Permanent residence in Japan: requirements and new rules

What does the law require?

Under the Immigration Control Act as in force on 2026-10-01, the Minister of Justice may grant permanent residence only to a person who meets the good-conduct and independent-livelihood conditions and whose permanent residence is judged to benefit Japan.

The Immigration Services Agency (ISA) guideline of 2026-10-01 calls permanent residence the most stable status, with no limit on activities or period of stay, so applications are examined with particular care. The benefit test needs more than not harming Japan: permanent residence must positively and concretely benefit the country.

How many years of residence are needed?

As a rule the applicant should have lived in Japan continuously for 10 years or more, with at least 5 of them in a work-purpose or residence-type status. A Long-Term Resident can apply after 5 years. A highly skilled professional with 70 points or more can apply after 3 years, and with 80 points or more after 1 year.

In the guideline of 2026-10-01, time in Technical Intern Training, Employment for Skill Development, Specified Skilled Worker (i), Intra-company Transferee and some Designated Activities does not count toward those 5 years. The earlier text of 2026-02-24 excluded only Technical Intern Training and Specified Skilled Worker (i).

What about spouses and children?

A spouse or child of a Japanese national, a permanent resident or a special permanent resident does not have to meet the good-conduct and independent-livelihood conditions. For filings from 2027-04-01 the spouse route needs a genuine marriage of 5 years or more plus 3 continuous years in Japan, and a biological child needs 3 years.

Under the earlier text of 2026-02-24 the spouse route is a genuine marriage of 3 years or more plus 1 year of continuous residence, and a child needs 1 year.

Which guideline applies to my filing?

The filing date decides which text applies. Filings up to 2026-03-31 follow the earlier guideline. Filings from 2026-04-01 to 2027-03-31 follow it too, except that the income and public-burden provisions of the guideline of 2026-10-01 also apply. Filings from 2027-04-01 follow the guideline of 2026-10-01 in full.

New from 2027-04-01: an unreasonable absence of 6 months or more on a single trip, or 2 years 6 months or more in total, within the 10 years before applying counts against the applicant. Japanese at CEFR level B1 or above is also expected, unless the applicant is exempt.

The ISA says it will announce the tests that prove B1 before operation starts on 2027-04-01, and will decide the method of the check on understanding of Japan’s rules before then. As of 2026-10-01 the official pages do not say which tests, scores or proofs are accepted.

How are tax, pension and income judged?

Unpaid taxes and public charges count against the applicant. Taxes include income, residence, corporate and property taxes; public charges include public health insurance and pension premiums. Even when nothing is owed at filing, a past record of non-payment, such as a distraint, is generally counted against the applicant.

Income is judged by whether household annual income continuously exceeds the average income of Japanese households of the same size. The guideline gives no yen amounts, and on 2026-10-01 the ISA said it does not plan to publish them.

For filings from 2027-04-01 the guideline also looks at the pension the applicant can expect, compared with the pension of a person who worked 30 years in the employees’ pension scheme at an income above the Japanese household average. If it falls short, financial assets that can cover the shortfall are treated as making up the gap.

Fee, processing time and how to file

The fee is 200,000 yen, payable when the permit is granted, for applications received from 2026-10-01. Applications received up to 2026-09-30 still pay the old 10,000 yen.

The published standard processing period is 4 to 6 months. In practice, permits granted in 2026-08 took an average of 309 days from receipt to notification.

Applications are filed on paper at the regional immigration office for the applicant’s residence; the online system cannot be used. An applicant must file before the current period of stay expires. There is no administrative appeal against the decision.

What it is

• The Immigration Services Agency says that writing 'compliance with obligations under the Act and payment of taxes and public charges' into the permanent-residence test merely codifies the 'proper performance of public duties' the guidelines already required; it adds no new requirement and does not tighten the conditions.
  永住許可制度の適正化Q＆A Ｑ７ · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Permanent residence is described as the most stable legal status, with no limit on activities or period of stay, so applications are to be examined with particular care.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第1の1 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• The national-interest condition requires more than not harming Japan: the applicant's permanent residence must positively and concretely benefit the country.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の5(1) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• In the October 2026 guideline, 'work-purpose status' excludes Technical Intern Training, Employment for Skill Development, Specified Skilled Worker (i), Intra-company Transferee and some Designated Activities, so time in those statuses does not count toward the 5-year work-status period.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(2)注２ · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• In the February 2026 guideline only Technical Intern Training and Specified Skilled Worker (i) are carved out of the work-status years counted toward the 5-year work-or-residence-status requirement.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年２月２４日改訂） 1(3)ア · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-02-24
• Periods in Designated Activities that are only temporary or exceptional, such as continued job-hunting, a confirmed job offer, start-up activity by graduates or refugee-application pending, are not counted in the 10-year period.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第5 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Income of household members who hold a status not aimed at work, such as Dependent, is not added to the household income, because they may earn only under limited permission.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• Relatives the applicant supports, including those living abroad, are added to the household size even if they do not live with the applicant, and households of five or more get a higher income benchmark.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01

