visa: dependent or alternatives?

Hi!

Sorry if that question has already been asked but I couldn't find the perfect answer :)

So, my girlfriend has gotten a job in Japan, has a signed contract and her future company is in the process of sponsoring her for her COE. Of course, I would like to leave at the same time as her but I guess it will be very difficult for me to get a work visa and get sponsored in time. So I'm looking at other options.

We're not married but we could do so if needed (been together for 10 years), it's just that... well, it's not the most romantic thing ever :)
(precision: my gf is not japanese, me neither)

So basically, do I have a shot at getting a visa on time (if so, which?).
If we're going for a dependent visa, in which order do I need to do things?

From what I've understood, even in the case of a dependent visa, it's highly recommended to get a COE. Who would be sponsoring it then? Can her future company do it? Can my (then) wife do it once she's gotten her visa? Before she even gets it? (the goal being to be done with all the paperwork for both of us and move as soon as possible)


Anyway, after looking for quite a bit, it seems like a dependent visa would be the 'easiest' to get but if there are alternatives to it (as in: that wouldn't require me to get married), I'm all ears! :D

Thanks in advance!

Well, getting married so that you can be together is not a bad thing, is it? :)

If you do get married, the following is the process you "could" take. Immigration seems to say that getting the CoE from your country is the "proper" (and the only) way, but nothing is wrong with the following. (But once again this assumes you get married.)

If you are from a country whose citizens are given Temporary Visitor status of 90 days upon entering Japan with just your passport, you "could" come on that, then start the process for changing to Dependent status once you are in Japan (but the application for the change needs to be filed while the Temporary Visitor status is valid). The "sponsor" will be your wife-to-be.

If you don't get married, you will need to find work to get a work visa yourself (would be difficult at the same time, and finding work and applying once in Japan is not likely), or apply for a language school in Japan (if you are interested at all) for student visa (which requires application with a school, getting admitted, paying in tuition, which is not inexpensive), but all this will take some time to be processed.

Thanks for the answer!

Yeah, after looking more into this, and if I understand everything correctly, it really looks like the best solution would be to get married and either:
- (as you mentioned) go there on a tourist visa and 'upgrade' once there
- wait for her visa, do the proceedings from home while asking for her company to sponsor my COE

Well either way, looks like I'm getting married :)
It's definitely not a bad thing, we'd just hoped not to be 'forced' into it! But it's fine really, the result is the same anyway.

Thanks a lot!

- wait for her visa, do the proceedings from home while asking for her company to sponsor my COE

Her company cannot sponsor your dependent visa, only she can sponsor you. I believe it is possible to have both processed before you depart, but the timing might not work out if you are leaving within 2-3 months of submitting her COE application.

Option 1, entering on a temporary visa and changing status later, will probably be the easier route. Just remember that when you arrive you are going to be 'temporary' and to answer the immigration officer's questions that way despite the fact that you intend to convert your residency later on.