This article describes the draft
The revised guidelines took effect on October 1, 2026, and the final text may differ from the draft below. For the final version, see Japan’s Permanent Residence Guidelines Have Been Revised: What Changed on October 1, 2026.
Regarding the new Permanent Residence rules, the Immigration Services Agency of Japan published the Draft Revisions to the Guidelines for Permission for Permanent Residence on August 4, 2026. Below is our English translation of its overview.
Status of Residence “Permanent Resident”
- Clarification of Legal Status: Expressly states for the first time that because this status represents “the most stable legal status with no restrictions on activities or period of stay, under the assumption that the individual will spend the rest of their life in Japan,” there is a “need to conduct particularly rigorous examinations.”
1. “Good Conduct Requirement”
- No significant changes.
2. “Independent Livelihood Requirement”
- Basic Principle: Expressly requires applicants to maintain an economic standing equal to or higher than that of Japanese nationals, both currently and in the future.
- Income: Evaluates whether income continuously reaches a level above the average income of Japanese households corresponding to household size (raising the baseline criteria).
- Pension: Evaluates whether expected future pension payouts meet the level of 30 years of enrollment in the Employees’ Pension Insurance (Kōsei Nenkin) at the aforementioned annual income level (new addition; if insufficient, financial assets capable of covering the gap will also be considered).
3. “National Interest Requirement”
- Basic Principle: Expressly states that the foreign national’s permanent residence must actively and specifically yield benefits to Japan.
- Not Becoming a Public Burden: Even for categories exempt from the independent livelihood requirement (*), a negative assessment will be given if there is a realistic risk of becoming a public burden.
*Spouses or children of Japanese nationals, permanent residents, or special permanent residents; refugees, etc. - Japanese Language Proficiency: Requires proficiency equivalent to CEFR (Framework for Japanese Language Education) B1 level.
- Understanding of Japan’s Systems, etc.: Applicants with insufficient understanding will receive a negative assessment.
- School Attendance of Children: Failure to enroll children of compulsory school age in school will result in a negative assessment.
Other Points
- Exceptions to the 10-Year Residence Rule: For spouses of Japanese nationals or permanent residents, the required periods—previously set at 3 years of marriage and 1 year of residence in Japan—will be extended to 5 years and 3 years, respectively.
Implementation Date & Transition of Existing Guidelines
- Effective from April 2027 (income-related criteria take effect in October 2026).