Entering Japan third time in one year

Multiple Japan entries


Hello. Me (American) and my pregnant Japanese fiancé are currently applying for apartments in Japan. I am away in the Philippines now and she is in Japan. I contemplating between entering Japan again October 1st or returning to America and waiting for marriage/ visa documents to be approved. I have entered Japan twice within the last calendar year. March 7- 21st and May 23rd- August 9th. I am aware of the “loosely” enforced 180 day rule of being in Japan. My question is, each entry into Japan I was granted 90 day visa of course, essentially being allotted 180 days. However I did not stay the full term of allowed days my two trips. I stayed two weeks the first trip, and 78 days the second trip. It would have been about 92 days total.

Assuming the 180 rule was strictly enforced, would immigration base this off of the issued sticker dates? Or would they be able to know how many days I actually stayed in the calendar year? I am curious if anyone has done similarly

Side note- my biggest concern is being rejected entry to be with my pregnant fiancé. We are hoping to have documents finalized and visa switched to spousal visa before or at least at the end of the 90 day tourist visa expiration.

TLDR: Is the Japan 180 day rule applied to allowed days on passport sticker, or how many days you actually remain in country?

Sigh - there is no 180 day "rule".

I have entered Japan up to 5-6 times in a year on a 90 day tourist visa. I have never had any issue. Sometimes we have stayed a week and other times up to a month. I have never heard of 180 days max.

Thanks for the replies this far. The 180 rule is fairly known I think yet loosely enforced on most accounts. But I even spoke on the phone with Tokyo immigration office worker. I couldn’t really understand him and I’m not sure he did as well as it was a Japanese man but a bit broken English. He did state that I can only stay 180 days per year and should be fine, but I know it’s up to the immigration officer working at that time. Just was curious if others have entered many times without issues!

The 180 rule is fairly known I think yet loosely enforced on most accounts.
Again, that is completely false and has NEVER been enforced because it does not exist. There are some idiots on the internet that say it is a thing when it is not. The law is very clear.

Simple google search will prove that false. Again I spoke on the phone with Japanese immigration office. Not to be rude but the 180 rule is acknowledged even by government officials although as you mentioned not necessarily enforced.