Tourist visa to spouse visa

[Hokuto-shinken]

Good evening chaps,

Just a quick question with a simple answer I hope.

To change from a tourist visa to a spouse visa do you just need the following?

:theeye: 4000円 in revenue stamps.

:theeye: 1 copy of the Application for Change of Status of Residence form.

:theeye: Passport

:theeye: Gaikokujin card

On the official website it says you need the above, but after making a call to the information centre, I was told I need all sorts of forms. Tax forms, employment forms, insurance forms >_< Maybe the lady did not understand me or maybe she is correct?

Anyway, any advice would be great :shroom: Thanks

[GomiGirl]

On a tourist visa you should not have an alien card (gaikokujin tourokushou)

Spouse visa - are you married to a Japanese national or a foreign national on a working/business visa?

For the former you will have a whole slew of forms to fill out and documents to provide.

For the latter, you just need a copy of the visa that your spouse has.

remember that as the Spouse of a foreign national on a business visa you will be applying for a dependants visa and there are restrictions on the number of hours that you can work.

With a spouse visa (ie spouse of a japanese national) you can work full-time with no restrictions.

Remember to get your reentry permit at the same time (¥6,000 for multiple reentry) but this you get and pay for after your visa application has been approved.

p.s. we are not all chaps here. :)

[Hokuto-shinken]

On a tourist visa you should not have an alien card (gaikokujin tourokushou)

Spouse visa - are you married to a Japanese national or a foreign national on a working/business visa?

For the former you will have a whole slew of forms to fill out and documents to provide.

For the latter, you just need a copy of the visa that your spouse has.

remember that as the Spouse of a foreign national on a business visa you will be applying for a dependants visa and there are restrictions on the number of hours that you can work.

With a spouse visa (ie spouse of a japanese national) you can work full-time with no restrictions.

Remember to get your reentry permit at the same time (\6,000 for multiple reentry) but this you get and pay for after your visa application has been approved.

p.s. we are not all chaps here. :)

Thanks for the SUPER fast reply like always Lady Gomi.

It is not uncommon to have a Gaikokujin card on a tourist visa. After 90 days of holding a tourist visa you are required by law to carry the card with you at all times.

Yes, I am hoping to get a spouse visa not a spouse visa of a foreign national. So, you say I will have to provide a lot of paper work?

Any idea what documents I would need? There is no information on the official site and 3rd party sites. They just say I need the above 4 things. I know if I wanted an engineering visa for example it would be tricky with lots of forms but I was under the impression it would be quite easy to get the spouse visa.

Thanks again.

[GomiGirl]

I didn't know you could have a tourist visa for longer than 90 days.

Need to ask one of the other people on this board about spouse visa as I haven't been through that one. But gomichild had a heap of forms she said - everything from drawing a layout of the apartment and a map from the apartment to the station.

Good luck.

Are you just married? If so congrats. :romance:

[FG Lurker]

Any idea what documents I would need?
The best thing to do is to go to immigration and say, "I'm going to be getting married and will be applying for a spouse visa. Please give me the forms and information for this." They will give you a packet of forms and a bunch of instructions.

It is quite a pain in the ass. Many forms, your wife will need to provide tax certificates, you'll need a copy of her touseki that shows you in it, etc etc. You also need a sponsor. Your wife can sponsor you, or you can ask her father to do it.

Although it is a pain, it's a LOT easier than it used to be.

(If you go back far enough, gaijin guys married to Japanese women couldn't get spouse visas, only gaijin women married to Japanese men could!)

[Hokuto-shinken]

I didn't know you could have a tourist visa for longer than 90 days.

Need to ask one of the other people on this board about spouse visa as I haven't been through that one. But gomichild had a heap of forms she said - everything from drawing a layout of the apartment and a map from the apartment to the station.

Good luck.

Are you just married? If so congrats. :romance:

Yes, recently got married. Thanks for the congrats ^-^ I am not looking forward to those forms. I live in a remote location and there are no English speaking staff. I have written the forms which I have all in Japanese, so I want to make it easy for them.

頑張れます！ :inlove:

[Hokuto-shinken]

The best thing to do is to go to immigration and say, "I'm going to be getting married and will be applying for a spouse visa. Please give me the forms and information for this." They will give you a packet of forms and a bunch of instructions.

