In the case of a Japanese spouse (wife/husband), there is no need to wait 10 years after coming to Japan before applying for permanent residence; the applicant can apply as long as three years have passed since the marriage and one year has passed since coming to Japan. The screening process for permanent residence applications is becoming more stringent every year, and there is no exception to this rule, even for spouses of Japanese nationals. In this part, we will explain the requirements for applying for permanent residence based on materials published by Immigration Services Agency.
Requirements to become a Permanent Resident – “Guidelines for Permanent Residence Permission”-
The requirements for obtaining a permanent residence permit are published in the “Guidelines for Permanent Residence Permission” on the Immigration Services Agency’s website.
▶Immigration Services Agency「Guidelines for Permanent Residence Permission」
There are three main requirements listed in the guidelines.
(1) good conduct requirement（素行善良要件）, (2) independent livelihood requirement（独立生計要件）, and (3) conformity with the national interest requirement（国益適合要件）.
1. Legal requirements
(1) Be of good conduct
They abide by the law and live their daily lives without being socially criticized as residents.(2) Having sufficient assets or skills to support one’s livelihood independently
They do not become a burden on the public in their daily lives, and based on their assets and skills, they are expected to live a stable life in the future.
(3) The person’s permanent residence is deemed to be in the interests of Japan.
a) In principle, they must have continuously resided in Japan for 10 years or more. However, they must have continuously resided in Japan for 5 years or more with a working status (excluding the statuses of residence “Technical Intern Training” and “Specified Skills No. 1”) during this period.
b) You have not been sentenced to a fine or imprisonment, etc. You have duly fulfilled your public obligations (tax payments, public pension and public health insurance premiums, and obligations such as filing notifications as stipulated in the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act).
c) For the status of residence that you currently hold, you are residing in Japan with the maximum period of stay stipulated in Appendix 2 of the Enforcement Regulations of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act.
d) There is no risk of it being harmful from a public health perspective.*However, if you are the spouse or child of a Japanese national, permanent resident, or special permanent resident, you are not required to meet (1) and (2).In addition, if you have been recognized as a refugee, a person recognized as a recipient of complementary protection status, or a third-country resettled refugee, you are not required to meet (2).
Immigration Services Agency「Guidelines for Permanent Residence Permission」
As stated here, not only those whose status of residence is “Spouse or Child of Japanese National” but also those who are married to a Japanese national will be examined intensively with regard to (3) Conformity with National Interests Requirements. However, for “must have continuously resided in Japan for 10 years or more,” the special exception applies to spouse or child of Japanese national.
(3)Conformity with the national interest requirement.
(3) Conformity with national interest requirements, which have tended to be examined very strictly in recent years. In particular, the fulfillment of public obligations is being rigorously scrutinized down to the very smallest detail.
Requirements regarding the period of stay for “Spouse or Child of Japanese National”
For those who are married to a Japanese national, there is a special exception regarding “must have continuously resided in Japan for 10 years or more”.
In the case of the spouse of a Japanese national, permanent resident, or special permanent resident, the spouse must have been in a substantial marriage for more than three years and must have continuously resided in Japan for more than one year. In the case of a biological child, the child must have continuously resided in Japan for more than one year.
Immigration Services Agency「Guidelines for Permanent Residence Permission」
A spouse (wife/husband) of a Japanese national may apply for permanent residence after at least 3 years of marriage and at least 1 year of coming to Japan.
However, they must fulfill the requirement that “For the status of residence that you currently hold, you are residing in Japan with the maximum period of stay stipulated in Appendix 2 of the Enforcement Regulations of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act.
In the case of “Spouse or Child of Japanese National,” the period of stay is “1 year,” “3 years,” or “5 years,” but at this time, it is possible to apply as long as you have “3 years” or “5 years” of stay.
Proper fulfillment of public obligations.
Two aspects of the fulfillment of public obligations can be observed: the fulfillment of notification obligations and the fulfillment of tax and social insurance payment obligations.
Payment of tax, public pension and public medical insurance premiums
Particular attention should be paid to social insurance and tax payments.
It is not enough to have “no unpaid taxes” for the period for which you are required to submit them; you must have never missed a single payment deadline. Please note that if you miss the deadline for payment even by a single day, your Application for permanent residence permit will likely be denied (in fact, most applicants who have missed the deadline have had their applications denied).
