Application for Permanent Residence
At Legal Associates Office Boston, we often receive inquiries from people who want to apply for permanent residence.
If a foreign national who wishes to apply for permanent residence is the “Spouse of a Japanese national” or the “Spouse of a permanent resident”, has been married for at least three years, and has resided in Japan for at least one year, he/she meets the special requirements for permanent residence application. Therefore, it is possible to apply for permanent residence even if they have not been in Japan for 10 years. Note, however, the application for a permanent residence permit cannot be filed unless the permitted period of stay on the current residence card is at least three years.
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Potential complications when applying for permanent residence
If you work for a company and if your resident tax is collected by the company, and if you are covered by the social insurance of the company you work for, you will not need to submit so many documents to clarify your situation when applying for permanent residence.
On the other hand, those who pay the resident tax, national pension, and health insurance premiums by themselves (for example, at a convenience store) will be strictly checked to see if there have ever been delays of these payments. For this reason, those who pay resident tax, national pension premiums, and national health insurance premiums by themselves are required to submit a copy of these receipts as documentation that confirms the date of payments in addition to the fact that the payments have been made.
Some people might think “The delayed payment is not a critical issue as long as all the payment is completed.” However, for resident tax, national pension premiums, and national health insurance premiums, not only whether they have been paid, but also whether they have been paid ON TIME will be strictly checked.
Children of Permanent Residents
A child of a “Permanent resident” born in Japan can become a “Permanent resident” by applying for permanent resident status within 30 days of birth. If either the father or mother is a “Permanent Resident,” the child can apply for permanent resident status, but this does not necessarily mean that the child will be granted “Permanent Resident” status. In some cases, the status of “Spouse or Child of Permanent Resident” may be granted.
To meet the criteria for “Spouse or child of a permanent resident”, the child of a permanent resident must be born in Japan and has been residing in Japan continuously since the birth.
If the child of a permanent resident was born abroad, the child does not meet the criteria for “Spouse and children of a permanent resident”. In that case, for the child of the permanent resident, the application for ” long term resident” is filed.
Regarding past income
If you are applying for a permanent residence permit from a current residence status related to work or dependent status, you are required to submit a certificate of taxation (or non-taxation) plus a certificate of tax payment (showing total income and tax payment for 1 year) for each of the last 5 years.
However, when applying for permanent residence as the “Spouse, or child, of a Japanese national” or “Spouse, or child, of a permanent resident,” a certificate of taxation (or non-taxation) and a certificate of tax payment (showing total income and tax payment for 1 year) for the last 3 years for the applicant and his/her supporter(s) will be sufficient.
Importantly, in my experience, even if you seem to meet all other requirements but have had problems paying resident tax and social insurance premiums, the chance your application for permanent residence will be approved is slim.
Furthermore, after you apply for a permanent residence permit, you might be asked to submit additional materials and will be subject to a rigorous screening process. You may wish to review your current situation so that you can better apply for a permanent residence permit in the future.
For a fee, Legal Associates Office Boston, provides document screening services and consultation for those considering making permanent residence permit applications.
If you would like to inquire about this service, please contact us through our inquiry form.
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure that the information on this article is accurate at the time of posting, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ. If you do require advice or wish to find out more about the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
Text by: Masayo Boston (Certified Administrative Procedure Legal Specialist), September 2022
Legal Associates Office Boston (Fukuoka City)
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Website: https://www.admin-legal.com/
