Can you please tell us:

Application Office: Tokyo, Osaka, etc

Application Date:

Result postcard received on:

Type of PR (spouse, business owner, HSP, etc):

Request for further documents: Yes/N

I am very afraid of waking up during surgery, so I want to know if it is safe for me here in case I need surgery. I have been living in Japan for 2 months and wanted to know, will I likely stay asleep like I would in the United States?

Someone advised me to post this here.

Hi all, I (32, male) just got offered a job in Okinawa.

My current job pays me ±57.000euros (NL-based) at full time, although I comfortably work 4 days a week (making it 46.000euros). The job offer in Okinawa is 6.5M yen (equal to 40.000euros), where 5-9M was stated on the vacancy. This would mean I would earn a chunk less for a day of extra work. Furthermore, I am rather overqualified for this position, as my current job is in the same field, but broader and more in-depth. 

Things to consider:

• I would love to work abroad for a 1-2 year period, Japan draws me, and a Tropical Island would be best of both worlds, especially as I would envision myself getting diving certificates.
• I do want sufficient free time for exploring the surroundings such as Taipei, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo, and to learn diving of course.
• The job includes health insurance, pension, commute allowance, housing allowance (40k max), and schooling for e.g. Japanese (I started learning last year and have passed N4 in July).
• Vacation days are 10 in a year, 7 extra in the summer months, 29th of Dec until the 3rd of Jan, and the national holidays and way worse than the lenient unlimited sick days in the Netherlands: just 7 a year. 
• I have a mortgage in the Netherlands which I need to keep paying.

How do these terms sound to you, with an eye to my future career back in Europe?

I would love some feedback as it feels as if my brain is just so clouded with thoughts at the moment.

Where do y'all get NICE lights and ornaments from ? Especially the lights none of that blue or pure white nonsense.

This was given to me by a police officer today.

Does anyone know, if one has to do this or what the legal background or implications are?

Any experience or explanations welcome! Thank you!

Hi guys,

This Tuesday on Instagram group i randomly got dm from girl living in Tokyo to connect on LINE so we can be friends. She said she is 32 divorced living with father. She is sharing her problem with, shared her photos with me. We are just talking causally, I just moved to japan, i don't have any friends here so I thought let's continue to talk. When I asked about her instagram, she said she doesn't use becoz of negativity. She send me a song she were singing.

Questions, complaints, and brags are all welcome!

Hi everyone,

I posted this in Japanlife as well, but fully expecting a troll attack there (downvoted in the first 5 minutes already)... My husband and I are looking for recommendations for a knowledgeable immigration specialist who is gay friendly and ideally experienced with same-sex couples. Here’s a bit of context about our situation:

We got married in the U.S. in 2017.

Moved to Japan in 2020 for my Japanese husband’s (spectacular) job, leaving my dreadfully boring but lucrative job.

I have a useless master’s degree from a "top world university", and a JD, but it hasn’t helped much here, and my current part-time salary is pretty low.

To improve my "points" for residency, my husband (a high earner) is considering “hiring” me on paper.

If anyone knows of a specialist familiar with cases like ours who could advise us on our best options for permanent residency, we’d be grateful for the help. Feel free to PM if you’d rather share info privately. Thanks so much!

Hi guys, anyone know where I can watch game of thrones in Japanese dub? I just finished rewatching breaking bad and I really really love game of thrones so I want to watch in dub for listening practice. I can’t seem to find it anywhere without needing a VPN :’)

Hello, I would like to know the current status of postcard arrival for visa extension processed in Kawasaki branch. How's the waiting?

Me at 13days now

Hello everyone,

I've been living in my current apartment for about three years now, and in June, the upstairs apartment became occupied by the noisiest neighbors. I can hear their footsteps all day, and it is worsening. I have already complained to the 管理会社 several times, but it has not stopped at all. I went to see if I could change apartments, but this apartment is so big for the affordable price that I don't really want to move + moving expenses are crazy. I will graduate in about six months, but the noise is unbearable to the point that I barely sleep because it wakes me up. I was looking at DIY options, but it seems I cannot do anything without damaging the roof. Also, I will graduate in about six months, so I do not want to move when I have so little time left. Do you guys have any recommendations? Are there any panels that actually work? I do not mind paying for something that can even slightly lower the noise.

Pd: I already bought Noise Canceling headphones, Silicone Earplugs and some panels, but nothing has worked.

Hello, I’m looking for alternatives of western skincare products in Japan like Tretinoin creams, Glycolic acid, Azylic acid, and mild water-based moisturizers. I tried Amazon to order them but it seems like they’re not selling in Japan. I’m also looking for Tirtir cushion foundation outlets in Tokyo but couldn’t found any. It’d be really helpful if anyone here knows where or how can I order them or buy alternative Japanese skincare products. Thanks for taking time to read this.

Was taking the trash out and going to the convinience store, opened the back door and something fell on my shoulder then fell to the ground, looked and it was this little handsome boy.

I now have to be careful when I do yard work to not hurt him or his friends

A while back I asked if anyone other US residents had had their ballot delayed that was supposed to come in the mail. As an update, mine never did come, though it was supposed to have been sent on 9/19 I believe. Anyone else never receive theirs. The county office seemed suprised I never received it. I am a former Iowa resident, by the way.

FWIW I did find a way to print out my ballot and send it anyway, and have just sent an email asking for confirmation it was received.

I'm thinking of studying for the FE exam to qualify for a visa working in IT.

