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Hey everyone! I would like to share (and hopefully get some advice/help) my "horror" story of Change of Status visa application for my son. Please bear with me as this is a long post.
Okay, I am a Japanese national now living and working in Japan. I acquired my Japanese nationality because my father is a pure Japanese and he acknowledged us (his children) and are written in his koseki tohon. I used to be a Filipino citizen because I was born and raised in the Philippines to my Filipino mother. My parents are married and all our documents are legal and the process that we (my siblings) went through to get our Japanese nationalities are legit legal.
Fast forward to 3 years of living in Japan, I left my husband and then-3-year-old son in the Philippines. I had to leave because I did not want to pay those taxes that they charged for foreigners in the Philippines. And also because I wanted to bring my family here to give them a better future.
So, after 1 year of living and working and paying taxes here, I asked my husband to try to apply for a tourist visa for him and my son and I would send them all the necessary requirements because I will be their guarantor and supporter throughout their stay. Everything was submitted, all the documents but they were denied. I had all these questions in my head. Why? Was I living in Japan a too short time to invite my family? Was my bank statement not enough to support them? What document was missing? Then, later on I was told by some of my colleagues that probably it was too soon to invite them and because I had just been living here for a year and my "real" taxes has not come out yet and that my bank statement was not enough to support their trip. So, okay, we got over that and the next thing my husband and I talked about was to get them one by one.
Naturally, I wanted to be with my son first. So, I went through all the steps again to invite my son after about 3 years from that initial application. And YESSSSS, he got approved for a 3-month tourist visa. We were all very excited for his trip. I flew to Manila to pick him up and was even a little nervous at the immigration area at Chubu Airport thinking they may ask for additional documents that may not be with me at that moment. But, no, they just wanted to see the return ticket and asked how we were related then we were off. Phew! (Thank God!)
So, about a month and a half passed and I decided to try to apply for a Change of Status visa for my son so he could study here and we could live together. His father will follow after we finish processing my son's visa. My son was very excited especially when he sees children walking to school and all. He's a very curious and friendly little man. So, I went and got all the needed documents again and we submitted it to the Nagoya Immigration Office. About 2 or 3 weeks after we submitted, I received a hagaki (written in English) asking me to come to their office. I went as soon as I could and to my horror, the application was DENIED. I almost cried in front of the immigration officer, I can feel tears on the side of my eye about to fall. Then, the immigration officer explained to me why. She said that all of my documents (from City Hall and work) have no problem at all. The only paper that they are asking is a court order from the Philippines stating that I have FULL custody of my son. And immediately, at the back of my head, I was like, "WHAT?! I AM HIS MOTHER AND HE IS 6 YEARS OLD AND FROM WHAT I LEARNED, A CHILD YOUNGER THAN 7 SHOULD BE WITH HIS MOTHER UNLESS OTHERWISE PROVEN THAT I AM NOT CAPABLE." And also, my husband and I are still married which is why we dont need such court order or even think about who gets full custody. She continued to explain that in Japan, when a married couple are not living together for some time, they are considered SEPARATED. She also explained to me that if they approve the long term visa of my son it could also mean that they are taking my son away from his father. I tried to explain to them that before my son even got his tourist visa, his father approved his trip and all. She did advice me to try to get that court order within the duration of my son's remaining visa (they put a stamp on his passport which is also like an extension of his stay) and re-apply his Change of Status when I get the papers. I explained to her that it takes a lot of time (and money) to get a court order (especially with the corruption in the Philippines) but she said that this is the only document that I needed. I even asked if I could instead apply for a CoE since he still has about 2 months remaining visa. She said that even if I apply for a CoE, chances are they will ask for the same document. She did confirm to me that that court order was the only paper I needed, all other documents that I submitted is not because they will keep that during the application process.
So, my husband and I talked and we decided to have a lawyer write an agreement stating I have full custody of my son and will try to submit that on his re-application.
Has anyone encountered or know anyone who encountered a situation like mine? What did you do? What did they do? Im really nervous because we will go the Immigration Office again on the 9th this month and hopefully, (please God) he gets approved.
Sorry for the long post and thank you for your time.
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