Job Discussion Forums

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

I think you're right, furiousmilksheikali. Even though he was travelling on a NZ passport, being half Malay he could easily have been mistaken for an Iranian. At the time there was a lot of news about Iranian overstayers, working illegally, the telephone card scam etc.

I think that whatever the passport, 2-day visa runs to Korea are pretty obvious and someone would be pretty lucky to get away with it more than once.

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

Private lessons, or any other work for that matter, is not illegal as long as the lessons, or work, falls into the work allowed by your Status of Residence.

Eikawa teachers can teach conversational English in their spare time. JETs can't because teaching conversational English outside the school setting is not allowed with the Instructor Stay of Residence.

You can get official permission from Immigration to do work outside the work allowed by your stay of residence.

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

I bet a lot of those JET side gigs were actually introduced to the JETs by their BOE or by a Japanese teacher working at one of their schools. It just goes to show you how little the BOEs or Japanese teachers know about the law.

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435

There's also the question of whether the BOE's rules and/or city employee policies are valid or not, and if they are valid, whether they actually apply to the sister city teachers or not.

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

Yes, they do apply.. We've been told that they do. (And it makes sense when you think about it). Because it's the Japanese city BoE who's paying your salary and not the sister city in the U.S., that DOES technically make you a a Japanese civil servant, working for the city. As such, all rules (such as tax, health, pension, and other deductions) as well as outstanding policies (like automatic no-questions-asked dismissal for drink-driving) apply to all.

I like this system because it's either fair or unfair across the board... There's no preferential treatment for anyone. The only thing that affects the sister city teachers but no other city employee is that they must agree to NOT driving a motor vehicle of any kind during their time of employment in Japan (don't ask me why -- it must have been a huge issue a bunch of years ago and they're not risking it becoming an issue again). Unfair as hell, but I know it hasn't stopped people from doing so, even buying and driving cars, scooters and motorbikes... It's just that no one talks about it.

yamanote senbei · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 435