Only got a 1-year visa? What decides 1, 3 or 5 years at your next renewal in Japan

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1. Who this article is for

This article is for people on the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visa (often called the ESI or “Gijinkoku” visa) who were given a 1-year period of stay and want 3 or 5 years at the next renewal.

2. Who decides your period of stay

For the ESI visa, the period of stay is 5 years, 3 years, 1 year or 3 months. When you apply to extend your period of stay, you can write the period you would like on the application form. The immigration bureau then decides the period after looking at the whole application.

The Immigration Services Agency’s published guidelines for extensions say that the bureau looks at, among other things, whether you have paid your taxes and whether you have made the notifications required by the Immigration Control Act, such as notifications about your employer. These points affect not only whether your extension is approved, but also, in practice, how long a period you are given.

3. What usually leads to 3 or 5 years

The table below shows how the period of stay is generally decided in practice for the ESI visa. It is a general guide, and the bureau makes the final decision in each case.

General guide used in practice — not an official ISA table

Two more points apply in practice:

• Even for a first approval or a first renewal, 3 years (or 5 years if the conditions are met) is generally given, unless there is a specific reason to check your situation again after one year.
• If you ask for 3 years and you are likely to keep working for more than a year, for example because your contract with the same employer has been renewed, 3 years can be given even if each contract is for one year.

4. Common reasons for a 1-year visa

The decision notice does not tell you why you got 1 year. The reasons usually fall into three groups.

Reasons you can fix

• Missed or late notifications. When you move, you must notify your city office within 14 days. When you change or leave your employer, or your employer changes its name or address, you must notify the immigration bureau within 14 days.
• A school-age child who is not in school. If you have a child of compulsory school age (elementary and junior high school) living in Japan, the child should be attending school. An international school counts.
• Unpaid or late taxes. Resident tax (jūminzei) is the most common problem, especially in the year after a job change, when you may have to pay it yourself. In practice, public pension and health insurance contributions are also checked.
• Violations of the law. Criminal penalties are considered, and in practice even traffic violations can count against you.

Reasons outside your control

• Your employer is in Category 4. This includes companies that have not yet submitted the annual statutory report on withholding tax, for example a newly established company.
• A short contract. If your contract is for less than one year and is not expected to be renewed, you will usually get 1 year or less.
• A practical training period. If your employer has new staff do on-the-job training before their main duties, the Immigration Services Agency says that 1 year is generally given, so that the bureau can check that you moved on to ESI work after the training.
• Your employer’s track record. If the company has a short or unclear business record, the bureau may want to check the situation every year.

Reasons you cannot see

Sometimes the bureau decides that your situation should be checked again in a year, based on information in your file. Not all of the standards the bureau uses are made public, so you may not be able to identify the reason from the outside.

5. What to do before your next renewal

You can apply to extend your period of stay from about three months before it expires. With a 1-year period, that is only about nine months after you receive your card. A missed notification stays in your record even if you make it later, and you need time to pay any unpaid tax and get the certificates. So start as soon as you receive your 1-year card, and check these points:

1. Notifications: Check that every move and every change of employer was notified. If you find one you missed, make it now. A late notification is better than none.
2. Taxes: Get your resident tax certificate (kazei shōmeisho) and tax payment certificate (nōzei shōmeisho) from your city office, and pay anything unpaid.
3. Pension and health insurance: Check that you are enrolled and that there are no unpaid months, especially around a job change.
4. Your children: If you have a child of school age, be ready to show that the child attends school.
5. Your contract: Ask your employer about the length of your contract. If it is fixed-term, ask whether it has been renewed or is expected to be renewed.
6. Your employer’s category: Ask which category your employer falls into, and which documents it will prepare to show it.
7. Anything unfavorable: If there was a late notification, a late tax payment or a traffic violation, explain in writing what happened and what you have done so that it will not happen again.

6. If you don’t know why you got 1 year

First, go through the reasons in section 4 one by one. It also helps to know exactly what was submitted last time, especially if your employer or someone else prepared the application. You can request copies of your past applications from the immigration bureau. See how to get copies of your past immigration applications in Japan and what to do when your employer or a previous agent filed your application.

7. FAQ

Can I write “3 years” on the application form?

Yes. The form has a field for the period you would like. Writing a period does not decide it, but it shows the bureau what you are asking for. As noted in section 3, asking for 3 years can matter when your contract is renewed every year.

Does a 1-year period affect permanent residence?

Yes. One of the requirements for permanent residence is that you are staying with the longest period of stay allowed for your status, which is 5 years for the ESI visa. A 1-year period does not meet this requirement. Under the guidelines revised on October 1, 2026:

• For applications made by March 31, 2027, a 3-year period is treated as the longest period of stay.
• For applications made on or after April 1, 2027, a 3-year period is treated this way only if you held it on March 31, 2027, it is your first application for permanent residence, and the decision is made before that 3-year period expires.

If you plan to apply for permanent residence after April 2027, aiming for 5 years at your renewals becomes more important. For the details, see the guidelines in the Sources.

I changed jobs. Will that affect my period of stay?

It can. Your new employer’s category, your new contract and whether you notified the bureau of the change within 14 days are all considered at your next renewal. See changing jobs on a work visa in Japan.

8. How we can help

For questions about your own situation, see our Written Answer. If you would like us to handle your extension application, send us an inquiry. We will tell you whether we can help and which of our services fits. For how extensions work, see our page on extension of period of stay.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for general information only and is not legal advice on any individual case. The information is based on sources available as of November 5, 2026. Laws, guidelines and their application may change without notice. The period of stay is decided by the immigration bureau in each case, and the general guide in this article does not guarantee any outcome. TKG Immigration Consulting Office accepts no liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of this information. In case of any difference between our English descriptions and the original Japanese texts, the Japanese texts prevail.