It is quite a pain in the ass. Many forms, your wife will need to provide tax certificates, you'll need a copy of her touseki that shows you in it, etc etc. You also need a sponsor. Your wife can sponsor you, or you can ask her father to do it.

Although it is a pain, it's a LOT easier than it used to be.

(If you go back far enough, gaijin guys married to Japanese women couldn't get spouse visas, only gaijin women married to Japanese men could!)

Thanks for the reply!

Ahh, I was hoping to do everything in one trip to the office. Looks like I will have to make quite a few.

Tomorrow I will go to the local ward office with my wife, would I be able to get a TAX form from there? As my wife is busy with her job, it is my job to do the visa process myself. So, I want to make it as less stressful for her as possible. Can I get the other forms from the net?

Thanks you again!

[Hokuto-shinken]

Here is the official information I can find....



Application for Change of Status of Residence


Procedure Name Application for Change of Status of Residence
Governing Law Article 20, Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act
Applicant Foreign nationals wishing to change his/her current status of residence (except for aliens wishing to change their resident status to "Permanent Resident")
When to submit From any changes in the applicant's resident status up until the applicant's resident status expires
How to submit Applicant must fill in necessary application forms, make ready attached documents and submit a service counter at regional immigration office.
Who may submit

1. Applicant;
2. The following persons are authorized to submit application form on behalf of the applicant foreign national:
* A staff member of organization that is run by or employs the foreign nationals;
* A staff member of organization that trains or educates the foreign national; or
* A nonprofit organization authorized by the competent authorities under the Article 34 of the Civil Code for the purpose of smooth acceptance of foreign nationals;
3. A lawyer or administrative scrivener that gives notice to the director of regional immigration bureau;
4. A legal representative of the foreign national;* or
* "Legal representative" in this context means a legal representative of an applicant who is younger than 16 years old, is always unable to make sense of his/her surroundings due to mental disorder, or significantly lacks such abilities.
5. The applicant's relative, housemate or other similar person who are regarded as appropriate by the director of regional immigration bureau (if the applicant is not able to visit the regional immigration bureau by himself/herself because of illness or other reasons)

Fee 4,000 yen for changing the status of residence (Payment must be made with revenue stamps)
Necessary documents

* Application form 1copy
* The supporting documents to be submitted on the occasion of application are shown in Table 3 (As applicant sometimes needs to submit document material(s) other than stipulated in the Immigration Control Act Enforcement Regulations, please refer to your regional immigration office or immigration information center.)
* Passport and alien registration card
* A document that proves the status (if a legal representative or agent submits the application form on behalf of the applicant)

Format

* Application for Change of Status of Residence [PDF]
(Note 1) The immigration bureau accepts this format if you print it out on Japanese Industrial Standards A4 format.
(Note 2) You sometimes print it out on a smaller format than A4. To avoid it, please turn off "Shrink Oversized Pages to Paper Size (K)" in the print dialogue box.
* Applicant must use different application form, depending on his/her intention for entering Japan. For more information, see "List of Application Formats for Purpose of Entering Japan" (Application form #1, the reverse side) [PDF].

How to fill in, and example Refer to your regional immigration office or immigration information center.
Where to submit The regional immigration office in charge of applicant's intended address (Refer to your regional immigration office or immigration information center.)
Office hours 9:00 to 12:00 and 13:00 to 16:00, weekdays (For more information on office hours or days of week for specific application procedures, Refer to your regional immigration office or immigration information center.)
Information services Regional immigration office or immigration information center
Screening criteria The activities to be engaged in while in Japan stated in the application must not be false, and must fall under one of the activities described in the right-hand column of Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act Annexed TableI , or the activities of a person with the civil status or position described in the right-hand column of Annexed TableII (the civil status or position in the right-hand column under "Permanent Resident" shall be excluded; )
When an application for change of status of residence has been submitted, the Minister of Justice may grant permission only when he finds that there are reasonable grounds to grant the change of status of residence on the strength of the documents submitted by the foreign nationals.
In addition ,if applicant has the status of residence "Temporary Visitor" the applicant must satisfy the requirements stated above and have unavoidable and exceptional circumstances.
Standard procedures duration A month to three months
Administrative appeal None

You need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view application forms in [PDF] format.

