Hi all,
​
I applied for and received a working holiday visa back in July, planning on entering maybe next month or January. I was under the impression that a working holiday visa could be changed to a another visa type after the year is almost up, though I have learned this is not the case for people from the UK. Is it possible to change my visa to, say, a student visa, if I meet the criteria while I have another type of visa issued in my name? Has anybody done something like this? Thanks 🙂
1 comment
Some important terminology here. In Japan, a visa is a document used purely for entering Japan. It is usually tied to a specific purpose.
If the purpose of you entering Japan has changed you wouldn’t change your visa. You would cancel your visa and apply for a new one.
Once you have entered Japan you have a status of residence. The status of residence is also tied to a primary purpose. If your primary purpose changes while you’re in Japan you would apply for a change of status of residence.
You cannot apply for a visa if you are currently holding a status of residence.
You’re correct, a few years ago immigration made a big deal about adhering to the specifics of working holiday agreements and not allowing folks to change their status if the agreement doesn’t allow it. Anecdotally I’ve heard they’re backsliding again though.
So if you wanted to cancel your working holiday and start the process of getting a student visa, then go for it. But you’d be applying for it from scratch.