However, their are new textbooks every year and I don't want to wast money on a book that will be obsolete in two months.

Has anyone here taken it and have an idea of how different each year is? Would buying a book from this year be ok?

I have Google in Japanese but only get information about it changing to computer based.

I don’t understand this. A lot of workers here use trains to go to work, but… well I was rejected because I use train to go to work. Probably this is another way to reject a foreigner, I dont know.

So, winter is near now and being the first year i am here in japan, i think i need to ask. Right now, i rent a 1K and room do come with AC, but i don't know if it better in term of cost compare to space heater and i have lived my whole life in a tropical country so i kinda weak againist cold ( like this week when it dropped to 15C ) . So should i consider buying or not ? Please help

P/S: sorry for bad english, it's not my mother tongue.

Now that technology has taken some huge leaps over recent years, how tangible do you think it is that in the very near future, we might start seeing software that provides on-the-fly subtitles for foreign media? There are shows that I would very much like to watch with my spouse, but don't have the patience to sit through them without understanding the gist of what's being said. (I know fan subs are created given time, but they're not created for all shows.)

I know I gotta git gud at nihongo, but it takes time. In the meantime, I'll take what I can git. :)

Hello everyone,

My zairyu extension is taking dramatically long, and I am getting anxious. I am applying for a 6-month extension for my job-seeking visa at Tokyo Immigration (Shinagawa). Usually, it took only 3 weeks to process, but mine has been 8 weeks now.

I applied on 2nd September, and my Zairyu expired on 23rd September (I applied quite late because my uni was taking their sweet time processing my letter of recommendation).

I called the Immigration three times in the past month, and they kept saying, "It's under review. We don't know when the results will come out. Please wait." And last week, they told me, "No one who applied on the same date as you has received the results yet either."

Today is already 29 October, and my 2-month grace period will end on 23rd November. I have an overseas trip coming up on 23rd November, so my anxiety has been mounting.

Has anyone experienced any situation in which the zairyu extension period exceeded the 2-month grace period? Would it likely happen? Please advise me TT.

Hey! I've recently started getting back into collecting. I'm interested in purchasing some singles, but he been burnt pretty hard buy sellers in Mercari. I'd prefer to see before buying from here on out. What are some places you can recommend for buying singles, or perhaps packs and boosters that aren't being sold anymore? I currently reside in Sendai, Miyagi, but any suggestions are fine, as I'm happy to travel. Thanks for your time!

I'm looking for tips and recommendations for renovation services in and around the Kyoto area (my place is in Otsu, Shiga). I heard that I will need to shop around for at least 3 quotes. But I would appreciate any info on this!

My Japanese is currently an N5 level, so worst case I can try to utilize that as well

Not for the first time, someone cut in line in front of me today. Usually it's an obaasan at the shop or the train platform, but now it was some dude at the hospital check-in. For once I said something and he pretended not to understand me.

Is this a regional thing? (Hyogo) Is it because I'm foreign? Or is it just a thing?

I'm from the UK where we (generally) take our queues seriously so it annoys the hell out of me every time 🫠

Same as title. The rings and rods can be removed by lifting and twisting but I have absolutely no idea what the purpose is. Thanks!

Hey all, nice to meet you!

I'm moving to Tokyo in about 5 months to start at ISI Language School (located in Nishi-Shinjuku), and am currently in the process of apartment hunting and researching. I'd prefer not having to commute more than 30-ish minutes one way to get to school, ideally, as I'll be making the commute Mon-Friday.

I wanted to ask what neighborhoods folks would recommend hunting for an apartment in; decent residential areas with good transport, supermarkets, and affordable options.

Thank you very very much for reading this far!

My dog and I was attacked by an off leash dog few days ago. We walked past the house and away from the house the off leash dog came from. The dog ran out of the house and charged at us on the road. My dog and I sustained minor injuries from the encounter. The owner came running, apologized once and quickly fled the scene with the dog. Because I was rural area and little to no reception we limped back home. I went to vet and got exams and received treatments and meds for my dog the day after. And I also went to hospital and received exams, X-rays and report from the resident surgeon. The day after the incident, I went back to the house to find the owner but the house was empty and no one answered the door. I have seen this man with the dog occasionally in that property. Also I believe either the dog owner is the owner of house or a friend of house owner, using the house a second property. I’ve been trying to catch the owner for last few days but no luck. Since I tried to resolve the situation without any law enforcement but I had no luck meeting the dog owner, I will go to police and file a report. Question: how can I place small claims lawsuit without the name of defendant? I know the address of the property where the incident occurred only.

Hi everyone, I know I need to go back to city hall and I will do so tomorrow, but I just wanted to check I haven't made an obvious mistake.

I am on the 文化活動 visa and am not allowed to work. I am a UK PhD student in receipt of a stipend from the UK government, which is non taxable in the UK and does not count as income. I'm here for 1 year while carrying out my research.

I thought I would be eligible for an exemption from paying pension premiums (and applied for it at city hall), as I do not receive any income in Japan. However I just received a fat stack of bills which come to a pretty large sum, including one which is somehow already overdue. It seems my exemption has not been applied.

Have I made a mistake in assuming I'm eligible for the exemption? Also, if anyone has any advice on what to say at the pension office counter that would be very helpful. My Japanese is OK but I don't know all the pension specific vocab. Thanks if you can help

Hello, I have found quite a few websites for car auctions that export the car overseas but I'm looking for a car auction service to purchase a car whilst living in Japan. Cheers!