Does not say anything about TAX forms >_< There has to be some more information out there.....

[Hokuto-shinken]

在留資格変更許可申請

手　　続　　名 在留資格変更許可申請
手　続　根　拠 出入国管理及び難民認定法第２０条
手 続 対 象 者 現に有する在留資格の変更を受けようとする外国人（永 住者の在留資格への変更を希望する場合を除く。）
提　出　時　期 資格の変更の事由が生じたときから在留期間満了日以前
提　出　方　法 申請に必要な用紙に必要事項を記入し，添付書類を用意 して，地方入国管理官署の窓口に提出してください。
提　　出　　者
１ 　申請人本人
２ 　申請の取次の承認を受けている次の者
　○ 　申請人が経営している機関若しくは雇用されている機 関の職員
　○ 　申請人が研修若しくは教育を受けている機関の職員
　○ 　外国人の円滑な受入れを図ることを目的として民法第 ３４条の規定により主務大臣の許可を受けて設立された 公益法人の職員
３ 　地方入国管理局長に届け出た弁護士又は行政書士
４ 　申請人本人の法定代理人（※）
※ 　法定代理人：申請人本人が１６歳に満たない者又は精 神上の障害により事理を弁識する能力を欠く常況にある 者若しくはその能力が著しく不十分なものである場合に おける申請人本人の法定代理人に限る。
５ 　申請人本人が疾病その他の事由により自ら出頭するこ とができない場合には，その親族又は同居者若しくはこ れに準ずる者で地方入国管理局長が適当と認めるもの
手　　数　　料 許可されるときは４，０００円が必要です。（収入印紙 で納入）　　手数料納付書【ＰＤＦ】
必要書類・部数
１ 　在留資格「日本人の配偶者等」（例：日本人の方の夫 又は妻・実子・特別養子）の場合
２ 　在留資格「永住者の配偶者等」（例：永住者の方の夫 又は妻）の場合
３ 　在留資格「定住者」（例：日系３世）の場合
４ 　「その他」の場合は，以下の書類が必要となります。
　�@ 　申請書（１通）
　�A 　活動内容ごとに法務省令で定める資料　各１通
（資料の提出にあたっては法務省令で定める資料以外に も提出を求める場合があるとともに，法務省令で定める 資料の提出を省略する場合もありますので，詳しくは， 地方入国管理官署又は外国人在留総合インフォメーションセンターにお問い合わせください。）
　�B 　旅券，外国人登録証明書等を提示
　�C 　身分を証する文書等の提示
（代理者若しくは申請取次者が申請を提出する場合）
申 請 書 様 式 １　在留資格変更許可申請書
２　�@身元保証書（日本語版）【ＰＤＦ】　　�A身元保 証書（英語版）【ＰＤＦ】
３　質問書【ＰＤＦ】
（注１）日本工業規格Ａ列４番の用紙に印刷してお使い になれます。
（注２）縮小して印刷される場合がありますので，印刷 ダイアログボックスの「用紙サイズに合わせてページを縮小（Ｋ）」のチェックをはずしてから印刷してく ださい。
（注３）上記２（身元保証書）については，入管法別表 第二に定める在留資格（例えば，�@日本人の配偶者（夫 又は妻）・日本人の実子，�A永住者の配偶者（夫又は妻 ），�B日系人・日系人の配偶者（夫又は妻））の方の在 留資格変更許可申請の際に提出していただく書類です。
（注４）上記３（質問書）については，�@日本人の配偶 者（夫又は妻），�A永住者の配偶者（夫又は妻），�B日 系人の配偶者（夫又は妻）の方の在留資格変更許可申請 の際に提出していただく書類です。
記載要領・記載例 ・在留資格変更許可申請書の記載例
提　　出　　先 居住地を管轄する地方入国管理官署（地方入国管理官署 又は外国人在留総合インフォメーションセンターにお問い合わせください。）
受　付　時　間 平日午前９時から同１２時，午後１時から同４時（手続 により曜日又は時間が設定されている場合がありますの で，地方入国管理官署又は外国人在留総合インフォメーションセンターにお問い合わせください。）
相　談　窓　口 地方入国管理官署又は外国人在留総合インフォメーションセンター
審　査　基　準 ・申請に係る本邦において行おうとする活動が虚偽のも のでなく，出入国管理及び難民認定法別表第一の下欄に 掲げる活動又は別表第二の下欄に掲げる身分若しくは地 位（永住者の項の下欄に掲げる地位を除く。）を有する 者としての活動のいずれかに該当し，かつ，在留資格の 変更を適当と認めるに足りる相当の理由があること。