Who qualifies

• Under the Immigration Control Act as in force on 1 October 2026, the Minister of Justice may grant permanent residence only to a person who meets both the good-conduct and independent-livelihood conditions and whose permanent residence is judged to benefit Japan.
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2026-10-01施行時点） 第22条第2項 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• A spouse or child of a Japanese national, a permanent resident or a special permanent resident does not have to meet the good-conduct and independent-livelihood conditions, and a person recognised as needing protection by UNHCR or a similar international body and meeting the ministerial-ordinance conditions is exempt from the livelihood condition.
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2026-10-01施行時点） 第22条第2項ただし書 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• The applicant should hold the longest period of stay available for the current status; for filings made up to 31 March 2027 a 3-year period is treated as the longest, and someone who still holds a 3-year period on 31 March 2027 gets the same treatment only for a first application filed from 1 April 2027 and decided before that period ends.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の5(6)注４ · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• The shortened-residence exceptions do not apply to people who received special permission to stay or landing after a landing-denial ground applied; they must first reside 10 years after that permission.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第3注５ · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• The livelihood test expects economic conditions at or above the level of Japanese households, both now and in the future, and is judged per household living on the same budget.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(1) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• If the expected pension falls short, financial assets that can cover the shortfall are treated as making up the gap, and the required asset amount is lower for younger applicants.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(3) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Good conduct means obeying the law and living without social reproach; repeated illegal or nuisance acts lead to failing the requirement.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の3 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Unpaid public charges count against the applicant; 'public taxes' cover income, residence, corporate and property taxes, and 'public charges' include public health insurance and pension premiums.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の5(3) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01

Numbers and tests

• Under the October 2026 guideline, an unreasonable absence of six months or more on a single trip, or 2 years 6 months or more in total, within the 10 years before applying counts against the applicant.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の5(6) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Income is judged by whether household annual income continuously exceeds the average income of Japanese households of the same size; the guideline gives no yen amounts.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• For applications filed from 1 April 2027, the guideline also looks at the pension the applicant can expect, compared with the pension of someone who worked 30 years in the employees' pension scheme at the income level of the Japanese household average.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(3) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• The ISA has said in its public-comment answers of 1 October 2026 that it does not plan to publish the yen amounts of the income benchmark, the target pension level or the age-based asset amount, so the guideline text and any official table contain no figures to hard-code.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン案改定に係る意見募集の結果について（別紙：御意見の要旨及び御意見に対する考え方） No.17 (別紙) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• The income benchmark is applied as a single nationwide level rather than by prefecture or city of residence, because the ISA reasons that a permanent resident may move.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン案改定に係る意見募集の結果について（別紙：御意見の要旨及び御意見に対する考え方） No.38 (別紙) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• For households of five or more the guideline adds an unspecified living-cost increment to the household-size benchmark, and the increment amount is not published either; dependants abroad count toward household size even if they live apart.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• The three tests are linked as follows: household income must continuously reach the nationwide household-size benchmark; the expected pension must reach the 30-year employees'-pension level; and a shortfall can be covered only by enough financial assets, whose required amount falls with younger age, with a spouse's expected pension added to the applicant's and the 'Category 3 insured' pension of a dependent spouse added to the target.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の4(3) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Answering requests to use the median or to set a higher bar, the ISA kept the wording that household income must continuously exceed the average income of Japanese households of the same size, and said meeting a Japanese-equivalent level is enough to assure self-support now and in future.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン案改定に係る意見募集の結果について（別紙：御意見の要旨及び御意見に対する考え方） No.31, No.33 (別紙) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01

Periods

• As a rule the applicant should have lived in Japan continuously for 10 years or more at the time of application.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の5(6) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Of the 10 years, at least 5 continuous years must have been spent in a work-purpose status or a residence-type status.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第2の5(6) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• From 1 April 2027 the spouse route needs a genuine marriage lasting 5 years or more plus 3 continuous years of residence in Japan; a biological child of such a person needs 3 years of continuous residence.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第3の1 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Under the February 2026 guideline, the spouse route requires a genuine marriage of 3 years or more and 1 year of continuous residence in Japan; a child needs 1 year.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年２月２４日改訂） 2(1) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-02-24
• A holder of Long-Term Resident status can apply after 5 continuous years in Japan instead of 10.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第3の2 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• Recognised refugees and complementary-protection beneficiaries need 5 or more continuous years of residence after recognition.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第3の3 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• A highly skilled professional scoring 70 points or more can apply after 3 continuous years in Japan while keeping the score, or when a 70-plus score is confirmed as of three years before filing and has been held continuously for those 3 years.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第3の6 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• A highly skilled professional scoring 80 points or more qualifies after 1 continuous year while keeping the score.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第3の7 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01

