How to Extend or Change Your Visa in Japan: Procedures and Requirements

2026年4月25日

How to Extend or Change Your Visa in Japan: Procedures and Requirements

If you already live in Japan and want to stay longer, the first question is simple: are you continuing the same activity, or changing what you do in Japan?

Use an Extension of Period of Stay when your status stays the same, such as a worker continuing with the same type of job or a student continuing study. Use a Change of Status of Residence when your main activity changes, such as moving from Student to a work status, or from work to a spouse-based status.

In Japan, people often say “visa renewal,” but the procedure inside Japan is usually about your status of residence and your period of stay, not the entry visa sticker you used before arriving.

Quick essentials:

Apply before the expiry date printed on your residence card.
For many people with a stay period of six months or longer, extension applications are accepted from about three months before expiry.
From April 1, 2025, the fee when permission is granted is generally 6,000 yen at the counter, or 5,500 yen for online applications.
If you apply for an extension or change before expiry and Immigration has not decided by the expiry date, a special period may let you remain under your current status for up to two months, or until a decision is made, whichever comes first.

This guide is for foreign residents in Japan, including students, workers, spouses, dependents, and long-term residents who need to plan their next residence procedure. It is practical guidance, not legal advice. For your exact case, check the Immigration Services Agency of Japan and, if needed, ask your school, employer, or an immigration lawyer or gyoseishoshi.

Extension vs Change: Which Application Do You Need?

The application name matters because the documents, timing, and review points are different.

Situation	Main procedure	Typical example
You will keep the same status and continue the same kind of activity	Extension of Period of Stay	An Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services worker continuing work in Japan
Your main activity or legal basis for staying changes	Change of Status of Residence	A Student graduating and starting a full-time job
You are a Permanent Resident renewing the card itself	Residence card renewal, not ordinary visa extension	A Permanent Resident whose residence card expiry date is approaching

The Immigration Services Agency explains an Extension of Period of Stay as the procedure for a foreign national who wants to continue staying beyond the period already granted without changing the current status. A Change of Status of Residence is for a person who wants to change the activity or status category itself.

A common student example

A student who graduates and starts full-time employment usually cannot simply extend the Student status. The person normally needs to change to a work-related status that matches the job, such as Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, if the job duties and background fit that category.

That distinction matters because Immigration will look not only at the person, but also at the employer, job description, contract, salary, and educational or professional background.

A common worker example

A foreign worker staying in the same residence category may still need careful preparation. Even when the application is an extension, Immigration can check whether the person has been carrying out permitted activities, paying taxes where required, and maintaining an appropriate living situation in Japan.

ここがポイント: Do not choose the form by habit. Choose it by asking what is changing: only the length of stay, or the basis for your stay in Japan.

When to Apply

For an extension, the official rule is to apply by the day your current period of stay expires. If your granted period of stay is six months or longer, applications are generally accepted from about three months before the expiry date, except where special circumstances such as hospitalization or long business travel justify an earlier application.

For a change of status, you apply after the reason for the change arises and before your current period of stay expires. For example, a student with a job offer should not wait until the final week before the residence card expires if the employer also needs time to prepare company documents.

The practical timing is usually earlier than the legal deadline:

Start checking documents three to four months before expiry.
Ask your employer, school, or spouse for documents early because some certificates take time.
Keep copies of what you submit.
If you plan to travel abroad near expiry, check your application timing and re-entry situation before booking.

The standard processing period listed by Immigration is two weeks to one month for extension applications and one to two months for change applications. Actual timing can vary by status, region, office workload, and whether additional documents are requested.

Required Documents: What Most Applicants Should Prepare

Documents depend heavily on the status of residence. A student, spouse, skilled worker, business manager, and dependent will not submit the same package.

Still, many applicants should expect some combination of the following:

Application form for extension or change
Passport
Residence card
Photo meeting Immigration specifications
Documents proving current activity, such as enrollment, employment, income, or family relationship
Tax and income documents, where relevant
Documents from a school, employer, spouse, or supporting organization
Revenue stamp fee payment form when permission is granted

For work statuses, the employer may need to provide documents about the company and the job. For student cases, the school may need to provide enrollment or graduation-related documents. For spouse-related cases, documents proving the marriage, household, income, and living situation may be important.

