Hello, this is Iwaya of IMS Legal Professional Corporation. Japan’s vaccination passport (COVID-19 vaccination certificate) can now be used in famous tourist spots like U.S.’s Guam and Thailand’s Phuket. I have the feeling that more people from Japan will be traveling overseas henceforth.
A list of countries and regions where Japan’s COVID-19 vaccine certificate are valid can be checked below.
https://www.anzen.mofa.go.jp/covid19/certificationlist.html (Japanese site)
Last week was another busy week for customer inquiries. In this blog, I would like to feature and explain an inquiry we received from a student of a university where we offer visa consulting service.
Last year, this student stayed in Japan without extending his period of stay after it had expired. Right now, he is staying in his home country and the reentry-prohibited period that was sentenced was 1 year. Most likely, the student--worried about his illegal stay--voluntarily went to the immigration office and left Japan under the “departure order system.”
What is the Departure Order System?
The “departure order system” is a system that allows foreign nationals who remained in Japan illegally after the expiration of their period of stay and illegal immigrants to leave Japan without detention under the departure order if they voluntarily appeared at an immigration office, wishing to leave Japan.
Normally, when illegal residents (illegal stayers) are arrested by the police or caught by the immigration, they are held at a facility, deported from Japan, and are not allowed to reenter Japan for 5 to 10 years, depending on the circumstances. However, the reentry-prohibited period of those who left Japan under the “departure order system” is only 1 year. Also, since it is not deportation, when departing Japan under the departure order, the embarkation procedures are the same as normal.
Is returning to Japan possible?
Furthermore, for the question, “Can those who left under the “departure order system” really come back to Japan after the one-year reentry-prohibited period?” the answer is “Yes, it is possible.” Of course, first, you need to apply for the “Certificate of Eligibility (COE)” according to your purpose of entry (i.e. to work or study in Japan, etc.) in Japan. After the COE is issued, and you obtain a visa at a Japanese Embassy of your home country, you can then enter Japan.
However, just because you acquired a COE and a visa, that does not mean that your entry to Japan is 100% guaranteed. When being examined for landing, if an evidence that does not meet the landing permission standards turns up because of reasons such as change of circumstance, entry may not be allowed. This is not limited to those who have illegally stayed in the past.
As above, although there is a reentry-prohibited period for a certain amount of time, even those who have illegally stayed are not permanently banned from entering Japan. However, as a matter of course, applying for the “Certificate of Eligibility” will be more difficult.
We, at IMS, support many special cases of Japan visa applications. If you are in trouble with a similar case, please consult us.
For more information, please contact us below ↓
https://imsvisa.support/en/contact/
