Timeline for permanent spouse visa

Hi everyone,

I've been reading lots of posts and articles about this topic and I need some clarity from people in my same condition. I'm confused.

I'm an Italian citizen (EU passport, if this matters), been married with a Japanese national for 6 years, everything registered correctly etc. and we moved to Japan three years ago, always living together and since last year at her family's place. Now...

I got here initially with a tourist visa, turned with no problems into a spouse first visa for 1 year, renewed for another year. Now I need to apply for a third visa hoping for a 3 years extension. (1+1+ don't know what!)

My wife and I have a registered family business, and according to the immigration website...

"If the applicant is a spouse or child of Japanese national (...) the applicant does not need to satisfy the requirements (1 - being a good guy, which I am) and (2 - have sufficient assets, without saying how much is sufficient!) So income seems to be a no-issue for spouse visas, but pople here say otherwise.

Our bank account in any case shows we have enough money for living a few years even without income. I always submitted a joint tax declaration with my wife and paid local taxes. Finally...

My questions:

1- should I expect a 3 years estension or is 1 year more common?

2- What happens then? I mean, the law requires to be married for at least three years and living at least one year in Japan together for getting a permanent visa (correct?)

3- If so, after getting a renewal, can I apply for a permanent visa since the above criteria will be fulfilled (three years will be passed)?

4- This is the most confusing part... Some sites say I need a 3 year visa (1+1+3) before even applying for a permanent visa. Is that true? In that case it makes 5 years total, which is not in line with the law. Correct? So what do people do in this case? change the visa type after 3 yeara or just wait the 1+1+3 = 5 years to pass? Any personal experience to share?

Appreciate any help with this.

Thanks, grazie.

First of all, it is "Spouse of Japanese national" and "Permanent Resident." :)

1. I cannot tell. It's up to Immigration whether they consider your situation "stable" - they tend to look for stability (rather than having enough money at this moment). So it might take another year till they see how stable your business is going.

2. If you do get the 3-year extension, then you will be eligible to apply for "Permanent Resident" status on the following occasion. You can wait till maybe the end of the 2nd year, then apply for PR. (The reason being that the screening for PR applications takes longer, they say allow 6 - 9 months, so you need to give plenty of time/apply well in advance of the expiry.)

3 & 4. (1+1+1) isn't sufficient to apply for PR. You need to have the 3-year resident status as "Spouse of Japanese" to apply for PR. They say you need to have the longest one on your current status before you apply for PR. (Now there is a Spouse resident status for 5 years as well, but for the time being Immigration says the 3-year one is enough to apply for PR.)

1) In many people's experience (mine as well) it is 1+1+3, but that is not always the case. If your application shows no oddities or raises any red flags, there's no reason why you shouldn't get 3 years... but this is immigration we're talking about, and they're hardly transparent. So you wont know until you apply.

2) I've heard rumors of people applying for and getting permanent residency in less than 10 years (but still after 5), but everyone who I've talked to who actually HAS PR has done the 10 years route.

I think if you're wanting PR as fast as possible, you've got 2 options:

A) Just apply for it and see. If they reject you, keep on keeping on with the spouse residency applications for a few more years until you hit 10 then try again. You need to apply for PR with about a year to 6 months left on your residency status anyway, while renewing a status is within 3 months of expiration. If you get 3 years on your next renewal, then plan to apply for PR at the 2 year mark before it expires. Who knows, you may get it!

B) Contact a lawyer. We on the forum are not immigration lawyers, and cannot give you the best advice. If you want to best information, talk to an expert. They will be able to give you advice on when and how to apply for best chances, and can help you with your application, etc.

1- should I expect a 3 years estension or is 1 year more common?

As mentioned, it is usual to get 1,1,3 year extensions, but a 1 year is also common depending on your situation.

In that case it makes 5 years total, which is not in line with the law. Correct?

Not correct. Note that you must be in Japan a MINIMUM of 3 years married, and that it is theoretically possible to get a 3 year visa right away. In addition, a 1,1,3 year situation means that you can apply in year 2 of your 3 year extension, in other words, after 3 years of being in Japan as a spouse.

PR applications are different than visa renewals and must be made with 6-12 months (preferably 12 or longer) left on your current residency, not just before it is about to expire.

additional comments:

A) Just apply for it and see. If they reject you, keep on keeping on with the spouse residency applications for a few more years until you hit 10 then try again.

You only need 3 years as a spouse. Also, you can ask immigration when it will be appropriate for you to apply. They'll give your situation a cursory look and will be able tell you the proper time. If you don't satisfy the minimums they won't even take your application.

while renewing a status is within 3 months of expiration.

The renewal period is within 2 months of expiration.

The renewal period is within 2 months of expiration.

