I am holding an Engineer Visa in Japan that is expiring in June. I have changed my job since February and did not immediately notify immigration. After reading posts on this site, I sent notification via E-notification. Could this late notification affect my visa extension?
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Was the job that you changed to also an engineering job in line with the kind of work you were doing originally on this visa?– ouflak ♦Commented Apr 23, 2016 at 19:25
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1@ouflak Thank for your comment The job I swifted is also an engineering job and this company is biger than my former company. My past contract was a contract employee but now I am contracted as a permanent staff at new company. I did not send notification after two weeks I changed job. I sent an E-notification yesterday and immigration replied my notification is registered. I am preparing my documents and my new employeer will give me necessary documents. I have no crimes in Japam and giving my taxes and pension fees regularly. Next week I will try for extension. Will this be difficult for me?– Tun Naing LinCommented Apr 24, 2016 at 10:46
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Plus. I came here japan with a one year period and renewed my visa last year for a one year period as my contract with former company is a year. But, this time I am applying for five year period as my current company contract is a non fixed permanent staff means same chances as other Japanese staffs. Which will be the problems I will face?– Tun Naing LinCommented Apr 24, 2016 at 10:49
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I've given an answer specific to your original question. As to your general question about the extension based on a permanent position, I think you will just have to look around the internet and find out other's experiences or hope that someone else comments here. Japan is out of my core of experience.– ouflak ♦Commented Apr 26, 2016 at 7:00
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2 Answers
It is not clear that you will have any problems regarding the date of this notification. You are required to give notification, but it does seem that as long as you do so, there will be no negative repercussions as regards to your current status. Your job was consistent with the work you were originally given the visa (and Certificate of Eligibility) for. Since you've honored the spirit of your original visa and even provided the notification, I believe this will likely be considered a positive in your future applications (not so fast, see edit below).
edit: I've added a link here which is the best English description. There are plenty of sites that state what I state (I've basically paraphrased), and forums with people whose own accounts are consistent with this.
Here is another anecdote from a failed extension (who did notify in time!). Seeing that, I would definitely recommend looking into getting a certificate of authorized employment to be on the safe side.
If you did not apply for a Certificate of Authorized Employment before changing companies, there could be problems. See my second link. This certificate isn't required (if the translation from the official Japanese immigration site is accurate), but it is highly recommended apparently. I don't know if you are eligible to apply for this now that you have already started your new employment (though it is implied that you can). You may want to contact a specialist.
edit 2: I'm providing another link to fkraiem's related answer on the punitive measures. Doesn't discuss future extensions, but may give you some peace of mind as far as your current status is concerned.
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2-1. Notification of a new work contract is mandatory, as is notification of the termination of an existing contract. Non-compliance is punishable by a fine of up to 200,000 yen, although it is not really enforced. The fact that the new job is within the scope of the existing status is obviously irrelevant: if you engage in a job not permitted under your status, you have a much bigger problem than notifications.– fkraiemCommented Apr 26, 2016 at 11:15
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This would seem to be inconsistent with the information I'm finding specific to this type of visa. Nevertheless, japan is not my normal stomping ground and I can only rely on websites in English. I'll try to find something in Japanese and see if there is a good translation. Please post an answer with a link. I'm going to update my answer with links in a bit after some research on the Japanese sites.– ouflak ♦Commented Apr 26, 2016 at 11:58
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@fkraiem, I believe you, but I can't find any English sites that state what you stating, nor any anecdotes that confirm this. Would you please post an alternate answer or provide some links so I can update my answer appropriately? Thanks!– ouflak ♦Commented Apr 26, 2016 at 12:22
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See questions 92 and 100 here. There is currently no English translation of the relevant legislation, but there used ot be one, of which you can find the relevant bits in this answer. (I do not think it is a duplicate because the present question specifically asks about the effect on future applications of the failure to notify.)– fkraiemCommented Apr 26, 2016 at 12:37
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1Just to add my case, I've notified my change of job after 6 months, my both notices were accepted. I've used e-Notification System. And surely I made mistake, but on other hand no Japanese Employer has any checklist regarding Job changing notice. I was not able to notify because I was not aware about such rule. But when I get to know I immediately done it. So we should never afraid of doing right thing.– emkaysCommented Jul 13, 2018 at 2:21
Please note that the Engineer visa (visa category: Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visa) is independent of the employer, and you are not obligated to inform immigration if you change the job.
However, if your visa category is HSP (Highly Skilled Professional), your visa is employer dependent. And in this case, when you change jobs, you must also reapply for your visa.
You can get very detailed information on both these visa types and processes in this article about engineer visas in Japan.
I am a foreigner and have been in the IT industry in Japan and have lived here for 20 years. I worked here for 9 years on an Engineer visa, then a spouse visa, before getting my PR.
