Benefits of Applying for a Permanent Residency Visa Together with the Whole Family

Applying for permanent residence with the whole family is a good way for foreigners to build a stable life in Japan.

If you are planning to apply for permanent residence for yourself and your family, barring some special cases, we recommend that you apply for permanent residence at the same time instead of applying individually for each person.
This time, we will explain the benefits and things to be noted when applying for permanent residence with the whole family at the same time.

Advantages of applying for the whole family at the same time

1. Relaxation of requirements

When applying for permanent residence with the whole family, all family members don’t need to meet the normal permanent residence requirements (10 years or more of residence history, etc.).

As long as the applicant (supporter) meets the requirements, the requirements for the other person (spouse or child) will be relaxed.
If certain requirements are met, they can apply for permanent residence together.
*For general requirements, see here.

But why…
This is because if the main applicant has permission for permanent residence, the spouse will be considered the permanent resident’s spouse, the child will be considered the spouse’s biological child, and special requirements will be applied.

◆ In this case, the spouse and children are not required to have a spouse visa!
◆Regardless of the type of currently-hold visa, such as a family stays visa or a work visa, you can apply if you meet the following requirements!

Now, I will introduce how the requirements will be relaxed separately for spouses and children.

Requirements for the spouse

Residency requirements: de facto marriage for more than 3 years, and continuously resides in Japan for more than 1 year.

Here, “de facto marriage” means that the fact of cohabitation, mutual support, etc. will be comprehensively judged to rule out sham marriage.
If the couple does not live together and one of them is living abroad, then the applicant needs to provide a good reason for the separation and evidence of the actual support.
This is due to the Japanese Civil Code decreed that married couples are obliged to live together and support each other.

Also, regarding whether or not you have “stayed in Japan for more than one year”, it is necessary to keep in mind that you must “continuously reside in Japan “.
So, if you leave Japan for more than 90 consecutive days in a year or leave Japan for a total of 150-200 days during the year, you are not ” continuously residing in Japan “, which would be a negative factor in the permanent residence examination.

If you are not living together or have to leave the country frequently, we recommend that you consult with an expert and take appropriate measures before applying.

Requirements for children

Residence requirement: Staying in Japan continuously for more than 1 year
*Please note that “children” here includes only biological and special adopted children, which does not apply to ordinary adopted children.

2. Simplification of procedures

If the applicant applies individually for permanent residency, and their spouse is on a family stays visa, then the spouse would need to apply for a new visa once the permanent residency was granted.
The reason is that a family stays visa is applicable only when the supporter is on the following visas:
Immigration Act Appended Table 1-1 Professor, Art, Religious Affairs, Journalism, High-level Professionals in Table 2, Management/Administration, Legal/Accounting Services, Medical Care, Research, Education, Technology/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, Enterprise Persons residing in Japan with a status of residence of internal transfer, nursing care, entertainment, skilled labor, specified skills No. 2, cultural activities listed in table 3, or student status listed in this table
The Permanent Residency Visa is not included here.

Then family members would need to change their status in the following ways:

Spouse is ⇨ permanent resident spouse (⇨ then apply for permanent residence)

Children are ⇨ long-term residents (⇨ then apply for permanent residence)

If all family members apply at the same time, the above change is not required, saving you the trouble and cost of changing your status of residence.
Furthermore, by applying at the same time, it will be less time and cost to prepare the application documents than applying individually.

Points to note when applying for the whole family

Even one person having problems with behavioral requirements can have a negative impact on the applications of the whole family.
Cases will be judged as bad behavior including unpaid or delinquent tax or violation of permission to engage in activity other than that permitted under the status of residence previously granted.
Of course, even if you apply individually, that negative impact would still not be avoided.

Summary

Acquiring permanent residency with the whole family has various benefits.
For example, “everyone can freely choose their jobs, which means increased household income and financial stability,” or “more likely to get a loan,” etc.

Whether you are considering applying for permanent residence by yourself or if you are considering applying for permanent residence with your family, please feel free to contact us.　
Our office provides personalized advice for each individual’s life plan and situation as experts in the regard. For consultations, please use the “Free Consultation” service, where you can consult with a specialist for free. (You can easily schedule a ‘free consultation’ by clicking

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