Job Discussion Forums

[mateacher]

my friend was in Japan for 6 years without paying any city tax. yes, I'm talking about my friend and not myself he doesn't have a Dave's account and doesn't want to wait for the activation time, he's now in Canada, and married to a Japanese. He notified the city hall before leaving and put his parents in laws address. They opened his mail and found a 1.2 million city tax bill. How he managed to renew his visa is a mystery, he was on a spousal btw.
Anyway after two years of being unemployed in Canada, he wants to come back to Japan with his wife. But, he's worried about the city tax, will it be wiped since he's been away for two years? will immigration not give him a spousal if he applied outside the country? or will it be better for him to come in as a tourist and then change status then?
he wants to become an alt, not that it matters.

[Pitarou]

Short answer: unless your friend has resources you haven't mentioned, he's going to have a hard time, and this strikes me as a very dumb move.

If your friend comes back to the same city where he still has unpaid taxes, of course they're going to demand payment! If it was that easy to shirk our taxes we'd all be doing it.

I doubt he'll get a spousal visa from abroad, because neither he nor his wife have an income in Japan. Coming in as a tourist and changing to a work (not spousal) visa is a respectable option, but he still has to find the job. Is there any reason to think he'll be a more successful job hunter in Japan than in Canada?

If your friend returns to an entirely different, and unconnected city, he might be able to avoid the tax claim, but then he won't be able to live rent-free with his wife's parents while he looks for a job. So he needs money to support himself while he looks for a job. But I get the impression that he doesn't have much.

Living with his parents "secretly" could only be a temporary option. He is legally required to register with his local City Hall within two weeks of taking up residence. If he doesn't show willingness to comply with this law he can't expect a visa.

And finally, "I can't find a job in Canada" is a shitty reason to come to Japan. Being an ALT is a low-end job, not a career. Rather than gambling on Japan, I suggest that he finds out what kind of skills people are willing to pay for in Canada, and go about acquiring them. Train to be an accountant, or a plumber, or a web designer, or whatever's in demand.

[mateacher]

why do you say coming in as a tourist and then changing to a work visa is better? couldn't he come in as a tourist and then change to a spousal since his wife will have job lined up in Japan or would those unpaid taxes be an issue when he goes for the visa status change?
I don't know why he wants to be an alt. He's about 55 so too like for a career I think.

[mateacher]

I think he'd have a chance as getting an alt job, he can tie a tie, kind of speak English and he's white isn't that enough these days?

[Pitarou]

[Pitarou]

[rxk22]

WOW! He really did stick it to his in-laws. I think they can actually come in and re-pro his in-law's stuff if they can't pay the back taxes.

He could try to get a spousal visa while abroad and come back. But def needs to start a payment plan for his back taxes. What city lets that slide for so long? You don't have to tell, was just saying

[dove]

After the earthquake in 2011, I moved around a lot within Tokyo. Them in 2012, I left Japan. I didn't pay my local taxes before I left. Bills kept being sent to my last address. Even though I had left Japan, I never felt right about owing money. Everyone told me to get over myself and just forget about it. Well, I know myself and last December I flew back to Japan (luckily I had frequent flier miles) and I paid up. With all the late fees, plus back health insurance payments, it came to about 400,000 yen. I will never forget the look of shock on the clerk's face when I paid in cash. She told me so many foreigners who leave the country never pay. So after all my years in Japan I got to be the "good gaijin" for once. I don't give a damn about that really and I don't care if there are gaijins who leave without paying what they owe. I just care about how I sleep at night.

[mateacher]

I'm sure your 400.000 yen is being well spent, burning nuclear waste or building tetrapods at beaches

[rtm]

[nightsintodreams]

[cat mother]

It IS possible to change from tourist to spousal, but... at the immigration office he will need to submit a stack of documents from city hall and yes, tax forms for his previous years spent in Japan. Even if he moves to a different city.
So he will have to sort that mess first.
Ha! Guess how I know? Though my bill wasn't quite that high. And yes, it's possible to arrange for a reasonable payment plan.

[rxk22]

[G Cthulhu]

[Jagariko]