Last February, my company applied for my visa change from a working holiday visa to a work visa. One month later, we received a response from immigration stating that I should go to the office with the received letter, 4,000¥, my resident card, and my passport.
When I arrived at Shinagawa, they took me to a room, and the man who attended to me informed me that my visa was accepted, but they couldn’t give it to me because we had to apply for the COE first.
Frustrated, we applied for my COE on February 28th.
It has been exactly 4 months, and I still haven’t received the COE. I have 2 months left on my visa, and I don’t know what to do. My company tells me that we can only wait. But I refuse to see my time running out without being able to do anything.
By the way, my company also processed my partner’s visa, and she received a positive response within 4 weeks. I don’t understand why it’s taking so long for me.
What can I do in this situation?
3 comments
>But I refuse to see my time running out without being able to do anything. What can I do in this situation?
You can wait. There is literally nothing else you can do.
Your company is correct, there is nothing you can do. You can call to ask about any progress but since Japan is now fully open, no restrictions or covid vaccinations needed, it is highly likely immigration is overloaded with applications. You can only wait.
Anecdotally, I recently did a working holiday -> work visa change myself, and it took from February to May. So it’s possible yours is right around the corner too. Just relax!