My most recent application was requested within three months. Perhaps it was just the immigration office I went to.

scarreddragon,

When one switches from "Spouse of Japanese" to "PR" (as against from work resident status to PR), less than 10 years does happen a lot. In fact I believe 5 years in Japan on Spouse of Japanese does suffices.


And yes, we've experienced applying (and accepted) 3 months within expiration :)

My case was +1 +1 +1 +1 +3.

You should know two things:
-The immigration don't trust anyone.
-You will get +3 when you/your spouse/your parents in law have a stable income and pay taxes regularly or at least for last year.

If you gave them kazei shoumeishou and nouzeishoumeishou,then most likely you will get the +3. If you gave them hikazeishoumeisho, there is a higher chance that you will get another+1 .

I am gonna apply for the PR soon. You can apply only when:
- Spent 3 years of marriage with your wife.
- Lived 1 in Japan.
- Received 3 years visa.
If any one is missing, don't bother applying.

This is your case +1 +1, if you receive +3, then you should wait one more year until you complete 3 years of marriage, then you can apply.

I wish you all the best!

Most of the people I know with PR started on a work visa of some sort then got married after they'd been in Japan awhile, so that's probably why for them 10 is the usual. But there you go, you can get it in 5!

Gentlemen (or ladies ;), thanks everyone for such useful information. Lo apprezzo molto, I appreciate it very much.

Now I feel much better. I hope that opening this thread will help other people to get fresh info, as many articles available online include outdated guidelines, so please keep this thread alive for people doing that now (end 2016 / beginnign 2017). Grazie.

As for my particular case, I really hope to get the +3 extension, even though my current income might be a bit on the low side (do you think around 3 mln / year is enough?). I get that it must be stable income... Mine is subject to change, I don't want to work for a j-kaisha.

If I get +3 and the immigration say it's possible, I will try to convert it to permanent after one year.

As a side note, I have always submitted my renewal request about 6 weeks before the expiring date and never had issues. I think 3 months is absolutely safe but quite conservative. Any thoughts? I applied at Tokyo - Shinagawa's office.

Finally, in the unfortunate case that my visa will get just a +1 year extension, I will feel fine. I suggest other people out there not to be too upset if they don't obtain what they want immediately. Your visa is a priviledge, not a right. That's the way I see it.

I'll keep you posted. Ciao.

(do you think around 3 mln / year is enough?). I get that it must be stable income... Mine is subject to change, I don't want to work for a j-kaisha. Mine is subject to change, I don't want to work for a j-kaisha

3 or 2 million yen is enough but it should be a stable income. You should be paying your annual income tax, the resident taxes, nenkin(pension), unemployment tax called kousei nenkin, have kenkou hoken....

Once they know that you are doing all your duties and there is no risk that you will be a burden on the government. You will easily get the +3 and the PR.

Good night!

My most recent application was requested within three months. Perhaps it was just the immigration office I went to.

My mistake, seems my info is out of date. Found the most current immigration guidelines and three months it is:

http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/kanri/shyorui/03.html

Hi everyone, I wanted to close this discussion, I have some news. I got a +1 renewal, which is ok, I can live with that. I asked them why I got only one. I spent a few months (4 & 1/2) in Europe for personal matters and they said it's the reason i did not get 3 or 5 years. "If you apply for a permanent visa, you need to live permanently here". Fair enough. I replied that for + 7 months in the last calendar year I stayed in Japan, more than a year considering the previous visa. I payed my taxes, I have been living with my wife for years etc. Also, I have a freelance job and I can work anywhere. Not enough apparently. I suspect this is a rule of thumb (how many days abroad in a year are too many? Perhaps there's a limit?) and it basically depends on the officer dealing with your request. If I were a salariman with 10 days off a year, I think I'd get a +5 right away. In any case, let's see what happens next year. I prefer a yearly renewal until they will say ok rather than giving up a few weeks a year with my family back in Europe. Thanks everyone!

I am afraid your case is gonna be similar to mine.I really had a hard time with the +1!I am writing just to console you.

"it basically depends on the officer dealing with your request"

That is not true. They have some rules.There are cases where they become light but trust me very few times. Sorry to tell you this but it seems to me getting +1 is natural in your case.

This is the immigration officer mindset!

-Spending 90 days outside of Japan:means you are not serious about building your life in Japan (not stable)
-Freelance job (they think you are jobless, so financially not stable)
-Your live with your parents in law (not independent yet)

They can't give you +1 when you have many minus points in your application.

They don't hate you or anything. They just want to keep checking your situation until you show them you are seriously willing to settle down in Japan.

I wish you all the best.

Ops, typo.
They can't give you + 3 when you have many minus points in your application.

