Permanent residency (“eijūsha”) is the most stable legal status available to foreign nationals in Japan. The Immigration Services Agency’s “Guideline on Permission for Permanent Residence” — the benchmark used to decide who may obtain it — was revised on October 1, 2026 (Reiwa 8).
First established on March 31, 2006 and previously revised in June 2024, the guideline now undergoes its third revision. A draft was published on August 4, 2026, went through public comment, and has now been finalized.
The keywords of this revision are: ① household income (above the Japanese household average), ② expected pension benefits, ③ Japanese language ability at CEFR B1 level or above, and ④ confirmation of understanding of Japanese rules and systems based on the “Life and Work Guidebook.” The bar for permanent residency has been clearly and significantly raised.
This article explains the revision for foreign nationals considering permanent residency, their families, and HR/administrative staff at companies.
- 1. Three things to know first
- Point 1: The new standards apply to applications filed on or after April 1, 2027 — but income and public-burden items apply effectively immediately
- Point 2: Compliance with legal obligations and payment of taxes and social insurance becomes a statutory requirement
- Point 3: The separate “contribution to Japan” guideline is abolished
- 2. The three statutory requirements
- 3. [Most important] Income requirement: household income above the Japanese average
- 4. [Most important] Pension requirement: expected benefits vs. the “30-year employees’ pension” benchmark
- 5. New national-interest factors: Japanese B1, system understanding, children’s schooling
- 6. Residence periods and time spent abroad
- 7. Holders of “Designated Activities”: what counts toward the 10 years and as “work status”
- 8. Summary of negative factors that lead to refusal
- 9. What applicants should do now (practitioner’s advice)
1. Three things to know first
Point 1: The new standards apply to applications filed on or after April 1, 2027 — but income and public-burden items apply effectively immediately
Under Section 6 of the guideline, the revised contents apply to applications filed on or after April 1, 2027 (Reiwa 9).
However, there is a critical exception: the items on household income (Section 2-4(2)) and the public burden (Section 2-5(7)) apply to applications filed on or after April 1, 2026 — six months before the revision date — and also to applications that are already pending as of October 1.
In other words, for these two items, there is in principle no “grandfathering” based on when you filed. Even applicants whose cases are already pending must prepare under the new income and pension standards.
Point 2: Compliance with legal obligations and payment of taxes and social insurance becomes a statutory requirement
Under the 2024 amendments to the Immigration Control Act, effective April 1, 2027, the words “compliance with the obligations under the Act, payment of taxes and public dues, etc.” are added to Article 22-2 of the Act. The guideline notes, however, that this merely clarifies in law what had already been considered under the previous guideline. Unpaid taxes and social insurance premiums remain fatal before and after the revision.
Point 3: The separate “contribution to Japan” guideline is abolished
The separate guideline on “contribution to Japan” is abolished and consolidated into Section 4 of the revised guideline (special treatment for those who have contributed to Japan). Recognition based on honors, awards, and public appointments continues to exist.
2. The three statutory requirements
Article 22-2 of the Immigration Control Act sets out three requirements:
- Good conduct — abiding by the law and living a socially blameless daily life;
- Independent livelihood — possessing assets or skills sufficient to support an independent livelihood;
- National interest — the applicant’s permanent residency must benefit Japan.
Spouses and children of Japanese nationals, permanent residents, and special permanent residents, as well as recognized refugees, are in principle exempt from the good-conduct and independent-livelihood requirements.
The core of this revision is that the independent-livelihood requirement now contains explicit income and pension standards, and the national-interest requirement now lists new factors: Japanese language ability (B1 or above), understanding of Japanese systems, and school enrollment of school-age children.
3. [Most important] Income requirement: household income above the Japanese average
3-1. Assessment on a household basis
The revised guideline defines the independent-livelihood requirement as the ability to maintain a stable livelihood now and in the future without becoming a public burden, and states that self-sufficiency now and in the future is required, with economic conditions at or above the average level of Japanese residents. Assessment is, in principle, conducted on a single-living-expense household basis.
