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Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/6 09:01
Had permanency visa. Lived in Japan 22 years. Now in UK caring for father with spinal problems. Husband in Japan caring as requires immune suppressant support monthly and has job. Marriage economically and emotionally strong. Working in UK as teacher whilst caring for father. Have one year spouse visa renewable three months either side of December. BUT! Job means canft renew at this time. Have a 6 week summer holiday. Request to move date denied. If I put in application in October can I get date of visa set in October so next year I could renew in summer? Also canI put the application in in October and leave country and return to collect in December?
by Karen Quartermain (guest)  

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/6 10:46
But that means you are not living in Japan currently – that means the immigration authorities must be taking the position gapply again for spouse status when you need to have one,h meaning when you are returning to Japan to live with your husband.

Currently for those who are outside Japan and unable to return to Japan due to COVID-19, the immigration authorities say:
(1) If you hold permanent resident status, you are able to return to Japan even after the one year allowed under the special entry permit and keep the status
(2) If you hold other types of resident status (such as work-related or spouse), if it expires while you are outside Japan, you need to apply for the visa all over once again, but the sponsor in Japan (your spouse in your case) can simply fill in the CoE application form and just attach a letter stating the reason why you could not return (= COVID-19).
Those are the exception allowed due to COVID-19, but I am not aware of any other provisions if for other reasons. Best wishes.


by AK rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/6 15:48
Thank you for your reply. The issue I have is not my elligibity for the spouse visa. Because of pension commitments I have been receiving SV for some 5 years while in the UK. The question is around applying for a visa in October but picking it up in December. (I can only be in Japan for a week due to work). That way next time I could apply in the summer when my 6 week holiday is. I look forward to your reply.
by Karen Quartermain (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/6 15:48
Thank you for your reply. The issue I have is not my elligibity for the spouse visa. Because of pension commitments I have been receiving SV for some 5 years while in the UK. The question is around applying for a visa in October but picking it up in December. (I can only be in Japan for a week due to work). That way next time I could apply in the summer when my 6 week holiday is. I look forward to your reply.
by Karen Quartermain (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/6 18:32
As far as I know, you can apply for extension/renewal of your current resident status from 3 months before the expiry date. And after youfve applied for it, you can temporarily leave Japan on re-entry permit, but if you do that, you need to return within 2 months to receive the decision (and pick up the approved extension/renewal if it has been approved).

But actually I am not sure about how the validity works: I thought that if you have the same type of resident status and you renew it, the date remained the same? Meaning, if you had one valid until December, you apply for an extension in Oct., you will still get it extended till the December next year? (Please someone correct me if Ifm wrong.)


Another thing: you say you have one year spouse visa grenewable three months either side of December,h but are you sure about this?
If you have a resident status which is expiring soon, any time between March and July of this year, WHILE YOU ARE IN JAPAN, then you are granted extra three months to apply for extension so as to mitigate the congestion at the immigration bureau (to mitigate COVID-19 concern).
But if you have one which is expiring soon, while you are OUTSIDE JAPAN and unable to return to Japan due to COVID-19, it falls under (2) that Ifve described.
Excuse me if you have some special situation that somehow allows you to go beyond your current validity date for any other reason (but I am not aware of any exceptions like that).

(Also please be sure to use the right terminology to avoid confusion – spouse gvisah is something you use to enter Japan; gstatus of residenceh is something you get ONCE you are in Japan. So you do hold gstatus of residenceh as spouse of Japanese currently?)

by AK rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/6 22:43
I have a one year spouse visa and my residency expires Jan 31st. Sorry for any confusion. You are right terminology is everything! My husband contacted immigration asking if I could apply for my visa in the summer due to my exceptional circumstances:
1. I am living in the UK supporting my father with his spinal condition and will continue to do so until he passes away.
2. I worked and had my own business in Japan for over 20 years and contributed to the pension system and continue to do so. It would not be possible to keep contributing without being a spouse. ( I believe)
3. It is not possible for my husband to join me here because of his health and need to visit a hospital on a monthly basis in Japan. (immune suppressants following a kidney transplant me as donor)
4. I have a 6 week holiday from my job in the summer in which I could return to renew my visa but only two weeks in December ( the date of the renewal).
Can you think of anyway that they would allow me to move this date to the summer? From my perspective I am being asked to choose between my job here in the UK which supports me whilst looking after my father and, maintaining my spouse visa which as you can imagine after 22 years of marriage is very important emotionally and economically. Going in the summer would mean the opportunity to spend more time with my husband and to see friends and family. 2 weeks at christmas means our time together is seriously limited. My college showed discretion over my time in Japan renewing my visa. We all had the belief that they would see the reasonableness of moving the visa date to the summer but this was not the case. As I am a face to face teacher and December is an exam period it is not possible to not be there and my contract clearly states that term time cannot be taken as holiday.

