Holding spouse visa while living overseas

I am married to a Japanese citizen and we live in Singapore. We have been planning to move back to Japan to settle down but we are waiting for me to find a good job allowing to relocate. In the meantime, I have been granted a Certificate of Eligibility to apply for a spouse visa. Given the CoE os only valid for 3 months I am thinking that I should apply for the spouse visa soon. Once the visa granted I will need to enter Japan to get ny residence card. That is is not a problem as we are due for a holiday in Japan anyway. However, I am wondering whether it is allowed to hold a spouse visa while living outside of Singapore - has anyone come across this issue?

I wouldn't want to trigger unwanted tax or other legal consequences.

No; the spouse visa is granted for the purpose of living in Japan with your Japanese spouse. Leaving temporarily is of course permitted, but not leaving long-term unless you have a very good reason (good enough for a re-entry permit to be granted).

Thank you. So, technically, I could still spend a few months in Singapore while keeping my spouse visa and move permanently to Japan when I find a job? If I don't find a job within the next few six months in any case, I'll just surrender my visa and we'll stay in Singapore.

The idea behind the spouse visa was to be able to move to Japan and work as quickly as possible after finding a job ie. without having to wait for several months for the CoE to come through. It also makes my profile more attractive for potential employers.