The Visa Dance: A Freelancer in Need of Advice (Close to 10 Years in Japan)

Hello, fellow friends in Japan

I'm in a bit of a pickle and I was curious if anyone else has gone through something similar, or even if anyone has any thoughts.

I have been working freelance for about a year (have been carrying a spouse visa for three years). When I have projects that are back-to-back, I bring in plenty of income, however there are times where I may have a week to several months of no work. Normally this wouldn't be an issue, however, my daughter was recently born, and my wife is on maternity leave. Our concern is that my visa needs to be renewed in March of 2026, and my current income—plus my wife's maternity pay—may be reflected on the next visa paperwork. The government could consider us unfit to support our living expenses and deny my visa. (We do plan to talk with an immigration lawyer, but I thought maybe some leads could be found here first.)

As a side note, I’m fluent and have a near-native reading level of Japanese.

My questions:
Has anyone had a similar situation? Are we overthinking?
Does anyone know of work that could be filled into spots between projects? (It needs to be something that can be easily adjusted, as projects can sometimes come in overnight and often require 60+ hours a week.)

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

by DamiJab

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