DEPENDENT
The Dependent visa is granted for spouse and unmarried child financially supported by their family living in Japan with a valid working or student visa.
People with a student visa are also eligible to invite their spouse or children to Japan, but please be aware that it might be much more difficult to obtain their Dependent status depending on their financial situation and incomes. The applicant will have to justify enough evidences of savings abroad, including ones belonging to their parents, to fully support their married life in Japan.
Please note that the Dependent visa itself does not permit your family member to work full-time in Japan. They are only allowed to work as part-time, and they will still have to obtain a Permission to Engage in Activity other than that Permitted from the Immigration Bureau of Japan first. Once the approval is issued, they are allowed to work up to 28 hours per week.
However, an exception is granted to applicants owning a "Highly Skilled Professional" visa. In this case, their spouse are allowed to work full-time in Japan.
Criteria & Requirements
The Immigration Office will grant the "Dependent" visa to those living in Japan under the Status of Residence below:
Professor｜Artist｜Religious Activities｜Journalist｜Investor / Business Manager｜Legal / Accounting Services｜Medical Services｜Researcher｜Instructor｜Engineer｜Specialist in Humanities / International Services｜Intra-Company Transferee ｜Entertainer｜Skilled Labor｜Cultural Activities｜Student
You will need to apply for a Certificate of Eligibility for a Dependent visa for his/her family at the regional Immigration Bureau in Japan. After the issuance of the Certificate of Eligibility for a Dependent visa, your family can go to the Japanese Embassy in your home country and get the visa issued. Only after this procedure, your family becomes eligible to enter Japan.
Period of Stay
Period of Stay in each case shall be designated by the Immigration Office. The period must be either of 5 years, 4 years, 3 years, 2 years, 1 year, 6 months, 3 months.
If you wish to stay more years under the same Status of Residence you already have, you can apply for renewing your visa 3 months before the expiration of the period of stay.
Necessary documents for the application
You are required to prepare supporting documents which can certify that the contents of the application are true and correct. Supporting documents varies depending on the situation of each applicant. However, the following items would definitely be necessary:
Evidence of the applicant’s experience and qualification
● Family register
(For spouse: marriage certificate, etc.)
(For child : birth certificate, etc.)
● Copy of the dependent's passport
Evidence of the applicant’s occupation, income, and situations
A. If the applicant is working in Japan
● Residence card
● Working contract, certificate of employment, etc.
● Tax certificate, residence tax certificate, etc.
B. If the applicant is a student in Japan
● Residence card
● Proof of financial capability in Japan (savings balance certificate, scholardship benefits, etc.)
- Any certificate among supporting documents has to be issued within 3 months before the date of application.
- Additional documents may be required during the examination of Immigration Office.