Job Discussion Forums

[cafebleu]

Fion, I was re-reading your post about the letter of release that an employer has to give when an employee leaves a job, and I was interested to read just how easy the Shinagawa Immigration Office seems to be. I am also a Brit on a UK passport.

I have posted a more recent thread on visa renewal (mine does not end for some time, quite late in 2,004) and I received some helpful replies. It seems that Shinagawa is a relatively `easy` office and others in Japan are `strict`. I have heard some that offices will refuse to consider an application such as yours as the main employer listed is paying way too little to be considered a sponsoring employer.

Yet it seems you received the mythical `self sponsorship` or to put it more accurately the `multiple sponsorship` without actually providing any real documentation of an employer or combination of employers committing to paying you at least 180,000 yen per month by way of contracts which are submitted to Immigration. Congratulations - I think that is great but would you mind telling me exactly how you did it! Were you questioned extensively?

The reason I am asking this is because I have heard that different Immigration Offices in Japan are much, much stricter. In some cases in some offices apparently, you could NEVER get a visa renewal without at least 2 employers being written on the form as co sponsors, with contracts as documented proof that the income was around 180,000 per month or over.

Are you saying that in your case, your tax records proved to be sufficient? For example the major employer was paying 70,000 yen per month yet you had submitted your tax records from other employers to prove that you can make a living in Japan and were working at other jobs, even if you could not write down two or more employers as `sponsors` nor provide original copies of contracts?

If you could take time to tell me, I`d be very interested to know more. I will be facing the same situation late in 2004, and this whole renewal business is stressing out one of my friends who works a number of small jobs with legal employers.

Moreover, one of them is a big company (not an English teaching co) that hires English teachers on contracts for company classes and has already made it clear to employees that it does not wish to be involved in any way with a visa renewal process as those teachers are not company employees. They are contracted to provide English services - a big difference.

I`d be really interested if Fion could reply but anybody who has had the same experience is very welcome.

[Sherri]

cafebleu
I don't know if this is helpful but last year (Dec 2002) I got a 3-year visa with just one contract showing 150,000 a month. That was it! I had earned almost nothing the previous tax year (took time off for child raising). It was no problem. That was in the old Shibuya immigration office, but I would assume the same officers now work in Shinagawa. I do agree that it is case by case here, you may just have to try your luck.
Sherri

[fion]

Cafebleu, sorry for late reply.
I wasn't questioned extensively at Shinegawa. I gave them the names (only, no address or further details) of two other employers in addition to the 'main' one. I had taken a whole bunch of contracts and payslips with me to Shinegawa, but they didn't ask to see that stuff.
Regarding the tax info, I do my own tax return in March every year. This tax form includes all of my income, so the final statement thing I took to immigration included all of my income for the previous year. If I have individual tax statements from different employers, I send them to the tax office in March along with all the other bumph (receipts for medical expenses and other tax deductibles etc.)
I can't be sure but I think this tax thing may have been important. It shows that my total income is above the magic number (whatever that is these days) and that I'm doing the decent thing by declaring it and paying tax.
Good luck, and I suggest you don't get too stressed about it. I was worried about it for months in advance too then it turned out there was no need.
Fion