How to Obtain Permanent Residence from the Spouse of Japanese National Visa

What Is the Spouse Visa?

The Spouse visa, also known as the marriage visa, is officially called the “Spouse or Child of Japanese National” Status of Residence. As the name suggests, it is the Status of Residence granted to foreign nationals married to a Japanese national. Foreign nationals married to a Japanese national and living in Japan face no particular restrictions on employment, and most will likely find few inconveniences in their daily life in Japan.

However, if you are bereaved of or divorced from your Japanese spouse, you become subject to revocation of the Status of Residence. For this reason, a certain number of Spouse visa holders consider obtaining Permanent Residence themselves. This page explains the key points for obtaining Permanent Residence from the Spouse visa.

Requirements for Obtaining Permanent Residence from the Spouse Visa

There are six requirements for obtaining Permanent Residence from the Spouse visa, as follows.

① Regarding the Period of Stay

As a general rule, an applicant for Permanent Residence must have resided continuously in Japan for 10 years or more. However, those married to a Japanese national only need to have lived continuously in Japan for 1 year, provided their substantive marriage has lasted 3 years or more. For biological children of Japanese nationals and the like, residing continuously in Japan for 1 year or more satisfies this requirement.

Regarding a Substantive Marriage

That said, even if you are married to a Japanese national, if you are in fact living separately or otherwise have no substance to the marriage, your relationship will not be recognized as a substantive marriage of 3 years or more, and Permanent Residence cannot be obtained. If the marriage has been carried out only as a procedural formality in order to obtain the Spouse visa to begin with, there is a high possibility that not only will Permanent Residence be denied, but even the renewal of the Spouse visa will be denied.

That said, there is no problem if there is a reasonable explanation for the period during which the couple is not living together — for instance, if the husband is on a solo job assignment and lives apart for two-thirds of the month.

Regarding Departures

The approach to departures from Japan is the same as for Permanent Residence applications from other Statuses of Residence: if departures are frequent, the count toward the continuous 1-year requirement may be reset. A single departure of 90 days or more, or departures totaling more than half a year within one year, will be treated as a negative factor in the Permanent Residence review. In particular, when applying for Permanent Residence from the Spouse visa, one of the requirements is a substantive marriage of 3 years or more, so frequent departures will also be a negative factor from this standpoint.

② The applicant must be residing under the longest period of stay prescribed in Appended Table 2 of the Ordinance for Enforcement of the Immigration Control Act for the Status of Residence currently held.

The period of stay currently granted under the Spouse visa Status of Residence must be the longest one. In other words, even if you hold the Spouse visa Status of Residence, this requirement is not satisfied if the period of stay granted is only 1 year. The periods of stay available under the Spouse or Child of Japanese National Status of Residence are 1 year, 3 years, or 5 years. While one might assume that a 5-year period is required, a period of stay of 3 years or more is sufficient to satisfy this requirement.

③ The applicant must have sufficient assets or skills to make an independent living.

For holders of the Spouse visa to obtain Permission for Permanent Residence, the household must have stable income. Low income increases the risk of denial, so please be careful.

How Much Income Is Sufficient?

There is no clearly stated minimum amount, but:

(Example: with 2 dependents, 200,000 yen × 2 + 3 million yen = 3.4 million yen)

The above income must also have been achieved continuously for the most recent 3 years, calculated from the date of the Permanent Residence application.

How Household Income Is Considered

With dual-income couples on the rise, many people may be able to meet the annual income requirement on a household basis.

For dual-income couples where the spouse is claimed as a dependent: the judgment is generally based on the individual annual income of the dependent claimant. In other words, the part-time income of the spouse who is the dependent is not included.

For dual-income couples where the spouse is not claimed as a dependent: there is a high possibility that household annual income will be considered.

(Example: Japanese husband’s annual income = 2.7 million yen, foreign wife’s annual income = 2.5 million yen, giving a combined annual income of 5.2 million yen.)

When the Foreign Spouse Is a Full-Time Homemaker

The Japanese spouse must meet the income requirement above. When the foreign spouse is a full-time homemaker, they are typically claimed as a dependent of the Japanese spouse, so when claimed as a dependent, the Japanese spouse’s annual income must be 3 million yen + 200,000 yen = 3.2 million yen. If there are also children being supported, an additional 200,000 yen is required per child.

In addition, the Japanese spouse is required to have properly fulfilled the public duties — pension, taxes, health insurance, etc. — described below.

④ The applicant must not be a burden on public funds in daily life, and based on their assets, skills, etc., must be expected to lead a stable life in the future.

If you are receiving public assistance and have become a burden on public funds, obtaining Permanent Residence will be difficult. The same applies when not the foreign national applying for Permanent Residence themselves, but the Japanese spouse, is receiving public assistance.

⑤ The applicant must be of good conduct.

This means complying with the law and leading a life as a resident that is not socially criticized in daily life.

The review covers past imprisonment, fines, and traffic violations. If you have received imprisonment or a fine in the past, we recommend waiting a period of time after the date of disposition before applying. The length of time to wait varies depending on the severity of the sentence and the amount of the fine paid, but as a general guideline, it ranges from 5 to 10 years.

Also, for traffic violations, the treatment differs depending on whether an administrative penalty or a criminal penalty was imposed. Minor violations such as failing to stop at a stop sign fall under administrative penalties, and a few such instances are generally not a problem. Drunk driving and serious speeding fall under criminal penalties, and if you have committed such an offense, we recommend waiting a period of time after the date of disposition before applying.

⑥ The applicant must not have received a fine, imprisonment, or similar penalty. The applicant must have properly fulfilled public duties (payment of taxes, payment of public pension and public health insurance premiums, notification obligations stipulated in the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, etc.).

Resident tax and pension premiums must have been paid at the appropriate times. If the applicant is a dependent of their Japanese spouse, the Japanese spouse’s tax payment status is also reviewed. Unpaid amounts are out of the question; even if payments have been completed, any delays past the payment deadlines will make it difficult to obtain approval. A Permanent Residence application requires that the appropriate taxes have been paid at the appropriate times.

Summary: Obtaining Permanent Residence from the Spouse Visa

This page has outlined the key points for obtaining Permanent Residence from the Spouse visa. When residing in Japan on the Spouse visa, if your substantive marriage has lasted 3 years or more, the residence requirement is significantly relaxed. The income requirement can also be satisfied if the Japanese spouse has income, so it is possible to obtain Permission for Permanent Residence even when the foreign national applicant has no income of their own.