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View Vacancy – JPN (Tokyo) – Economic Officer, AO
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Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)
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Main Purpose of Job:
Japan is the UK’s largest international inward investor outside the US and Europe, with £102bn in investment stock, and nearly 1,000 Japanese companies sustaining over 150,000 UK jobs. The UK-Japan trade relationship is worth £33bn annually. Economic Growth is a key priority for the UK Government. Being an open and globally interconnected economy, international partnerships with like-minded economies like Japan are fundamental to the UK’s economic prosperity.
The Economic and Finance Team’s work at the British Embassy Tokyo is highly collaborative, cross-cutting, and focuses on deepening the economic linkages between the UK and Japan through economic analysis, policy engagement, and the delivery of economy-focused events and programmes. With this goal in mind, we engage daily with government officials, industry, think tanks, academia and other diplomatic representations in Japan.
The job holder will have the opportunity to work on a broad policy area working alongside other policy leads in the team on economic security cooperation, financial sector policy and economic analysis. The role will also have responsibility for supporting the administration of financial programmes within the Embassy and support assist in the delivery of events and visits.
The job holder will need to be flexible depending on the needs of the team and there will be opportunities to shape the scope of activities.
What the Jobholder will be Expected to Achieve:
- Programme Fund Administration (35%): Working with the Counsellor, Economic and Finance, to assist in driving the UK in Japan network’s effective use of programme funds. This includes running the network’s programme fund board, supporting policy teams in the bidding process, and conducting monitoring and reporting on programme expenditures, forecasting and project evaluations.
- External engagement and relationship management (35%): Support the Counsellor, Economic and Finance, and the wider team in setting up meetings with external contacts and logistical arrangements. Managing contacts relevant to the team’s work and keeping up to date information on organisational changes of stakeholders.
- Events and visits (25%): Assist in planning and delivering visit programmes for ministers and senior government officials, working closely with the Counsellor, Economics and Finance, and other policy leads in the Economic and Finance Team, and Embassy Visits Officer(s). Flex as necessary to support wider embassy visit priorities outside of the Economic and Finance team. Provide support to intergovernmental meetings and dialogues.
- Cross-network working (5%): Take an active role in the Embassy’s crisis response plan and crisis exercises, and at least one of its corporate networks.
The jobholder may be expected to take on other tasks suited to their interests, grade and capability. There will be regular team and 1-1 meetings to set both team and individual objectives.
Resources Managed (staff and expenditure):
Monitoring responsibility for programme fund budgets utilised by the UK in Japan Network (approximately GBP 300,000-400,000 annually).
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- Strong communication skills in both English and Japanese, dealing with both internal and external stakeholders
- Experience working in an English and Japanese language working environment
- Curiosity and willingness to learn about a range of subject areas related to economic, financial and economic security policy
Language requirement:
This role requires written and spoken proficiency in both English and Japanese. fluency (minimum of C2 level for CEFR framework*) in one and business level (minimum of C1) in the other.
*Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages sets the following mastery or proficiency levels:
- C2: Can understand with ease virtually everything heard or read. Can summarise information from different spoken and written sources, reconstructing arguments and accounts in a coherent presentation. Can express themself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely, differentiating finer shades of meaning even in more complex situations.
- C1: Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise implicit meaning. Can express him/herself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.
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- Programme and/ or financial management experience
- An active interest in government policy and working on economic and financial policy issues
- Experience of working with Japanese and British businesses and/ or governments
- Experience of visit planning and coordination
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Delivering at Pace, Managing a Quality Service, Working Together
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21 June 2026
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Administrative Officer (AO)
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Full-time, Permanent
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37.5
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Asia Pacific
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Japan
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Tokyo
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British Embassy
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1
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JPY
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JPY 462,200
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monthly
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17 August 2026
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- 1 month salary bonus equivalents payable in June and December
(Note: Salary may be reduced due to tax status) - Commuting allowance of up to JPY35,000 per month (paid on an actual cost basis)
- 25 days paid annual leave (calculated pro rata)
- Health Insurance and Employee pension (kenko hoken/kosei nenkin)
- Employment Insurance (koyou hoken)
Working Patterns:
The British Embassy supports and promotes flexible working as a crucial part of our inclusive offering. This role allows for flexible working e.g. start and end times, working compressed hours, working remotely on one day a week, and the possibility of a job share arrangement, subject to agreement with management.
This role will be offered pending successful reference and security checks and is subject to the appropriate permissions to work. Staff recruited locally by the British Embassy Tokyo is subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local Japan employment law.
No accommodation or relocation expenses are payable in connection with this position. All candidates must be legally able to work and reside in Japan with the correct visa/work permit status or demonstrate eligibility to obtain the relevant permit. Any costs related to obtaining or renewing permits and visas are the responsibility of the successful applicant.
Employees who are not liable to pay local income tax on their Mission salary may have their salaries reduced by the equivalent local income tax amount.
The FCDO operates an agile approach to delivery. To facilitate an agile workforce, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time as we may reasonably require.
Learning and Development Opportunities:
The British Embassy and UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office provides a range of training opportunities in core diplomatic and commercial skills, from networking and communication to project management. The British Embassy works closely with Embassies across the Asia-Pacific region to share experience and learning.
Alongside a number of Embassy-specific courses that will need to be completed on arrival, the Embassy is supportive of learning and development. We offer five development days per year, and regular opportunities for learning and development delivered both within the mission and regionally in Asia. We also focus on using coaching and a buddying system to support new arrivals.
All staff are required to take a role in the embassy’s crisis preparation and response. Full training will be provided for this and regular opportunities will be available to test and develop your skills.
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Please note that the deadline for applications is 23:55 on the day mentioned in the above field “Application deadline”.
Please be aware that the deadline for submitting applications is considered to be the time zone for the country where the vacancy has arisen.
We advise you to allow enough time to complete and submit your full application, since only applications completed and submitted before the deadline will be considered.
Note: All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the online application form completely including the employment and educational details, experience, professional skills and behaviour-based questions. We will be thoroughly reviewing the applications and incomplete form in any respect may not be considered while shortlisting for the next stage.
Only shortlisted candidates for interview will be contacted. Interviewees will be assessed on the core behaviours/qualifications listed above. Unsuccessful candidates will be notified via the system in due time. Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’. If during the reserve period of 6 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate.
To ensure a successful application it is important that you explain how you demonstrate these behaviours, including through your experience. You are strongly advised to read the Success Profiles Civil Service Behaviours Framework, which provides detailed guidance on how the behaviours are defined.
Applicants are encouraged to use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) format to prepare specific examples of when they have demonstrated these behaviours in their application. Using the STAR format to provide evidence of your skills and experience in your application and at interview helps to give a structure. You briefly describe the situation in which you showed the behaviour, and then explain your task in addressing the situation, what action you took and the result of this.
Please ensure that your application is authentically written based on your own experiences. If AI tools are used, their usage must only be limited to specific tasks such as ensuring formatting consistency and keyword relevance. The core content, personal narratives, and responses to behaviour and skill-based questions must genuinely reflect your professional journey, experiences, and achievements. We place great importance on originality and individual effort throughout the application process. Any form of plagiarism will result in immediate disqualification.
For inclusivity and diversity, please remove the following personal information when uploading your CV: name, address, email address, age, date of birth, gender and nationality.
The start date mentioned in the job advert is a tentative start date and the successful candidate will be required to undergo security vetting procedures. Any offer of employment will be subject to the candidate achieving suitable clearances.
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To apply please copy and paste this link: https://fco.tal.net/vx/appcentre-ext/candidate/jobboard/vacancy/1/adv/
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