Non-Japanese often ask about their residential status after divorce as follows;
“What's the situation regarding my visa after my divorce from my Japanese spouse?”
“Must I leave Japan at once after the divorce?”
Non-Japanese spouses of Japanese with the residential status of “a spouse of a Japanese national” will lose this status after the divorce. However, it is not necessary to leave Japan immediately. They can remain in the country until the expiration date of the visa.
In the following situation a change in residential status is possible. If the non-Japanese divorced resident has children who are acknowledged as being Japanese and wishes to bring up these children in Japan, they may change the status of their visa from “a spouse of a Japanese national” to “a settler in Japan”.
Previously the changing of a visa status from “a spouse of a Japanese national” to “a settler in Japan” was considered on the circumstances of each case. However, on July 30th, 1996, the Ministry of Justice issued an order that the standards of changing visa status be unified nationwide.
If you would like to get advice on residential qualification or status, you can call the NGO Foreigner’s Assistance Network’s “Information Hotline” at 078-232-1290. Consultaion is available for both Japanese and non-Japanese language speakers.