Japan seeks to lower permanent residency requirements from ten years to three

Highly skilled foreign professionals may soon find themselves being qualified as permanent residents of Japan after staying for as little as three years if amendments to Japan’s residency rules push through by March.

JAPAN’S HIGHLY SKILLED FOREIGN professionals may find themselves being permanent residents sooner than expected once amendments to Japan’s permanent residency rules push through. Primer Media file photo

In a report published on Inquirer.net yesterday, proposals to amend residency rules are in the works, with the Ministry of Justice planning to implement them as early as March 2017. The proposal looks to reduce permanent residency rules from the current ten years to as little as one year for highly skilled foreigners.

The amendments proposed include reducing the current fast track requirement from 5 years to three and adding another option to attain permanent resident status in as little as 12 months, this according to an article from The Mainichi.

If strong opposition is not met during the designated public comment period (January 18 – February 16), the 70-point system, which reduces the permanent residency requirement from 10 years to the current five, will be reduced to three years.

New criteria will also be added to further reduce this requirement to one year, such as employment in technology and other growth industries, being a graduate of a top university, or a career as a big-money investor, though this would require the foreign worker to get a total of 80 points instead of 70.

The status of “highly skilled” is given to a foreigner involved in the fields of academic research, business management, and specialized/technical activities. They are graded on a 70-point system whose criteria include one’s academic background, career history, and annual income.

Source: Inquirer.net, Nikkei Asian Review, The Mainichi, Japan Times