Health insurance and tax documents

The Immigration Services Agency’s guideline for change and extension, last revised in January 2026, says Immigration considers several factors, including residence activity and overall circumstances. It also notes that since health insurance cards stopped being newly issued on December 2, 2024, people who do not have a health insurance card may be asked to show health insurance qualification information through MyNa Portal, a “資格情報のお知らせ,” or a qualification confirmation document. The guideline also says inability to show such health insurance information alone does not automatically mean refusal.

For ordinary residents, this means tax, pension, and health insurance records can matter in real applications. If you have unpaid resident tax, unclear income records, or missing enrollment documents, deal with them before the application instead of hoping they will not be checked.

Where and How to Apply

Applications are submitted to the regional immigration office with jurisdiction over your residence. Some procedures are also available online.

For counter applications, the Immigration Services Agency lists typical reception hours as weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to noon and from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., but it also warns that days and times may differ by procedure or office. Always check the office that covers your address.

Online applications

Japan’s online residence application system can be used by several user types, including foreign nationals themselves, legal representatives, certain relatives, lawyers, administrative scriveners, institution staff, public-interest organization staff, and registered support organization staff.

For foreign nationals applying themselves online, Immigration states that a My Number Card is required. The online guidance also says people who are not mid- to long-term residents, including Temporary Visitor status holders and people with a period of stay of three months or less, cannot use the system as foreign national applicants.

A practical point: online filing does not mean every case is simple. You still need the correct documents, and you may still be asked for additional materials.

Fees and Current Changes

As of April 20, 2026, the important fee change for most readers is already in effect.

For both extension of period of stay and change of status of residence, the fee is charged when permission is granted, not when you first submit the application. The official fee listed by Immigration is:

6,000 yen for counter applications, paid by revenue stamp
5,500 yen for online applications, paid by revenue stamp
Applications accepted by March 31, 2025 kept the old 4,000 yen fee even if permission was granted on or after April 1, 2025

This is a small amount compared with rent or moving costs, but it matters because people often prepare only the old 4,000 yen amount from outdated articles or older school handouts.

What Happens If Your Expiry Date Comes Before the Result?

If you submitted an extension or change application before your residence period expired and Immigration has not made a decision by the expiry date, the special period may apply.

The official explanation says a residence card holder who has applied for extension or change can continue staying under the previous status until either:

the decision is made, or
two months pass from the original expiry date,

whichever comes earlier.

For paper applications, the back of the residence card is normally marked to show that an extension or change application is pending. For online applications, that back-of-card notation is not made in the same way, so keep your application receipt and online records carefully.

This special period is not a reason to apply late. It is a bridge for people who applied on time but are still waiting.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Visa procedures in Japan often go wrong because of timing and category errors, not because the form itself is impossible.

Watch especially for these mistakes:

Applying for an extension when your activity has actually changed
Waiting until the last few days before expiry to ask an employer or school for documents
Assuming a job title is enough, without showing actual duties and contract terms
Forgetting tax, income, or insurance documents that match your status
Traveling abroad while an application is pending without checking the risks
Confusing residence card renewal for Permanent Residents with ordinary status extension
Using an old fee amount from pre-April 2025 information
Assuming online application is available to every foreign resident

If your case includes a job change, divorce, graduation, unemployment, company closure, long absence from school, or a major drop in income, do not treat it as a routine renewal. Those facts can change what Immigration needs to see.

Regional Differences and Office Practice

The law and national procedures are set by the Japanese government, but your actual application goes through the regional immigration office that has jurisdiction over your address.

That means the basics are national, while the day-to-day experience can differ:

office crowding and reservation systems
how long document checks take at the counter
whether an office asks you to correct documents immediately or submit later
local handling of consultation windows
practical waiting times by season and status type

Large offices in areas with many foreign residents may be busier. Smaller offices may have fewer windows or different local routines. The safest approach is to check the relevant regional office page and bring more organized documents than the minimum list suggests.

Practical Checklist Before You Apply

Before submitting, check these points in order:

Read the expiry date on your residence card.
Decide whether this is an extension or a change.
Open the official Immigration page for your exact status category.
Ask your school, employer, spouse, or sponsor for documents early.
Prepare tax, income, and insurance documents if they apply to your case.
Check whether you can use the online system or need to go to the counter.
Keep copies or scans of the full application package.
Prepare the current fee amount for when permission is granted.

The main practical takeaway is simple: start from the status category, not from a generic “visa renewal” checklist. In Japan, the same person may need a very different application if the reason for staying changes.

Before your next renewal season, check three things first: your residence card expiry date, your actual activity in Japan, and the latest official document list for your status. Those three checks prevent most avoidable mistakes.

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