Your manager says you are being moved to another office, and an email headed 人事異動のお知らせ arrives in Japanese. First separate the announcement date from the date the new assignment starts. Then confirm the new worksite and duties in writing, compare them with your stated working conditions, and ask HR what changes in commuting, housing and expenses.
Words in an assignment or transfer notice
| Japanese | Reading | Meaning / question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| 人事異動 | じんじいどう (jinji idō) | Personnel change; a broad term, not necessarily a move to another city |
| 配置転換／配転 | はいちてんかん／はいてん | Change of assignment or placement |
| 転勤 | てんきん (tenkin) | Transfer to a different work location |
| 発令日 | はつれいび (hatsureibi) | Date the personnel order is issued |
| 異動日／着任日 | いどうび／ちゃくにんび | Effective date / date you start at the new assignment |
| 現所属／新所属 | げんしょぞく／しんしょぞく | Current / new department or unit |
| 勤務地／就業場所 | きんむち／しゅうぎょうばしょ | Work location |
| 業務内容／職務 | ぎょうむないよう／しょくむ | Duties or role |
| 赴任／転居を伴う | ふにん／てんきょをともなう | Taking up the new post / requiring a move of home |
| 引継ぎ | ひきつぎ (hikitsugi) | Handover of current work |
Check whether the message is a proposal, an informal announcement or a formal order. A heading alone does not answer that question. Save the complete notice, including attachments and dates, and ask which version is final if details change.
Five things to confirm before the move
- Where and when? Confirm the address, required first day, reporting time and whether a remote-work arrangement changes. 発令日 can precede 着任日.
- What work and whom to report to? Ask for the duties, team, manager, schedule and any handover deadline. Compare them with your employment documents.
- What happens to pay and commuting? Ask whether salary, allowances or working hours change. If the route changes, our commuting allowance form guide helps with the Japanese fields.
- If relocation is involved, what support applies? Ask HR about travel, moving costs, temporary lodging, housing allowance and the claim method. Do not assume every employer offers the same support. If you will actually move home, use our address change checklist for separate resident procedures.
- Where are the written terms? Locate your contract or notice of working conditions and the 就業規則. Check the stated 就業場所の変更の範囲 (range of possible work locations) and any location-limited agreement.
What the official guidance says about location changes
Since April 2024, the scope of possible changes to work location and duties must be stated when working conditions are provided at contract formation and renewal, as explained by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. That wording is an important starting point; it does not, by itself, decide every later disagreement.
The ministry’s Q&A on location-limited agreements and case-law summary on transfers show why the contract, workplace rules and circumstances matter. A transfer order is not automatically valid or invalid merely because it is inconvenient or because a company calls it mandatory. If your contract limits the location, or the move creates a serious difficulty, put the facts to HR promptly and seek individual advice from a labour consultation service before taking irreversible steps.
Short Japanese questions to send
- 異動日と新しい勤務地の住所を確認させてください。
Idōbi to atarashii kinmuchi no jūsho o kakunin sasete kudasai.
Please let me confirm the effective date and address of the new worksite. - 新しい業務内容と勤務時間を教えていただけますか。
Atarashii gyōmu naiyō to kinmu jikan o oshiete itadakemasu ka.
Could you tell me the new duties and working hours? - 転居が必要な場合、費用や手当の規定を確認できますか。
Tenkyo ga hitsuyō na baai, hiyō ya teate no kitei o kakunin dekimasu ka.
If I need to move home, may I check the rules for expenses and allowances? - 労働条件通知書に記載された勤務地の範囲と、今回の異動について相談したいです。
Rōdō jōken tsūchisho ni kisai sareta kinmuchi no han’i to, konkai no idō ni tsuite sōdan shitai desu.
I would like to discuss this transfer in light of the work-location range in my written conditions.
Ask HR to confirm the answers by email or in an updated document. Keep your own copy of the notice and any related policy; the practical issue is knowing the location, duties, dates and financial arrangements before you reorganize your life around them.
