Switch from Tourist to Spouse visa?

Good evening,

I plan to get married in Japan this spring with my girlfriend, and do so by going there as a tourist (visa waiver).

Is it still possible to ask for a change of status and get an extension of stay while in Japan to get the spouse visa ?

I know the subject has been discussed a lot of times already, and I've made some researches on it. I know there is no official answer, but I'm more looking for some recent feedback as rules tend to change pretty quickly.

Thank you for your help.

https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/applications/status/spouseorchildofjapanese0...
here is the official rule.

On the page provided by the previous poster, please scroll down to the section that says:
在留資格変更許可申請 (Application for change of status of residence), because you are considering applying for a “change” (not for a new certificate of eligibility to enter Japan).

https://www.japan-guide.com/forum/quereadisplay.html?0+179314
Referring to OP previous post ..

Before you jump ahead ..
have you done your homework/prepare on how to get married/register marriage in Japan?
Where will you guys plan to register your marriage? As different city hall have their own sets of rules/documentation ..

Again, I'm checking to confirm, is your gf/wife-to-be a Japanese citizen/national?

I know there is no official answer, but I'm more looking for some recent feedback as rules tend to change pretty quickly.
From the look at it, I doubt immigration will entertain your application for change of status, since it look suspicious as a marriage for visa/residency. But then again, as you said yourself,there is no concrete answer for this, you could try but prepare yourself for COE route or even rejection.

Good luck.

Leaving my experience here:

https://www.japan-guide.com/forum/quereadisplay.html?0+179314

There’s a lot that goes into it. When I applied on a tourist visa, I got an extra two months on top of my 3 months (5 months in total) but if the visa approval didn’t come in time then I’d have to leave Japan and come back when the visa was approved.

Does your gf currently live in Japan? Does she work? Unless her family are willing to be your sponsor then she’ll need to have a job with enough income to support you.
My husband found a figure of \150,000 yeh being acceptable but idk how true that is.

Thank you everyone for your feedback.

My gf is a Japanese citizen, has been working for a long time and has a stable situation. We are currently working on all the paperwork so we should have everything ready for the marriage at the city hall. We plan to register it in Tokyo. We also have pictures together and logs of conversations.

Thanks @mycatslovewagyu for your post, it's really interesting. So basically there's no rule and it really depends on where/who is processing the application.

In case I ask for a change of status from tourist to spouse and if it's rejected, will it be considered as a visa denial with all the troubles that go with it, or it doesn't matter ? I mean, have I nothing to lose trying that or should I go the safe route (COE when back in my country) ?

Thanks

OP, apologies for mistaken you for another poster.

There are rules, Japan is a paper burecratic country, to the dot, but the person who preliminary check your papers may or may not make their own interpretation.

You try change of status, if they don't accept the application , normally they will suggest/insist you go COE route.

Basically, both CoS and COE almost have same documentation requirement.

You'll need to explain/make a case why CoS is necessary for them to accept your application.
Again, accepting application does not mean guarantee approval.
Not accepting CoS application does not mean rejection.

In case your CoS application is accepted, you are basically given 2 months extension or until application is decided, whichever is earlier. Your passport will be stamped with "Application"

CoS vs COE
https://zellechan.hatenablog.com/entry/2019/01/25/203410

Hello! I’m not sure if you got your answer yet but I wanted to share my experience in case it helped!

I’m an American that recently got married to a Vietnamese Permanent Resident. I came to Japan on a tourist visa to get married. We got married at our City Hall in Kyoto.

Once we married, we gathered all the paperwork needed to switch my status of residence from temporary resident to spouse of permanent resident. I did not apply for a COE. Before going up to the immigration, we called and asked was it possible to do after explaining our situation. They told us to just come apply. Once there, we again explained our situation to the immigration officer and we also added a letter in Japanese explaining our situation of me coming to get married and why I didn’t apply for my status of residence from the US.

The very nice lady at the Kyoto Immigration office accepted our paperwork and told us it’d be about two weeks. That was a shock to me because the earliest I heard it being approved was 40 days from someone else on this website.

I checked the mailbox today and it was approved in eight days! I will be picking up my zairyu card on Monday!

I’d like to give thanks to everyone on this website covering this topic for their tips! It helped a lot. Don’t assume you will be automatically accepted, be humble, and ASK can you change your status of residence. Explain your situation and be very grateful. I’m not sure if the letter explaining our situation helped or not but it doesn’t hurt to have!


Best of luck to you! If you have any questions, I’ll be happy to answer them!