Guidelines for Permission for Change of Status of Residence and Extension of Period of Stay
Immigration Services Agency
Formulated in March 2008
Revised in March 2009
Revised in March 2010
Revised in July 2012
Revised in March 2016
Revised in February 2020

The Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act (hereinafter referred to as“Immigration Control Act”) stipulates permission for change of status of residence andextension of period of stay shall be granted only when there are reasonable grounds to allow theMinister of Justice to deem it appropriate to do so. The decision as to whether or not there arereasonable grounds is mainly left to the discretion of the Minister of Justice, and such decision ismade totally in view of various factors, such as activities in which an applicant intends to engage,
the applicant's residential status and necessity to reside, taking into account the requirements listed
below.
However, among those requirements, conformity with status of residence specified in item 1
is a requirement to be satisfied when permission is granted. In principle, applicants are required tocomply with the landing permission criteria stated in item 2. The requirements stated in item
3 and subsequent items are representative elements to consider in determining whether or notthere are reasonable grounds to deem that permission is appropriate. Even if an applicant satisfies
all the requirements, the applicant may not be granted permission for change or extension as aresult of considering all circumstances taken overall.
For the purpose of encouraging them to join the social insurance system, applicants have beenrequired to show their insurance cards at the reception counter when they submit an application
since April 1, 2010.
(Note) Failure to show an insurance card will not result in non-permission for change of status ofresidence or extension of period of stay.
1. Activities in which an applicant intends to engage must correspond to any status ofresidence listed in the Appended Tables of the Immigration Control Act.
Activities in which a foreign national who is an applicant intends to engage should be as
follows: In the case of any status of residence listed in Appended Table I, activities listed in theright-hand column corresponding to such status of residence; or in the case of any status

of residence listed in Appended Table II, activities as a person with a personal status or
position listed in the right-hand column corresponding to such status of residence.
2. Applicants must conform to the landing permission criteria provided for by Ordinanceof the Ministry of Justice, etc.
The landing permission criteria provided for by Ordinance of the Ministry of Justice is astandard for landing examination applicable to foreign nationals when entering Japan, andapplicants who intend to engage in activities listed in the right-hand column corresponding tothe statuses of residence of Appended Tables I (2) or (4) of the Immigration Control Act mustalso satisfy these criteria when they apply for permission for change of status of residence andextension of period of stay, in principle.
Also, when staying after receiving landing permission based on the “designated activities”
status of residence corresponding to the “notification regarding activities listed in theright-hand column of Appended Table I (5) of the Immigration Control and Refugee
Recognition Act in accordance with criteria pursuant to Article 7, Paragraph (1), Item (ii) of
the said act” (public notice of designated activities), or the “long-term resident” status ofresidence corresponding to the “notification regarding positions listed in the right-handcolumn under “Long-term Resident” of Appended Table II of the Immigration Control andRefugee Recognition Act in accordance with criteria pursuant to Article 7, Paragraph (1), Item(ii) of the said act” (public notice of long-term residents), it shall be necessary for theconditions of the same notification to be satisfied continuously, in principle.
However, some applicants are no longer likely to conform to certain requirements such asage or dependent status due to change of circumstances after they enter Japan, for example, incases where the circumstances in which they grew up or the circumstances that made them
dependents have ceased to exist, but such non-conformance will not immediately result in
denial of permission for extension of period of stay.

3. Applicants must have engaged in activities that are in accordance with the current statusof residence.
It is necessary for a foreign national who is an applicant to have engaged in activities thatare in accordance with the current status of residence. For example, a technical intern trainee
who has absconded or an foreign student who has stayed in Japan after being expelled from orleaving school and engaged in activities not in accordance with their status of residence isevaluated negatively except in cases where there is a justifiable reason for doing so.
4. Applicants must have good behavior.

On the premise that applicants have good behavior, those who do not have good behavior
will be recognized as having a negative element. Specifically, those who have committed any
act subject to criminal punishment that falls under any reason for deportation or act that cannot
be overlooked in terms of immigration services administration, including mediation of illegal
work, will be considered to exhibit bad behavior.
5. Applicants must have sufficient assets or ability to make an independent living.
An applicant's living situation must not be a burden to the public and the applicant musthave the possibility of continuing to live a stable life in the future, considering his/her assets
or ability (both on a personal basis and on a household basis). However, even in the casewhere an applicant's living situation is a burden to the public, when there are humanitarianreasons to grant permission to stay in Japan, the decision will be made giving due
consideration to such reasons.
6. Proper employment and working conditions must be met.
In the case of applicants who (intend to) get a job in Japan, including a part-time job, theiremployment and working conditions must comply with labor-related laws.
When it is found that recommendations have been made due to violation of any
labor-related law, it is generally considered that the relevant foreign national as an applicant
should not be held responsible for such violation, and the decision will be made giving due
consideration to such fact.
7. Tax obligations must be fulfilled.
In the case of applicants who are obliged to pay taxes, they must fulfill their tax payment
obligations. A failure to fulfill their obligation will be recognized as a negative element. For
example, those who have been punished for non-fulfillment of tax payment obligations will beconsidered to have failed to fulfill their tax payment obligations.
Even in the case of those who have not been punished, when it is found that they have notpaid a high amount of tax or that they have not paid tax for a long time, and when such acts
are considered malicious, they will be treated the same as those who have been punished.
8. Obligations provided by the Immigration Control Act, including notification obligations,must be fulfilled.
Foreign nationals who reside in Japan under a status of residence listed in the Immigration
Control Act for a medium to long term must fulfill their obligations provided in Article 19-7
through 19-13, 19-15 and 19-16 of the Immigration Control Act, including notification of thematters described on the residence card, application for renewal of validity of the residencecard, application for re-issuance of the residence card due to loss etc., return of the residencecard, and notification of the organization to which they belong.
<Definition of medium- to long-term residents>
Foreign nationals staying in Japan under a status of residence listed in the Immigration
Control Act for a medium to long term who do not fall under any of the following items(1)-(5):(1) Those who are granted permission to stay “within 3 months”(2) Those who are granted permission to acquire the status of residence as a “temporaryvisitor”(3) Those who are granted permission to acquire the status of residence as a “diplomat”

or “official”(4) Those who are specified as foreign nationals corresponding to the above (1)-(3) byOrdinance of the Ministry of Justice(5) Special permanent residents