3-2. The household income standard
The key factor is whether, at the time of application, the annual income of the applicant’s household continuously meets or exceeds the average income of Japanese households, adjusted for the number of household members.
A “household” means a group of people sharing housing and living expenses. Household income is the total of the applicant’s income and that of household members (for a single-person household, the applicant’s own income).
Key practical rules:
- Income earned by a dependent-family-visa holder (family stay) cannot be counted toward household income; income from a permission to engage in activity outside the status is excluded.
- For members who are adults no longer dependent on their parents, the standard is assessed on their own income, without counting the parents’ income.
- Relatives supported by the applicant — including relatives living abroad — count toward household size even if not cohabiting. More dependents means a higher required income.
- For households of five or more, a further amount for increased living costs is added to the standard.
3-3. What “continuously” means
The word “continuously” indicates that the review will look at the trend of household income over recent years, not merely the figure at the time of application. Drops in bonuses, pay cuts, or job changes may affect the assessment. We recommend gathering your last several years’ withholding slips and tax certificates and measuring the distance between your actual figures and the standard.
Note that the guideline does not specify concrete yen amounts for the “Japanese household average” by household size; it will be assessed individually based on official statistics. Be wary of unofficial claims such as “X yen for a household of X.”
4. [Most important] Pension requirement: expected benefits vs. the “30-year employees’ pension” benchmark
A new factor on pensions has been introduced — a hurdle that will surprise many applicants.
4-1. The benchmark
Based on the applicant’s age, complete pension enrollment history (past employment types, enrollment periods, average income during those periods), and current income, the expected future pension benefit amount is compared against the expected pension for a person who worked for 30 years at an income level above the Japanese household average while enrolled in the Employees’ Pension System (“the pension benchmark”).
4-2. “Supplementary financial assets”
If the expected benefit falls short, the applicant may still be assessed as meeting the standard if, at the time of application, they hold financial assets sufficient to cover the shortfall in living funds. The benchmark amount of such assets is set according to the applicant’s age at application — lower for younger applicants and higher for those near pension age. Substitution by assets is possible, but the required level changes with age.
4-3. Assessment on a household basis
The pension factor is also assessed on a household basis. For married applicants, the expected benefits of the applicant and the spouse are combined, and compared with the benchmark plus the amount the spouse would have received as a Category III insured person (national pension as a dependent spouse) over the same period. Supplementary assets are likewise combined.
4-4. What this means in practice
Even salaried employees may fall short if their pension enrollment period in Japan is short, if they have paid only the basic national pension as a self-employed person, or if they have long periods of arrears or exemption. Checking your enrollment record via the “Nenkin Net” service and estimating your expected benefit should be the first checklist item for anyone considering permanent residency.
5. New national-interest factors: Japanese B1, system understanding, children’s schooling
5-1. Japanese language: B1 or above
Applicants must, in principle, demonstrate Japanese proficiency at level B1 or above under the “Reference Framework for Japanese Language Education” (CEFR-aligned), as assessed at the time of application. B1 corresponds to an “independent user” of the language.
However, the factor is not applied to:
- Highly skilled professionals (Highly Skilled Professionals) and their families (70+ points / 80+ points, and Special Highly Skilled Professionals);
- Those who have received six or more cumulative years of elementary or secondary education under Japan’s School Education Act;
- Children of permanent residents, where the parent raising the child has B1-level proficiency and the child was born in Japan.
For general employment-status holders and their spouses, evidence of B1-level proficiency (roughly JLPT N2–N1 level territory) is effectively expected.
5-2. Understanding of Japanese systems: the “Life and Work Guidebook”
By a method designated by the Commissioner of the Immigration Services Agency, applicants will be checked on their understanding of Japanese rules and systems, focusing on matters in the “Life and Work Guidebook.” Insufficient understanding, or lack of willingness to learn, is negatively assessed.
5-3. School enrollment of school-age children
Parents raising compulsory-school-age children must ensure the children attend elementary or junior high school; this is a consideration factor. The same applies if the applicant is of compulsory-school age themselves.