・「短期滞在」の在留資格を有する者にあっては，上記 に加えてやむを得ない特別の事情に基づくものであるこ と。
標準処理期間 １か月〜３か月
不服申立方法 なし。

［ＰＤＦ］と記載されている申請書の閲覧には，Adobe Readerが必要です。
　
　戻る

Just got some new information. If you go to the same page in Japanese you get access to other documents. Just incase anybody else needs to know I will post this too ^-^

[gomichild]

I went through the visa change to spouse visa 3 years ago - and things may have changed since then.

But at that time we needed:
- marriage certificate
- his family register (get from ward office)
- his finacial information (you should be able to get a tax form from the ward office)
- my financial info
- a form in which the contact details for the closest family members from both sides, and whether they agreed/knew about the marriage
- a lengthy description of how we met and got married and our married life
- several photographs proving we had a history
- a printed map of our apartment and directions from the nearest train station

So it was pretty extensive. Of course everyone's experience is different and it depends on who you talk to at which damn immigration office.

[Mulboyne]

I didn't know you could have a tourist visa for longer than 90 days.
Nationals of some countries can extend their 90 day visas in-country. Usually only once. A number of people I know registered for a gaijin card almost as soon as they had arrived. The ward office wasn't unhappy to know who was living in the area. They used to issue a non-resident gaijin card for short term visa holders. Since most bank and mobile phone company staff had never seen one before, they assumed it was a standard card and it was the key to opening an account and getting a keitai. I have no idea if this is still on offer.

[dimwit]

I went through the visa change to spouse visa 3 years ago - and things may have changed since then.

But at that time we needed:
- marriage certificate
- his family register (get from ward office)
- his finacial information (you should be able to get a tax form from the ward office)
- my financial info
- a form in which the contact details for the closest family members from both sides, and whether they agreed/knew about the marriage
- a lengthy description of how we met and got married and our married life
- several photographs proving we had a history
- a printed map of our apartment and directions from the nearest train station

So it was pretty extensive. Of course everyone's experience is different and it depends on who you talk to at which damn immigration office.

Sounds about right however they only asked us for one photo and a horribly blurred one at the that so I gave them one of a typical married day.:D

http://www.soton.ac.uk/~fencing/imagesbusa3/Stumpy%20final%2032%20arty%20blurred%20shot.jpg

[FG Lurker]

Tomorrow I will go to the local ward office with my wife, would I be able to get a TAX form from there? As my wife is busy with her job, it is my job to do the visa process myself. So, I want to make it as less stressful for her as possible. Can I get the other forms from the net?
Seriously, go to the immigration office first, before you start going around and collecting the data you think you might need. Tell them you want to change to a spouse visa, and they will give you a packet that has various forms in it and a list of the items you need to get regarding taxes etc. Once you know what you need then you can figure out the most efficient way to go about getting it. Otherwise you are likely to end up visiting several places twice when once would have been enough.

[Hokuto-shinken]

I went through the visa change to spouse visa 3 years ago - and things may have changed since then.

But at that time we needed:
- marriage certificate
- his family register (get from ward office)
- his finacial information (you should be able to get a tax form from the ward office)
- my financial info
- a form in which the contact details for the closest family members from both sides, and whether they agreed/knew about the marriage
- a lengthy description of how we met and got married and our married life
- several photographs proving we had a history
- a printed map of our apartment and directions from the nearest train station

So it was pretty extensive. Of course everyone's experience is different and it depends on who you talk to at which damn immigration office.

Thanks for the info, I think I was wishing I could do everything it one go, but looks like I will have to make a few trips to the office :mad:

:-D Thanks you.

[Hokuto-shinken]

Seriously, go to the immigration office first, before you start going around and collecting the data you think you might need. Tell them you want to change to a spouse visa, and they will give you a packet that has various forms in it and a list of the items you need to get regarding taxes etc. Once you know what you need then you can figure out the most efficient way to go about getting it. Otherwise you are likely to end up visiting several places twice when once would have been enough.

