Table of Contents

【Q3】 Are there any way to stay in Japan other than receiving a new job offer and completing procedures to change my residence status to the new employer?

【Q4】 I heard that with my Highly Skilled Professional residence status (75 points), I can apply for permanent residency after three years. Will the fact that I have already lived in Japan for 25 years be taken into account? If I apply for permanent residency now, will it be accepted?

【Q3】
Are there any way to stay in Japan other than receiving a new job offer and completing procedures to change my residence status to the new employer?

Answer:
Based on your current situation, if you intend to continue living in Japan long-term and remain active professionally, finding a new employer and applying for permission to change your residence status (to continue as Highly Skilled Professional or another employment-based residence status) is the most common and realistic method.

Other possible options include the following, but each has its own requirements and cannot be assumed to apply automatically from your current Highly Skilled Professional status:

Changing from Highly Skilled Professional to another employment-based residence status (work visa)

If the activities at your next employer do not meet the requirements for Highly Skilled Professional (point system criteria, etc.), you must change to another category appropriate to the content of your work (e.g., Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services). If you meet the requirements for another status, you can apply for permission to change status.

Changing to a status based on family relationship

If you are married to a Japanese national or a permanent resident, you may be granted residence status such as Spouse of Japanese National or Spouse of Permanent Resident, under which you may operate a business freely, even without obtaining the residence status of Business Manager.

Changing to Short-Term Stay

If your stay is temporary, you may apply for permission to change your residence status to Short-Term Stay. However, this is intended for tourism or visiting relatives for up to 90 days and cannot be used for job-hunting or long-term residence leading to work. Normally, changing from Short-Term Stay to a work-related residence status is not permitted.

Conclusion

To continue living in Japan long-term while working for a Japanese public or private organization, it is essential either to:

• maintain your current Highly Skilled Professional status while engaging only in ancillary entrepreneurial activity, or
• change to another employment-based residence status appropriate for your activity.

It is therefore important to begin job hunting early so that you can commence new activities within three months after resignation.

【Q4】
I heard that with my Highly Skilled Professional residence status (75 points), I can apply for permanent residency after three years. Will the fact that I have already lived in Japan for 25 years be taken into account? If I apply for permanent residency now, will it be accepted?

Answer:
There are two main routes to obtaining permission for permanent residence:

1. Special preferential route for Highly Skilled Professional and other highly-skilled individuals
2. Standard route

Since you have already lived in Japan for 25 years, it is possible that you meet the residence requirement under the standard route. However, this requirement is legally expressed as the “national interest requirement”, and continued employment and lawful activity are prerequisites.

National interest requirement — residence period under the Highly Skilled Professional preferential route

Those who score 70 points or more under the Highly Skilled Professional point system may satisfy the residence requirement if they continue Highly Skilled Professional activities for:

• 3 years (if scoring 70 points or more)
• 1 year (if scoring 80 points or more)

With 75 points, you satisfy the condition if you continue Highly Skilled Professional activities for three years.

National interest requirement — standard permanent residence route

The standard requirement for permanent residence is:

• Having lived in Japan continuously for 10 years or more, and
• Within that period, having lived under a work-related residence status or the status of Spouse of Japanese National, Spouse of Permanent Resident, or Long-Term Resident for at least 5 years continuously

Even if you have lived in Japan for 25 years, if the residence is not continuous (for example, due to time spent abroad or re-entry requiring a Certificate of Eligibility), you may not satisfy the “continuous” requirement.

Consideration of your 25-year residence history and whether to apply now

Although waiting three years under Highly Skilled Professional may be advisable, you may apply now if there are urgent personal circumstances. However, such an application would require a highly sophisticated approach and carries a risk of rejiction.

In addition to residence duration, permanent residence applicants must satisfy the following:

• Good conduct (law-abiding behavior, tax compliance, etc.)
• Ability to maintain stable living conditions (income or assets sufficient to support livelihood)

If you intend to resign, note that stable future income is a critical screening requirement. Applying while unemployed makes proving financial stability difficult. It is better to apply while employed or after securing your next employer.

In conclusion, proving the standard 10-year and 5-year continuous residence requirements is difficult if the residence is not continuous. For example, if you once left Japan and later re-entered using a Certificate of Eligibility, the period may not be treated as continuous.

That said, there are approval cases where long residence history appears to have been considered.

Continued in Part 3