Many people who wish to live in Japan for a long time consider possibility of application for permanent residence or PR.
In order to apply for PR, you, at least, need to meet the requirements set forth in the Immigration Control Act as we discussed in another article.
However, even applicants who think they satisfy the requirements often receive denial.
If you get such denial, you may feel very depressed. However, there is a possibility that you can obtain PR by re-application after you understand the reasons for the denial and make some necessary improvements.
In this article, we will explain the common reasons for denial of permanent residence application for people who seemingly satisfy all requirements for the application.
Insufficient Annual Income.
The website of the Immigration and Immigration Control Agency does not publish the annual income required to obtain a permanent residence permit.
It is often said that approximately 3 million yen is required. However, if you have a large family to support, 3 million yen may not be sufficient. If you have several children in addition to your spouse who is not working, 5 million yen or more may be required.
Even if your annual income is high at the time of application, the Immigration Office may consider your income unstable if you have lost your job or have had a significant drop in income during the most recent five years.
Number of Days You Stay Abroad
Your application for PR may also be denied if the number of days you have been abroad is too high.
In principle, the applicant must have continuously lived in Japan for at least 10 years before application. (this requirement is shortened in some cases such as a spouse of a Japanese national or a highly skilled professionals.).
Permanent Residence in Japan | Highly Skilled Japan (highly-skilled-japan.com)
During that period, if you leave Japan for more than 90 days at a time, or if you leave Japan for more than 100 days in total within a year, the immigration may think you do not live in Japan continuously.
Unpaid Pension and Taxes
The Immigration Bureau strictly examine delay or non-payment of pensions and taxes. If you have not paid or failed to pay your pension or taxes in the past, there is a high possibility that your application will be rejected on this basis.
Payment of pension and tax retroactively do not solve the problems. Because your history of delayed payment won’t disappear even if you pay them now.
It is important to pay your pension and taxes on time from now and make a good record of continuous payment before application.
The statement of reasons is not good.
In order to apply for permanent residence, you must submit a statement of reasons (理由書 Riyū-sho).
In the Statement of Reasons, you need to effectively appeal your good points such as your contribution to Japanese society and your skills. At the same time, if there are any points that the Immigration Bureau may have questions or concerns about, you need to appropriately address that points so that immigration can feel comfortable for giving you PR.
It is not easy to prepare a statement of reasons with appropriate content in Japanese. It is good idea that you hire an administrative scrivener to make the statement, although it will cost you some money.
