Living in
the land of the rising sun or achieving permanent residency is about to become
a rather painful procedure for the pocket. To the surprise of foreigners and
workers in the Asian country, Japan's Cabinet approved on August
25 a series of massive increases in the fees required to renew visas, change
stay status and apply for permanent residence.
As of
October 1, 2026, the traditional flat fee of 6,000 yen for visa renewal or
change will be completely forgotten. Instead, the government will implement a
charging scale based on the length of stay granted. Those who apply for
face-to-face procedures for periods of three months or less will have to pay
10,000 yen, while stays of one to three years will amount to 48,000 yen. The
figure climbs to 75,000 yen for permits of five years or more, which represents
an increase of more than 1,150 percent compared to the previous fee, although
online procedures will cost slightly less.
The most
severe blow will be taken by applicants for permanent residency. This
procedure, which previously required a payment of 10,000 yen, will cost a
whopping 200,000 yen, registering an overwhelming increase of 1,900 percent.
According to the statements of the Minister of Justice, Hiroshi Hiraguchi,
these additional revenues will be used to cover the rising costs of managing
and controlling immigration in the country, arguing that foreign residents
should bear an adequate share of these expenses.
This
measure is part of the reforms to the Immigration Control Law approved at the
beginning of the year, directly affecting thousands of Japanese professionals,
students and companies that usually cover these expenses for their employees in
key sectors such as elderly care. Although officials mentioned that there will
be reductions for people facing economic hardship, details about the
requirements have not yet been clarified. All those who manage to submit their
application before October 1 will keep the old costs.
Seeing that
the costs to legally settle in Japan will skyrocket so drastically starting in
October
