Long-Term Resident

Long-Term Resident (Teijusha) is a status given to those authorized to reside in Japan with a designation of period of stay by the Minister of Justice in consideration of special circumstances.
Period of stay will be determined, not exceeding 5 years, depending on the individual’s circumstances.
There will be no restrictions on the activities for the long-term resident holder.

Example resident : Refugees accepted for third-country resettlement, Japanese relative, child of Japanese descent, child of foreign national spouse from previous marriage.

Other than the above, typical for a long-term resident is where a spouse of a Japanese national or a spouse of a permanent resident loses the permitted status due to separation, divorce or death of the partner.

If the applicant has been living in Japan as a Japanese spouse for approximately 5 years, or has a child* between the marriage partner, possibility of obtaining the long-term resident status will relatively increase.
*a child must be a minor unmarried Japanese national to raise in Japan

Other conditions such as the person’s conduct, financial status, reason for divorce etc. are to be considered as well.  

As it might often be difficult to get a status of long-term resident, prepare for other options in case your application is rejected.

● You are working full time → change to Engineer・Specialist in Humanities・International Services or to the appropriate visa
● You want to go back to school → change to Student visa
● You want to start a new business → change to Business Manager visa

Notification duty

If you lose status as a spouse of Japanese national or permanent resident of Japan, you need to give notification to the regional Immigration Bureau within 14 days of the event.  If you fail to do so, it may be subject to a fine not exceeding 200,000 yen.

Further to the above, if you fail to continue to engage in the activity as a spouse of Japanese national or permanent resident of Japan for six months or more, Minister of Justice may revoke the status of residence.

(Above excludes the case where the foreign national has a justifiable reason for not engaging in the said activity)

Do consult us whenever you have experienced any change in your marital status before your visa being taken away.

>> Notification concerning the spouse (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
>> Change Status of Residence

>> ask us for more details or assistance