Deadlines

• A person whose status is revoked rather than changed is given a period of not more than 30 days to leave Japan, which may carry conditions on residence and movement.
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（令和6年法律第60号による改正後・2027-04-01施行版） 第22条の4第7項・第8項 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• People who already hold Business Manager status cannot be refused an extension merely for missing the new standard until 16 October 2028; the grace covers extensions only, and after the effective date permanent residence from Business Manager status, or from business-based Highly Skilled Professional status, is not granted to someone who does not meet the revised standard.
  在留資格「経営・管理」に係る上陸基準省令等の改正について 問1 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2025-10-16
• The renewal application for the card is made from three months before the expiry date until the expiry date at the immigration office for the residence, and costs nothing.
  在留カードの有効期間の更新申請 申請期間・手数料 · Checked on 2026-10-22
• A change of address must be reported to the municipal office within 14 days of moving, with the residence card, and failing to do so is punishable by a fine of up to 200,000 yen.
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2026-10-01施行時点） 第19条の9第1項 · Checked on 2026-10-23
• Changes to the name, date of birth, sex or nationality/region shown on the card must be reported to the ISA within 14 days of the change.
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2026-10-01施行時点） 第19条の10・第19条の4第1項第1号 · Checked on 2026-10-23
• A mid- to long-term resident who left with a re-entry permission and does not re-enter within its validity must return the residence card to the Commissioner within 14 days of that event.
  新たな在留管理制度に関するＱ＆Ａ（在留カード） Q69 · Checked on 2026-10-23

Fees

• The fee for a permanent residence permit is 200,000 yen, payable when the permit is granted, for applications received from 1 October 2026.
  永住許可申請（手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• Applications received up to 30 September 2026 still pay the old 10,000 yen fee even if the permit is granted after 1 October.
  永住許可申請（手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• A permanent residence applicant who is a spouse or child of a Japanese national, a permanent resident or a special permanent resident, and who is in hardship close to the public-assistance level and needs humanitarian consideration, may have the fee reduced to 20,000 yen; no other permanent residence applicants are eligible for a reduction, and the reduction cannot be claimed through the online system, so filing is at the counter.
  令和８年１０月１日以降における在留許可手数料の減額措置又は免除措置について · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• The fee for permanent residence is set by cabinet order within a statutory ceiling of 300,000 yen in Article 67 of the Immigration Control Act.
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2026-10-01施行時点） 第67条第1項第3号 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• No fee is charged for acquiring permanent resident status on a ground such as birth, as opposed to applying to change from another status.
  永住許可申請（手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• There is no fee for a naturalization application.
  帰化許可申請（法務省 申請手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22

How it works

• For permanent residence applications handled at the counter, the fee is paid with revenue stamps, with the stamp amount stated on the notice postcard.
  令和８年１０月１日付け在留許可手数料の額の改定等について · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• An applicant must file before the current period of stay expires, and if it will expire while the application is pending, a separate extension application must be filed by the expiry date.
  永住許可申請（手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Permanent residence applications are filed at the regional immigration office with jurisdiction over the applicant's residence.
  永住許可申請（手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22
• There is no administrative appeal procedure against a decision on a permanent residence application.
  永住許可申請（手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22
• The letter of guarantee is normally given by a guarantor who lives in Japan and is a Japanese national, a permanent resident or a special permanent resident.
  永住許可申請（手続案内） · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Since 1 October 2021 a signed letter of understanding has been required with every permanent residence application.
  永住許可申請３（就労関係の在留資格・家族滞在の方） 15 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2021-10-01
• Certificates issued in Japan must be dated within three months of filing, and documents in foreign languages need a Japanese translation.
  永住許可申請３（就労関係の在留資格・家族滞在の方） · Checked on 2026-10-22
• The ISA publishes self-check sheets and warns that a single 'No' answer makes refusal likely, while all 'Yes' answers do not guarantee approval.
  永住許可申請３（就労関係の在留資格・家族滞在の方） 重要２ · Checked on 2026-10-22

