Visa Q&A August 3, 1999

VISA Q and A on FM COCOLO 76.5 MHz
Getting a 3-year visa
On Aired Data: August 3, 1999

Summary of
the Aired
Program

Client:
Foreign male married to a Japanese for the past 4 years. They have no children. He is currently holding a 1-year spouse visa.

Case:
He would like to apply for the 3-year visa.

There are three types of terms for the spouse visa; 6 months, 1 year, and 3 years. The　reason for there being three types of visas is for the immigrations to see if the marriage　is a real marriage. Especially if one is granted the 6 months visa, it means that the immigrations suspect your marriage to be a fake one. If you are a 6-month visa holder, when you visit the immigrations for a renewal on your visa, you should hand in any kind of proof that will show that your marriage is not a fake one, and that you really love each other.

Normally, one will be granted the 1-year visa. Once you are granted the 1-year visa, and you have children, on your next renewal, you should get a 3-year visa. People who are granted the 3-year visa are considered to be a real married couple, and ones who are qualified to apply for the permanent residency.

What our client should do to apply for the 3-year visa is to prove that they have a secure relationship, and that he has also successfully adapted to the Japanese society. For instance he should state how well he is doing at work by proving his recent promotion, and that he is getting a raise on a regular basis, that he has a enough savings, and all other details he can think of.

Another smart way to prove you have successfully adapted to the Japanese society is to write a composition in Japanese on as to why you would like the 3-year visa. By showing how fluent you are in Japanese, you can express how much you are adapted to the Japanese society.

If it is difficult to gather all these documents, another way is for the married couple is to take pictures at the same place every year. The expressions on the couple’s face can help the immigrations to get an idea how well your relationship is going.

As we always mention, the results of the applications are case by case. Some pass some don’t. So, although we have mentioned earlier that it is difficult to obtain the 3-year visa without having any children, our client has a good chance because he has other good reasons that he can prove to be adapted to the Japanese society.