Main (non-public notice) Designated Activities Visas
Designated Activities “Job-Hunting Visa”
This visa is for international students who have not yet secured a job after graduation, allowing them to continue their job-hunting activities in Japan. It also applies to international students who have already graduated and wish to conduct job-hunting in Japan.
While international students who have graduated from a vocational school can apply for this visa, those who have graduated from a Japanese language school generally cannot. The period of stay is initially a 6-month “Designated Activities” status, which can be renewed once. This allows you to continue your job-hunting for a maximum of one year. (The renewal period may also be for 4 months.)
Furthermore, if you receive an informal job offer in October, for example, but your start date is not until April of the following year, it is possible to change your status of residence to “Designated Activities for Waiting to Start Work.”
During your stay with this visa, you can work part-time, similar to a student visa, if you are granted “permission to engage in activities other than that permitted by the status of residence.”
Designated Activities “Preparation for Departure Visa”
This visa is for allowing a period of stay in Japan for the purpose of preparing to leave the country after a visa renewal or visa change application has been denied.
If your visa application is denied, you will not receive a new residence card, but the Immigration Services Agency will typically grant you a 30-day period to prepare for your departure. The Tokyo Immigration Bureau often grants a 31-day period. In such cases, if you re-apply within this period, a special grace period may be applied.
Designated Activities “Support for Elderly Parents Visa”
This visa is for foreign residents in Japan who wish to bring their elderly parents to Japan.
This visa is granted on the basis of “humanitarian consideration.” Clear permission criteria are not publicly disclosed, and it is not an easy visa to obtain. Compared to the past, it has become particularly difficult to get permission recently.
The following are considered the main conditions:
(Please note that foreign nationals on a “Highly Skilled Professional” visa can bring their parents to Japan by meeting specific requirements, which are separate from the conditions below.)
- The parent must be of an age generally recognized as elderly.
- There must be no one in their home country to care for the parent, and they are unable to enter an elderly care facility, etc.
- The parent is not planning to work in Japan.
- The foreign national bringing the parent has the financial capacity to support them.
Fee Schedule (Foreigner Visas) – Yokoyama Daisuke Gyoseishoshi Office (Tokyo/Shinjuku)
Contact Us (Free) – Yokoyama Daisuke Gyoseishoshi Office (Tokyo/Shinjuku)