Yeah, I guess because it is a long way there and back, I just wanted to make sure I had everything, but as I said before I am pretty sure I will have to make 2 or 3 trips back there.

It is a shame that the information is not put on the official site. It would make it a lot easier for the staff and for people getting married.

Thanks for your reply.

[Hokuto-shinken]

Sounds about right however they only asked us for one photo and a horribly blurred one at the that so I gave them one of a typical married day.:D

http://www.soton.ac.uk/~fencing/imagesbusa3/Stumpy%20final%2032%20arty%20blurred%20shot.jpg

Are you seroius :p

Well, I printed out 2 pages of about 12 photos with dates just incase, but after reading that, I think I might take a horribly blurred photo just incase.

[GomiGirl]

It is a shame that the information is not put on the official site. It would make it a lot easier for the staff and for people getting married.

It would make it a heap easier for everybody. I wish they had all the rules listed and all the forms downloadable and a checklist before you head down there. I have been through a few hellish visa moments myself but these days it is easier as I have learnt the system by trial and error.

But then if the regulations are posted in writing in the public domain then it makes it easier for people to complain/litigate if they are deemed not fit for a visa on the old "case-by-case" basis.

[Hokuto-shinken]

It would make it a heap easier for everybody. I wish they had all the rules listed and all the forms downloadable and a checklist before you head down there. I have been through a few hellish visa moments myself but these days it is easier as I have learnt the system by trial and error.

But then if the regulations are posted in writing in the public domain then it makes it easier for people to complain/litigate if they are deemed not fit for a visa on the old "case-by-case" basis.

Yeah, I guess, but it still would be nice to get the documents before hand :D

Well, I went there today, and the lady was very friendly. Well, normally people (Who I have dealt with in the past) have no personality.

As I thought there are no English speakers, so I had to do everything in Japanese. I filled out two forms about my personal information and what I wish to change my status to and how long I would like to stay in Japan. I wanted to write 永遠 Forever, but the lady said 1 or 3 years only :D

The next set of documents were very very hard for me to understand. Well I could understand the meaning, but I have to write about how I mean my wife and her job and I thought it might be best for her to do that, if I make a mistake in my Japanese then I will have to make another trip.

After this I am not sure what the next step is as I must finish these documents stapled together about where we met and other information about my wife.

When I get to LEVEL 2, I bet I will need something else what I don`t have. Oh, well. まだ頑張れます。　:love2:

[gomichild]

It's possible you'll only get 1 year the first time around, and then 3 years the next time. It may seem like a huge saga now - but renewing the spouse visa is much, much easier than changing to it the first time.

[Hokuto-shinken]

It's possible you'll only get 1 year the first time around, and then 3 years the next time. It may seem like a huge saga now - but renewing the spouse visa is much, much easier than changing to it the first time.

Yeah, I read about that, but I put down 3 just incase I am lucky enough.

Happy to hear it won`t be so hard next time. I am busy drawing a map of where I live and the local bus stop and train station. I was a little surprised you have to do this. Normally an address is enought, but I am not in my home country now, so I can`t complain.

[Mulboyne]

It sounds like you aren't getting phased by the whole process which is a good thing. If it does all seem a bit bit bureaucratic, it is worth knowing that it's just as time-consuming to get a spouse visa in many other countries. If you look at other threads on the forum, it seems that the US in particular has got a lot worse.

[Hokuto-shinken]

It sounds like you aren't getting phased by the whole process which is a good thing. If it does all seem a bit bit bureaucratic, it is worth knowing that it's just as time-consuming to get a spouse visa in many other countries. If you look at other threads on the forum, it seems that the US in particular has got a lot worse.

Yes, I think it still to get stressed out about something which you can`t do anything about. That is the process, you have to follow it. You can`t say `In my country it is much easier and we do it like this....`

:wall:

END

Anyway, next week I need to get a new family registry from the local ward office, so I still can`t pass LEVEL 2. :kanpai: 頑張れます！

[Taro Toporific]

...blah, blah, blue-colored, blah, blah, blah...
Thank you for sharing. (http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/5104/johnny20cash20finger202cy4.jpg)

[Hokuto-shinken]

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