Penalties

• Separately from revocation, even a permanent resident sentenced to life or to more than one year of imprisonment may be deported regardless of the offence.
  永住許可制度の適正化Q＆A Ｑ１１ · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Even a negligent breach of such an obligation can fit the ground, but a single lapse such as forgetting to renew the card or carry it is not expected to lead to revocation by itself, and 'justifiable reasons' such as illness or disaster excuse the breach.
  永住者の在留資格の取消しに関するガイドライン 第2の1(2)(3) · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• A letter of guarantee has no legal enforceability against the guarantor, so the guarantor is not legally liable to pay or to arrange departure, and the authorities only urge performance, but failing to perform can mean losing credibility as a guarantor in later applications, a moral responsibility.
  出入国審査・在留審査Q&A Ｑ５３ · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Failing to renew the residence card within the application period can bring imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up to 200,000 yen.
  在留カード等に関するＱ＆Ａ（新しい在留管理制度） 有効期間更新を怠った場合 · Checked on 2026-10-22
• A foreign resident who leaves Japan without a re-entry permission (a deemed re-entry permission counts as such) loses the residence status and period of stay held before leaving.
  再入国許可（入管法第26条） 再入国許可 · Checked on 2026-10-22

Lists and tables

• Workers must submit five years of resident-tax assessment and payment certificates, plus proof that resident tax was paid on time unless it was withheld from salary.
  永住許可申請３（就労関係の在留資格・家族滞在の方） 7(1) · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Workers must also submit national tax certificates (type 3) covering withholding, income, consumption, inheritance and gift taxes.
  永住許可申請３（就労関係の在留資格・家族滞在の方） 7(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Proof of pension premium payment for the past two years is required, such as the pension office's insured-record reply, a full-period pension notice or Nenkin Net printouts.
  永住許可申請３（就労関係の在留資格・家族滞在の方） 8(1) · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Spouses of Japanese nationals or permanent residents submit tax records for the last three years, while biological children of such persons submit one year.
  永住許可申請１（日本人・永住者・特別永住者の配偶者又は実子等の方） 6 · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Documents proving nationality and family relationships should in principle be those issued by the authorities of the applicant's home country.
  国籍Ｑ＆Ａ（法務省） Ｑ11 · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Besides tax and pension, the checklist for work-status applicants asks for proof of health-insurance premium payment over the last two years, so the health-insurance lookback is two years, the same as for pension.
  永住許可申請３（就労関係の在留資格・家族滞在の方） 8(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22
• Highly Skilled Professionals on the 80-point route (one year in the status) supply only one year of income and tax proof and one year of pension and health-insurance premium proof.
  永住許可申請４－（１）－ア（80点以上の高度専門職） 6, 8(1)(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22
• On the 70-point Highly Skilled Professional route the ISA checklist asks for the last three years of resident-tax certificates and payment proof but only two years of pension and health-insurance premium proof.
  永住許可申請４－（２）－ア（70点以上の高度専門職） 6, 8(1)(2) · Checked on 2026-10-22

Recent changes

• From 1 April 2027, Article 22(2) is amended so the national-interest test expressly refers to compliance with obligations under the Act and payment of taxes and other public charges.
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2027-04-01施行版／令和6年法律第60号） 第22条第2項 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• The separate 'contribution to Japan' permanent-residence guideline is abolished on 31 March 2027, when the October 2026 guideline takes over.
  永住許可（入管法第22条） お知らせ · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-03-31
• Which guideline applies depends on the filing date: the February 2026 text up to 31 March 2026; the February text for 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 except that the October 2026 income provisions apply; and the October 2026 text for filings from 1 April 2027.
  永住許可（入管法第22条） お知らせ · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-10-01
• The October 2026 guideline revision applies in full to filings from 1 April 2027, though its income and public-burden provisions also reach pending cases filed within six months before the revision date.
  永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和８年１０月１日改定） 第6 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• The comprehensive measures set by the ministerial council on foreign nationals on 23 January 2026 list, as a future issue, reviewing the livelihood and national-interest requirements for permanent residence and considering a Japanese and rules-learning programme as a condition.
  外国人の受入れ・秩序ある共生のための総合的対応策（令和８年１月２３日） ⑤ⅳ 施策番号36 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-01-23
• The ISA held a public comment period from 4 August to 3 September 2026 on the draft revision of the permanent-residence guideline, and on the draft revocation guideline, before the October 2026 versions were issued.
  永住許可（入管法第22条） お知らせ · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2026-08-04
• From 1 April 2027 a permanent resident's status can be revoked if the holder fails to comply with obligations set out in the Immigration Control Act (the separate address-notification grounds excepted) or deliberately fails to pay taxes and public charges (Art. 22-4(1)(viii)).
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2027-04-01施行版／令和6年法律第60号） 第22条の4第1項第8号 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01
• The same amendment adds a revocation ground for a permanent resident sentenced to imprisonment for specified intentional offences such as theft, fraud, extortion, murder or dangerous driving causing injury (Art. 22-4(1)(ix)).
  出入国管理及び難民認定法（e-Gov 法令検索・2027-04-01施行版／令和6年法律第60号） 第22条の4第1項第9号 · Checked on 2026-10-22 · In force from 2027-04-01