My permanency residency was revoked following my failure to get a reentry visa. My economic contribution to Japan set to zero and I was given the one year spouse visa. I don't agree with this, seeing it as harsh for the error but have had to accept it. It has caused great hardship as a marriage of over 20 years is complex and there have been times when I have wanted to go and visit for a reason, for example the passing of my mother in law but was unable to as I could not afford that trip plus going to renew my visa in December. Knowing I can only see my husband for 2 weeks in December when it could be possible to see him for 6 in the summer is also taking an emtional toll.

On top of this I have the anxiety that when I return to live in Japan it will be on a one year spouse visa and residency much the same. If my husband dies before me as I understand it I have 6 months to make an economic case for me being allowed to remain or I can be asked to leave. This feels like a harsh response for forgetting to renew a reentry visa. It ignores the 22 years of marriage, my business, the transplant, the fact I was the main carer of his father towards end of life and his mother for the early stages of Alzheimer, the raising of a daughter, the running of a business and a life building up friends and memories. Given I am having to accept all of that it would seem a small compromise to support me now by moving the visa date. Can you think of anything I can do?

I appreciate perhaps I have overshared but it is hard to separate the emotion of a life shared with someone that is dismissed so easily by the state as nothing.



by kfq1414@me.com (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/7 17:00
Ifm sorry to hear of your situation. So you are currently on gjuminhyoh together with your husband are paying taxes and paying in pension, I assume. I agree that is something you want to keep up, so youfd need to explain that to immigration. I hope your argument goes through.

Still the purpose of a gspouse of Japanese nationalh status is to allow the non-Japanese spouse to live with the Japanese spouse in Japan, with the married couple living together (read gconservative viewsh here) so it might not be easyc

We (me = Japanese, my spouse = non-Japanese) live in Japan and have changed his status from gspouseh to gpermanent residenth several years ago, with the same concern you have, so I know what you mean. Now he can stay in Japan, where hefs been living for over half of his lifetime so far, even if something happens to me. I really hope someone can help you with the situation.

by AK rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/7 18:44
Thank you for your response. It confirms my thoughts that equality in Japan equality is to treat everyone the same as opposed to the western value of trying to give people what they need.

I begin to see nobody can help us. It is just an observation but I will share before signing off... My husband and I physically built our own home, we raised a smart and independent daughter, I gave my husband a kidney, I nursed his father with cancer, his mother with Alzheimer, I ran a successful language school, was the language teacher for Olympus research team for 15 years and for one error Igo from permanent residency. I learned the language and have friends. A person I know has lived in Japan 40 years, does not speak the language, has no relationship with his kids. His wife does everything for him . He remains a permanent resident .... wow imagine how I feel


by Karen quartermain (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/7 19:15
I hope that your husband in Japan can convince the immigration authorities; considering the past permanent residency you had, the pension contribution, and your life pretty been established in Japan, I do see a chance that it might go through (just that it might not be a good timing, with the immigration authorities having to deal with gunusualh situations and cases with the pandemic). Best wishes.
by AK rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/8 07:59
Do you need to come to Japan to submit the application? Why not just get the docs submitted. I use an agent and have never dealt with immigration in person - I consider my ability to reside here too important to allow a silly mistake to knock me out.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/8 23:27
I am under the impression that I have to drop off and pick up the visa myself. If you have any info on using an agent please let me know so I can follow it up.
by Karen quartermain (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Changing Renewal date 1 year spouse visa 2020/7/9 08:10
I've never done my renewals, CoE or visa in person. Not even sure where the Immigration office is.
Look for an immigration lawyer.
Unfortunately the company I use is not taking new clients.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

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