bringing my gay partner

Hi. I�fm a 24 year old male from Brisbane, Australia wishing to live in Japan for a minimum of one year. I have a bachelor�fs degree in psychology, so it is possible for me to get a work visa through an ALT dispatch company. Also, as I�fm from Australia, I am eligible for a working holiday visa for up to a year (or maybe 18 months I think I remember reading somewhere? Correct me if I�fm wrong). By the looks of it, my choices are –
1. apply for a position in an ALT dispatch company (Interac or JET�cmost likely Interac since then I can leave sooner).
2. Go over on a working holiday visa and find work with the help of the Japan Association for Working Holiday Makers in one of the major cities, or
3. Head over on a working holiday or tourist visa and try my luck at snatching up a work visa through sponsorship by a company.

This is where it gets tricky...I�fm gay and I want my partner to come with me. My partner is 26, male and without a degree. Therefore, he will most likely only be able to get a working holiday visa (unless there is some way of him obtaining a work visa that I don�ft know of?) Taking this into account, my options are a little more blurred and I don�ft really know what would be best for us now, so I�fm hoping that the internet can give me some advice (amidst the dream-stomping that I�fm anticipating a few of you are going to bluntly do =P).

Firstly, a question for the Interacs. Have any of you been in a similar situation? Has any one ever risked telling them straight up that they are bringing their partner? Have any gay interacs brought their partners? If I take the first option and apply for an ALT dispatch position with Interac and get in, I understand that they can help me find accommodation. Will I be able to get away with having my partner live with me if he comes over a little later? Or if they send me off to find accommodation by myself, what are the chances of two gaijin men living together finding a house? (As friends, of course�ctelling them that we are a gay couple isn�ft necessary). And finally, given the high chance of being posted rural, what are the work options for my partner on a working holiday visa in a rural location?

Our second option is both going over on working holiday visas. If we do this then we can stay in cheap accommodation in a larger city until we find a more permanent base to work from. I�fd like to know a bit more about the jobs that the Japan Association for Working Holiday Makers help gaijin obtain. Has anybody had experience with them? Would I be better off trying to get sponsored by a company and obtain a work visa since I have the degree while my boyfriend finds work through this association?

So what do you think would be best? Apply for Interac and cross our fingers that I am posted somewhere that my partner can find work, taking into account the possibility of us not being able to live together? Or go over on two working holiday visas and find accommodation together, but have the scary task of going over there without a salary waiting for at least one of us?

The problem with Interac or JET is that you're very likely to be posted in a rural town where there simply won't be any jobs available for your partner.

BTW, the gay thing isn't an issue, it's a well known fact that a lot of ALTs are gay. So no need to keep it quiet. In fact, by telling them you have a partner with a WHV they're more likely to place you somewhere a bit closer to an urban centre.