, or a paid audit as a second event type |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 24 hours before |
Freelance developers#
A short call to decide whether the project is a fit, booked by people in several time zones.
| Duration | 30 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 12 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Free |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Worth asking on the booking form: What are you building? · Timeline and budget range · Your time zone
IT support and managed services#
Remote sessions booked at short notice when something is broken, plus scheduled on-site visits.
| Duration | 30 minutes remote, 120 on site |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 2 hours remote, 24 hours on site |
| Buffer | 45 minutes after an on-site visit, for travel |
| Location | Video, or in person at the client’s office |
| Payment | Paid online for one-off jobs, retainer otherwise |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 12 hours before |
Translators#
The work is not booked by the hour, but the quoting conversation is, and it is the bottleneck.
| Duration | 20 minutes for a quote call |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 12 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Free |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Worth asking on the booking form: Language pair and direction · Document type and word count · Deadline
Interpreters#
Booked by the half-day for a meeting whose time you do not control, with travel and preparation either side.
| Duration | Half day (4 hours) and full day as two event types |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 72 hours |
| Buffer | 60 minutes after, for travel |
| Location | In person, address from the form, or video |
| Payment | Paid online, or invoiced for corporate clients |
| Cancellation policy | Full refund 7 days before, 50% inside 72 hours |
Worth asking on the booking form: Subject matter · Venue address or meeting link · How many participants? · Any materials to prepare from?
Notary and apostille services#
Short counter appointments where the document has to be right before the person arrives.
| Duration | 20 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 24 hours |
| Location | In person |
| Payment | Paid in person |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Worth asking on the booking form: Which document? · Which country is it for? · Do you have the original?
Bilingual virtual assistants#
A short onboarding call, then almost no meetings — which is exactly why the one call has to be easy to book.
| Duration | 30 minutes |
|---|---|
| Minimum notice | 12 hours |
| Location | Video |
| Payment | Free |
| Cancellation policy | Not applicable |
Set this up in about ten minutes
Business Box is free for as long as you like, with no card required — booking pages, Google and Outlook calendar sync, availability, Japanese public holidays and the website widget. Taking card payment for bookings is ¥1,200 a month, tax included, with no commission on what you sell.
Last reviewed 28 September 2026.