5-4. A qualitative shift in the national-interest requirement
The guideline states that the national-interest requirement demands an active and concrete benefit to Japan, not merely the absence of detriment. Contributions to the “Comprehensive Measures for Acceptance and Orderly Coexistence of Foreign Nationals” (adopted January 23, 2026) are also a consideration factor — meaning Japanese language study and learning about Japanese systems feed directly into this requirement.
6. Residence periods and time spent abroad
6-1. Ten years in Japan, five in work/residence status, on the maximum period of stay
The factors checked are:
- In principle, at least 10 consecutive years of residence in Japan at the time of application;
- Of those, at least 5 consecutive years under a work or residence status;
- At the time of application, holding the maximum period of stay permitted for the current status (typically “3 years”).
6-2. Transitional measures for holders of a “3-year” period of stay
Important transitional rules apply, notably for holders of 5-year periods of stay (e.g., “Designated Activities”/Long-Term Resident):
- Applications filed by March 31, 2027: holders of a 3-year period of stay are treated as holding the maximum period.
- Applications filed on or after April 1, 2027: the same treatment applies only where the applicant held a 3-year period as of March 31, 2027, the application is the first one filed on or after April 1, 2027, and the decision is made before that period expires.
If you wait too long — thinking “there’s no need to renew yet” — you may lose eligibility. Scheduling the application to conclude within the current period of stay is critical.
6-3. Limits on time abroad: 6 months per departure, 2.5 years in total
Within the 10 years before application, a single departure of 6 months or more, or a cumulative absence of 2 years and 6 months or more, without reasonable grounds, is in principle negatively assessed. If you have been — or will be — abroad for postings, caregiving, or study, keep records and evidence of the reasons.
7. Holders of “Designated Activities”: what counts toward the 10 years and as “work status”
Because the activities under “Designated Activities” are designated individually, the revised guideline sets out their treatment for the first time.
Activities NOT counted toward the 10 years (examples): continuous job-hunting; those with a job offer pending; foreign students who have graduated from a Japanese university and engage in entrepreneurship; applicants in refugee recognition procedures; those permitted to stay due to instability in their home country.
Activities NOT qualifying as “work status” (examples): Working Holiday and Internship (Designated Activities Nos. 5, 5-2 and 9); those who took up employment after graduating from a Japanese high school (non-gazetted designation).
By contrast, Nos. 6 (amateur athletes), 8 (international arbitration agents), 36 (designated research activities), 37 (designated information processing activities), 46 (university graduates), and EPA nurses/care workers (excluding candidate periods) do qualify as work status.
Your specific designation number can dramatically change your path to permanent residency. Check it and consult a specialist.
8. Summary of negative factors that lead to refusal
- Arrears of taxes and social insurance premiums (including past seizure records)
- Violations of legal obligations, including failure to carry the residence card (past violations included)
- Imprisonment or fines, or juvenile protective measures
- Grounds for denial of landing, or non-conformity with landing-permission standards for the current status
- Household income continuously below the Japanese average
- Insufficient expected pension benefits (where supplementary assets also fall short)
- Japanese proficiency below B1 (except for those exempted)
- Insufficient understanding of Japanese systems (Life and Work Guidebook)
- Non-enrollment of school-age children
- Extended stays abroad within the last 10 years (6+ months at once, or 2.5 years in total, without reasonable grounds)
- Periods under non-counted Designated Activities
9. What applicants should do now (practitioner’s advice)
This revision makes clear that permanent residency is not an automatic right but a discretionary permission granted when Japan finds an active benefit. On the other hand, the codification of standards also means you can now foresee your own position in advance.
Three steps to take immediately:
- Check your pension records — via Nenkin Net, and estimate your expected benefit.
- Audit your household income — recent years’ income and the number of dependents (including those abroad).
- Check your period of stay and deadlines — especially the March 31, 2027 transitional deadline.
Our office, Niseko visa and immigration support center, specializes in visa and status-of-residence applications and provides consultations on permanent residency applications under the revised standards. Please feel free to contact us.
This article is a general explanation based on the “Guideline on Permission for Permanent Residence” revised October 1, 2026, and does not guarantee the outcome of any individual case. Individual consultations are available after reviewing your specific circumstances.