Although there are various taxes subject to examination, the due dates of payment will be checked for “inhabitant’s tax,” “national health insurance,” and “national pension”. If you are a company employee and have inhabitant tax and social insurance deducted from your salary, there is no need to worry about this. However, if you are a company employee and pay your own inhabitant tax (ordinary tax collection), or if you are self-employed and have joined the “National Pension Plan” or “National Health Insurance”, you need to check all the receipts in detail.
In addition, for those who are married to a Japanese national and are supported by the Japanese national, documentation proving the tax status of the Japanese national must be submitted.
Notification Obligation
Typical examples of notification requirements are the “Notification of Relationship with Spouse(配偶者に関する届け出)” to be submitted to the Immigration Services Agency and the “Notification of Moving Out and Notification of Moving In(転出届・転入届)” to be submitted to the municipal office when moving to a new residence.
Has not been fined or imprisoned
One thing you need to be aware of is traffic violations.
There are two types of penalties to pay after committing a traffic violation: fines and penalties. If you commit a serious violation and receive a red kip (traffic ticket), you will be fined and will not be able to apply for permanent residence for a while (roughly 5 years). On the other hand, a blue ticket is an administrative penalty, not a fine.
Even in cases other than traffic violations, those who have been fined or imprisoned can only apply for permanent residence after some time has passed. In the case of a fine, the application must be made at least five years after the date of payment, and in the case of those who were imprisoned, at least 10 years after the end of the execution.
Required Documents for Application for Permanent Residence – In the case of Spouse of Japanese National-
This section introduces the documents required for a spouse (wife/husband) of a Japanese national applying for permanent residence. This information is also available on the Immigration Services Agency’s website. Depending on the situation and individual circumstances, documents for reinforcement may be submitted in addition to the basic documents listed below.
| Required Documents for Application for Permanent Residence – In case of Spouse of Japanese National |
|---|
| １．Permanent residence permit application form ２．Photograph（4cm×3cm） ３．One copy of your spouse’s family register (certificate of all details)(戸籍謄本（全部事項証明書）) ４．Resident certificates(住民票) for all family members (households) including the applicant ５． Any of the following documents certifying the occupation of the applicant or the applicant’s dependent: (1) If you are employed by a company, etc.： Certificate of employment (在職証明書) (2) If you are self-employed, etc. Copy of final tax return(確定申告書),Copy of business license(営業許可書) * Self-employed individuals are required to provide proof of their occupation, etc. (3) Other cases： Occupation description (free format) and supporting documents as appropriate ６．Documents verifying the income and tax payment status of the applicant and his/her dependents for the past three years One copy each of the resident tax (or exemption) certificate(住民税の課税（又は非課税）証明書) and tax payment certificate (stating total income and tax payment status for the year)(納税証明書) for the past three years Documents proving that you have paid your resident tax at the proper time for the past three years (copies of your bankbook, receipts, etc.)*For ordinary tax collection ７．Tax payment certificates for withholding income tax and special income tax for reconstruction(源泉所得税及び復興特別所得税), self-assessed income tax and special income tax for reconstruction(申告所得税及び復興特別所得税), consumption tax and local consumption tax(消費税及び地方消費税), inheritance tax(相続税), and gift tax(贈与税) (part 3) ８．Any of the following documents to prove your income: Copy of bankbook (as appropriate) Similar to a above, as appropriate ９．Documents verifying your recent (past two years) public pension insurance premium payment status “Pension Regular Mail”(「ねんきん定期便」)/Print screen of “Pension record for each month” on Nenkin Net/National pension insurance premium receipt(国民年金保険料領収証書) (copy) １０． Documents verifying your recent (past two years) public health insurance premium payment status Health insurance card (copy)/National Health Insurance Card (copy)/. National Health Insurance (Tax) Payment Certificate/National Health Insurance (Tax) Receipt (Copy) １１．Present your passport １２．Present your residence card(在留カード)（申請時に提示します） １３． Letter of guarantee(身元保証書) １４．Present identification documents １５．Letter of Understanding(了解書) |
*The above is an example. For more details, please click here.
Conclusion
The above is an explanation of the examination points and required documents when a spouse (wife/husband) of a Japanese national applies for permanent residence.
When a spouse of a Japanese national applies for permanent residence, the examination will focus on (3) Conformity with national interest requirements. In particular, please note that the examination will focus on the payment of taxes and pensions. Currently, it takes a long time to examine applications for permanent residence, especially in urban areas. It may take more than a year to receive the result of your application, so we recommend that you carefully check whether you meet the requirements for permanent residence permit before you apply for it.
