Here are four reasons why your permanent residence application may be denied. In most cases where an application for permanent residence was denied, one of the reasons below applies, so those who have been denied in the past should check the reasons and reapply.
You do not meet the annual income requirement.
The annual income requirement for permanent residence is the last 5 years for those applying for a work visa and permanent residence, and the last 3 years for those applying for a status visa (e.g., Japanese spouse) and permanent residence.
In principle, income is verified based on the resident taxation certificate issued by the municipal office.
Estimated annual income: 3,000,000 yen or more
If you are holding for a work visa, you must have an annual income of at least 3 million yen for the last 5 consecutive years. If you have dependents such as a spouse or children, an additional 300,000 yen per dependent is required.
Example: Husband's status of residence: Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services
Wife's status of residence: Dependent Visa
*Wife is dependent on husband.
If you wish to obtain permanent residence in the above case, the husband's annual income should be at least 3.3 million yen.
*In principle, the wife's part-time income from family residence cannot be added to the household income. If the wife, like the husband, holds a work-related status of residence, there is a high possibility that her income will also be considered as household income.
If the foreign national is a dependent of a Japanese spouse, there is no problem with using the annual income of the Japanese spouse as the starting point.
Delayed or unpaid taxes, pensions, or insurance premiums
Proof of payment of resident tax for the most recent 5 years and proof of payment of pension and insurance premiums for the most recent 2 years are to be submitted when applying for permanent residence.
In other words, if you have unpaid or overdue payments for the above periods, your application for permanent residence will likely be rejected. There is no concern for those who are company employees and have the payment deducted from their wages, but please note that those who are sole proprietors and pay by themselves or those who are company employees may have omitted payment during the period of unemployment during the period of job change activities.
Long period of departure
There is a residency requirement for permanent residence applications, and in principle, the applicant must have continuously lived in Japan for at least 10 years.
*For spouses of Japanese nationals or permanent residents, 1 year is acceptable if 3 years have passed since the marriage.
For Highly Skilled Professionals, 3 years with a score of 70 or above, and 1 year with a score of 80 or above.
During the above residency period, if you leave Japan more than 100 days per year for overseas business trips, etc., you will likely be caught by the residency requirement and will be denied.
However, even if you are out of Japan for more than 100 days per year, if you have a reasonable reason for leaving Japan, your application may be approved.
Inadequate reasons for application and attached documents
When applying for permanent residence, the applicant is required to state in writing the reasons why he/she wishes to obtain permanent residence, but there are cases where inconsistencies between the reasons and the application documents or unnecessary information may result in disadvantages in the examination process. In addition, as mentioned above, there are cases where an application that could have been approved may be denied if there is a lack of reasons, history, or supporting documents, such as when the applicant has left Japan frequently.
The Immigration Bureau will take a very careful approach in deciding whether or not to grant permanent residence in Japan. There are a wide variety of requirements for permanent residence, and in order to obtain permanent residence, the applicant must meet all of the requirements and be a person who is deemed acceptable for permanent residence in Japan.
