I see the benefits of living in Japan and what not. But if you are not married to a Japanese, do you eventually go back to your own country or can you stay in Japan permanently?
I ask because I am living in Japan as a tech worker and I am married to a non-Japanese spouse. But I am not sure if I will be able to stay in Japan permanently? Of course I know there’s an option of getting a permanent residency and even a citizenship if I live here for many years. But do you think it’s likely that I can do that as long as I am employed and am a tech worker? Have you seen many foreigners without Japanese spouse live in Japan permanently? Thank you
14 comments
Go ask r/japanresidents
Most westerners leave Japan within two years. Most east asian foreigners leave Japan within 8 years.
This is most likely more a result of the various programs in place that most people use to come to Japan in the first place though.
In my office I have a number of foreign coworkers who are married to other foreigners or not married at all.
There isn’t really a time limit on staying.
I know lots of people who live in Japan permanently or at least intend on doing so, myself included, who don’t have a Japanese spouse. There’s nothing preventing us from doing so, anyway.
If you’re a tech worker and make good money you might qualify for expedited PR, btw; you should give it a look.
I’m Japanese American, left after three years. Never going back to that shit hole lmfao
Came home, my salary went up 600%. Also got pension and health insurance. Couldnt see raising a family in Japan ever being financially viable. House prices are up 300% on Japan but thats another story.
Edit- i meant house prices in my country are 3x a house in Japan. And rising.
You do need some anchor to stay in a foreign country and family is the most common one. Other anchors may be asset ownership or unique career that doesn’t move with you.
If you’re a tech worker, you should be able to get PR in 3 years, or even 1 year if you scored 80 points.
I know/knew plenty of people who didn’t have a Japanese spouse who remain or never left. It’s a bit trickier, but after 10 years, you can seek permanent residence status. My former (Australian) boss, who was gay and had a Peruvian partner, obviously couldn’t marry a Japanese person, lived there for most of his adult life. He died in Japan about 6 years ago and was a permanent resident.
I think the main issue is that it’s a lot harder to adapt to living there and especially learn the language without a Japanese partner because you come home from work and speak your native language. You don’t have the natural opportunities to practice outside of relatively trivial exchanges in stores and have to invest more time in learning. Also, unless you’re plugged in to some sort of retirement program outside of work or your employer is contributing to the Japanese one for you (some employers don’t do that for foreigners even though they should), you need to consider what retirement income is going to look like for you if you never contribute to the one in your home country.
I was there for 2 years and had no intention on leaving anytime soon. Covid work complications left me unemployed in Tokyo and couldn’t find adequate work in time so had to head back. TMI but yeah I wasn’t leaving.
I guess it depends if they can secure a decent job.
I will probably divorce soon, but even after that I will still stay.
My Chinese spouse and I (American) are going to live in Japan forever. We both have PR
Totally anecdotal as well, but I know several non Asian foreigners who are here 10 years+ and are not married, including myself, though I’ve been here only 9 years so far.
None of us is planning to move back to their home countries, and one of them has even naturalized recently.
This is what I’m worried about, I’m afraid that when I move to Japan and don’t find a spouse in a certain amount of time or marry a non citizen I’ll have to leave. Personally, to avoid this, I’m going to go into a job in political science so I’m not on any time limit like the Jet program, and then get my permanent residency, which is what I recommend getting.