What is the timeline of getting our visas updated from single entry to multiple entry?

4 comments

1. The visa is single entry. Once you get your residence card, that is what you will use to get back into the country to show your residency. That and a re-entry permit stapled to your passport.

2. What do you mean? You want to travel to a different country and come back to japan while on the program?

3. I think there’s a few things you’re confused about here.

   1. The initial visa is just to get in the country, you’re given a residence card at the airport after presenting your Visa and are now considered a resident of Japan with the freedom to come and go from the country for the duration of your residency period.
   2. Special re-entry permit is a piece of paper you have to fill out when you leave the country in the airport (they’re available just before immigration, you have to fill one out and hand it in, it’s not something you opt for, you just tick the box saying you’ll be returning within a year). It grants you the ability to leave and freely re-enter the country up to a period of one year from departure, and if you were staying out the country for longer than a year (and assuming your residence period was longer than this time too) you’d need to notify them and handle this matter separately.

   There was a slight issue right at the start of covid where residents who left the country weren’t allowed back in even after haivng filled in special re-entry permit forms, only people with a Japanese passport could get back in once the borders were locked. This was quite unprecedented and had a lot of international criticism, particularly from Europe which eventually led to Japan deciding to repeal this.

   Since then, as long as you are a resident you have been able to come and go despite tourists not being allowed in yet. This is unlikely to change again in the future, after what happened last time and with the vaccination situation having greatly improved.

4. People confuse visa and residence permits all the time. A visa simply allows you to enter a country, a residence permit lets you live in said country.

   Prior to arriving, you’ll receive a single entry visa, which you will use to initially enter Japan. You will immediately – as in, at the airport – be given your residence permit (card), which is what actually gives you permission to live in Japan. You do not need additional visas at this point, as long the resident card is valid you can essentially come and go for vacations and such. You have resident status in Japan.

   The only thing is, when leaving Japan, you need to fill out a “special re-entry permit” at the airport. This is a form that essentially tells immigration you’re leaving for a bit but will be back within a year. They will staple this form to your passport. Do not detach or lose it. This form is what lets you come back into Japan. Immigration will take it out of your passport upon arrival. You can do this as many times as needed essentially.