Sure, I'm not upset, I totally get why they gave me 1 year. Next year I'll get another + 1 because I won't change my lifestyle for a piece of paper. The + 3 will come eventually. I don't agree with these rules but hey, there's not much I can do. I just think that being married for years with a woman and having a decent income should be enough for getting a long term visa. I pay taxes, living with my in laws is irrelevant, my wife and I are legally a registered family, a status that in my opinion should have some value in the process. Spending some time abroad should be a right but I accept the verdict. In the EU they usually give 5 years spouse right away and then permanent upon renewal, income is not even checked. Japan is another story, i am the odd one here. Grazie a tutti, ciao.

I think it does not matter what the current visa status is as long as you are married and lived in Japan for more than 3 years.

I lived in Japan for 7 years on a work visa and never had a spouse visa, but applied this year for a PR since I have been married over 3 years to my wife. It worked and I got my PR last month.

By the way, it took me 4 months to get the "golden ticket", but they told me it can also take up to 1 year.

This link from the official website of the immigration office that shows Guidelines for permission for PR.

http://www.moj.go.jp/content/000099622.pdf

For married to Japanese, it says the following:
The person is a spouse of a Japanese national, special permanent resident or permanent resident, and has been in a real marital relationship for more than 3 years consecutively and has stayed in Japan more than 1 year consecutively.

This means it is a must to meet the following:
-Married for 3 years
-Lived in Japan 1 year

In the bottom of the page it says:

(Note) In these guidelines, for the time being, any person whose period of stay is �gthree years�h shall be regarded as a �gperson who is allowed to stay up to the maximum period of stay�h, as specified in the above Section 1 (3) c).

I am not a native speaker of English, also not sure how the statement can be interpreted. What I understood is that [any person whose period of stay is 3 years can be regarded as a person able to apply for the PR]

The rule for receiving 3 years is it really necessary and why?

You can't get 3 years if you or your sponsor don't pay taxes. So, applying for the PR without the 3 years extension is a waste of your time.Your application will be denied because neither you or your sponsor has fulfilled the second requirement stated in the link shared above which is:

(2) The person has sufficient assets or ability to make an independent living. The person does not financially depend on someone in the society in his daily life, and his/her assets or ability, etc. are assumed to continue to provide him/her with a stablebase of livelihood into the future.

Why city hunter got the PR?

Obviously, he has been on a working visa.So, he was regularly paying taxes. This is a great plus.When he got married, most likely continued to pay taxes and you must have received the 3 years extension in the first or the second year on your spouse visa.
If city hunter applies for the PR, there is 0 chance not to get it as it seems there are no minuses in his profile!

That is why I think!

All valid points but:

"You can't get 3 years if you or your sponsor don't pay taxes". True but not enough if you do. We do, and did not get the 3 years. Other conditions are important too. If you are a freelance worker (registered and taxpayer) like me, it does not matter that you make more money than a salaryman. It's like asking for a mortgage, they want to see stabilty. If you have a 200K monthly check, you are good.

"The person has sufficient assets or ability to make an independent living" my bank account has money it ... definitely an asset. Read above, not enough.

"applying for the PR without the 3 years extension is a waste of your time". True.

This is your 1st statement:
Our bank account in any case shows we have enough money for living a few years even without income. I always submitted a joint tax declaration with my wife and paid local taxes.
You also mentioned:
Other conditions are important too. If you are a freelance worker (registered and taxpayer)
I am not trying to prove you wrong. I simply want to help by giving you an idea on how the immigration officer might have possibly assessed your application for the visa extension.

Immigration officer:
1)- Having enough savings: showing the officer you have enough savings is irrelevant(especially, if you are not having a Japanese bank account where it shows the origins of your salaries). Also, it doesn't guarantee that your financial life is stable. They also don't know the source of the savings you have. They don't know if you worked to save them or were given to you by your family...They generally don't trust you/us as Gaijins! Another important thing, the officer may believe your savings is not enough considering you are married.
2)- Other conditions are important too. If you are a freelance worker (registered and taxpayer): did you or your wife submit�ېŏؖ���and�[�ŏؖ���and���򒥎�?
If you or your wife, submitted all the above documents, and they still refused to grant the 3 years extension,this means two things:
A-They do not want you to keep travelling longer than 30 days outside of Japan. because they think you are not seriously thinking of building a life in Japan :if you don't go outside of Japan, I believe in next renewal by submiting the �ېŏؖ���and�[�ŏؖ���, they will give you 3 years extension.
B-There is possibly another reason that makes them think you don't deserve 3 years extension. Maybe they think your marriage is not genuine or something you and I have no idea about.

If you are very annoyed about the issue,I recommend you to visit a lawyer for a professional guidance next time when you want to apply for the visa extension.Sometimes,when writing the application,we make stupid mistakes.Also,a lawyer will give you other suggestions that will make the officer give you the 3 years comfortably!
I hope the above is useful to you.
I wish you all the best!