Marrying Japanese Need help!

[Cador1]

Hi Guys I am sorry If I posted this in the wrong section but I could not find the right location to ask for such info.

Well Ok I have been with a Japanese girl for 3 years and we both have been in close contact and visiting one another in each country. My question is we are trying to get married and I have been searching the net day in and day out for info.

This is what I came up with, I need an afidavit to say I am able to marry, then bring my passport, photo Id, Birth certificate to japan and go to the embassy there and get a stamp. After I then go to her local municipal office and do some paper work there and the sites say we are married afterwords. then I go back to the embassy and change from visiting visa to marrying visa and am able to work.

Sounds to easy to me, Is there some info I am missing, or some steps to this that I am un aware of? Also I then want to change my status so I am able to work I guess it is called a spouse visa?

Please help I am trying to go in 3 months time.

 

[Han Chan]

We got married in Denmark, so I don't know about the technicalities regarding marriage in Japan. However, I think it is important to keep in mind that most Japanese families are slightly conservative regarding marriage. I think it is best to try to get the concent on your father-in-law. If you get that, I am sure that the you will be able to sort out the other things.
I have newer had any problems with my in-laws, but I know other "gaijin" who have had to endure problems because they were not culturally sensitive enough.

 

[Cador1]

Well I have the consent of her family and have met them several times. So I dont have any problem with that but it is the getting marriage lisense and the visa part that concerns me the most.

 

[Grandpa Frank]

Welcome to JREF Cador1 !

Many of our members that can probably help you with answers come on at odd hours(different timezones) or just get on JREF during the weekend. Be patient and you should get answers in a day or two. Good luck and congrats on finding the right lady!

Uncle Frank

 

[Han Chan]

Dear Cador

It is good to hear that everything is OK with the in-laws. Maybe your should check this: https://jref.com/practical/procedures.shtml

 

[Glenski]

This is what I came up with, I need an afidavit to say I am able to marry,

Get this from your consulate/embassy.

then bring my passport, photo Id, Birth certificate to japan and go to the embassy there and get a stamp. After I then go to her local municipal office and do some paper work there and the sites say we are married afterwords. then I go back to the embassy and change from visiting visa to marrying visa and am able to work.

To get married, you need the Certificate of Availability, your spouse's koseki (copy of family register), and perhaps one thing more. Can't recall. Take this to the ward office where you plan to live, and you are married legally in about 10 minutes after you sign the paperwork. No certificate is even issued unless you want to pay for it (400 yen for the plain version, 1200 yen or so for the fancier one).

Once you are married, the spouse's family register will be appended to include you, so you will need to take that to immigration to get the paperwork rolling for a spouse visa. [Don't call it a "marrying visa".] Get the proper forms there, and fill them out. You'll probably have to do that at home. BEWARE that things have JUST CHANGED such that immigration is much more strict about people getting spouse visas, so that you will have to complete more extensive paperwork. Go to UPDATE: Visiting Immigration re Spouse Visa questionnaire | debito.org and see a description and commentary on it. GOOD INFO. You wait about 3 weeks after handing in all of your documentation, then return to immigration to pick up the final stamp.

Sounds to easy to me, Is there some info I am missing, or some steps to this that I am un aware of? Also I then want to change my status so I am able to work I guess it is called a spouse visa?

If your spouse is a Japanese, the visa you can get is called a spouse visa. If you are marrying a non-Japanese, you need a totally different thing, called a dependent visa.
VISA

More info here.
Immigration Services Agency of Japan

 

[Mike Cash]

Beyond the marriage red tape rigamarole....in what way(s) have you otherwise prepared yourself for a life in Japan? What you're preparing to do is by no means an impossible ordeal, as many others have done it before you, but it helps to have some idea of what you're getting into and have done some preparation for it. It's natural to be focused on the immediate issue of the marriage and impending move, both of which consume much of your attention, no doubt. But there are many other very serious aspects of this that need careful, informed, and dispassionate contemplation.

 

[Cador1]

Thanks guys for all of the info provided this helps me out alot and eases my worries. To answer the question of what I have done to prepair. I have begin contacting people about looking for jobs. I know some people in Japan and they are also helping me look for some work.

My fiancee and I (she is Japanese) are looking into a place to stay and she already has work for her. Beyond this I am limited to what I can do. I am getting resumes done to hand out there but my knowledge is limited. I havent dont a wide variety of work mainly manual labor, and sales.

 

[Mike Cash]

If you lack a college degree and/or some sort of marketable job skills, you're probably going to find life frustrating, prospects few, work conditions hard, hours long, and wages low. If your Japanese skills are lacking, all the more so.

How are your Japanese skills (including reading/writing) and what sort of specific marketable job skills and/or qualifications/certifications do you have?

Young men who come to Japan unprepared to make a life here (education, job skills, language ability....earning potential, basically) tend to be the most frustrated and to have relatively short stays.

 

[Cador1]

well to answer all those questions, seems like my life will be very very hard. I undersand this though since I have no college background and no real skill besides sales and construction. I cant read nor write japanese either which will makes this so very hard but will fight on.

I have two more questions sorry.

first is, do I need a passport and a short term visa? or is the passport considered a short term visa?

Second is, do I need to bring any medical records and if I dont have some should I go get them? or is this unnessecary? thanks again for all your help.

 

[Mike Cash]

well to answer all those questions, seems like my life will be very very hard. I undersand this though since I have no college background and no real skill besides sales and construction. I cant read nor write japanese either which will makes this so very hard but will fight on.

The key thing that will make it hard is that if you live anywhere near your in-laws your lack of familiarity with the country and lack of ability with the language will put you very much in a psychological "dependant" mode vis-a-vis your wife and her parents. In short, there is the danger of getting treated like a kid and having one or both of your parents-in-law running your household, with your wife seeing you less and less as a man and more and more as a fashion accessory that seemed like a good purchase at the time, but is looking more like a questionable acquisition as time wears on. Guard against that. Every so often, if it appears necessary, remind 'em you've got a set, if you get my drift.

I hope you don't think I'm picking on you or anything. I also lack a college degree and came here with no "skills" other than the ability to pretend to teach English to people who pretended to learn it. You can pick up some skills/licensing here, but it will require you to get up to speed linguistically, including reading and writing.

I have two more questions sorry.

first is, do I need a passport and a short term visa? or is the passport considered a short term visa?

Second is, do I need to bring any medical records and if I dont have some should I go get them? or is this unnessecary? thanks again for all your help.

You definitely need a passport. I don't believe applying for a spouse visa requires any sort of medical check. Don't take that answer as being definitive. Wait for somebody who knows what they're talking about with that stuff; it ain't me.

 

[Cador1]

I understand what you are talking about man but no worries, I will make sure her family will not run our life. I am a little bit knowledgable with japan having been there several times. Yes I am still like a tourist so cant say I really know the place. I also dont have to worry about her and how she will think towards me, but the dependant thing I could see happening if I where to let it happen which I will try not to.

Thanks so much for your help man.

But my main question I know I need my passport but about the temp visa is this needed or does the passport work as a temp visa?

 

[Mike Cash]

You can enter on a "tourist" visa for up to 90 days, without any need to apply beforehand.

Here is a good source of information:

VISA