On 1 October 2026, the Immigration Services Agency of Japan (出入国在留管理庁) revised the Guidelines on Permanent Residence Permission (永住許可に関するガイドライン). The draft published on 4 August went through public comment and has now been confirmed. Guidelines that previously ran to less than a page now have six parts, setting out in detail what is considered in the assessment.
This article explains what the revised guidelines say and when they apply. For how the revision affects your own status of residence, see Japan’s New PR Guidelines: What Changes for Your Visa Status and When to Apply.
What this article covers
- The structure and status of the revised guidelines
- Which applications they apply to, and from when
- The new considerations
- What has changed from the previous standards
- What has been clarified
This article is based on the original text of the Guidelines on Permanent Residence Permission (永住許可に関するガイドライン) as revised on 1 October 2026. Comparing the main items with the 4 August draft, we found no difference in wording (this was not a line-by-line comparison of the full text).
The revised guidelines in outline
The revised guidelines are in six parts:
- General provisions (the position of permanent residence, the purpose of the guidelines)
- Approach to the requirements for permission
- Exceptions to the ten-year residence rule
- Exceptions for those who have contributed to Japan
- Treatment of Designated Activities (特定活動) under the ten-year rule
- Timing of application and treatment of earlier guidelines
The separate guidelines on contribution to Japan (「我が国への貢献」に関するガイドライン) are abolished, and their content is folded into Part 4.
The guidelines set out the basic approach to the matters considered in deciding on permanent residence. Their stated purpose is to make the outcome more predictable. They also state that each decision is made by weighing all the circumstances of the case, and that the guidelines are only a basic statement of the factors to be considered.
Article 22(2) of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act (出入国管理及び難民認定法) will also gain the wording “compliance with obligations under this Act, payment of public dues, and the like” through an amendment taking effect on 1 April 2027. The guidelines explain that this makes explicit in statute what the guidelines already stated, and that it was already taken into account before that date (Note 1).
When the revision applies
The timing is set out in Part 6.
- As a general rule, the revised guidelines apply to applications filed on or after 1 April 2027.
- As an exception, the provisions on income (Part 2, 4(2)) and on not becoming a public burden (Part 2, 5(7)) also apply to applications filed on or after the date six months before the revision date, where the application is under review on the revision date.
With the revision date fixed at 1 October 2026, the date six months before is 1 April 2026. If you applied on or after 1 April 2026 and your application was under review on 1 October, income and the public burden provision are already assessed under the revised standard.
| When you apply | Standard used |
|---|---|
| 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2027 | In principle, the version revised on 24 February 2026. However, income and the public burden provision follow the 1 October 2026 version |
| On or after 1 April 2027 | The 1 October 2026 version in full |
The new considerations
Household income (Part 2, 4(2))
It is a consideration whether the annual income of the applicant’s household continuously reaches a level above the average income of Japanese households, adjusted for household size.
The guidelines set out how household income is calculated:
- A household means people sharing a residence and household finances
- The incomes of members of the same household are combined
- Adult members who are no longer dependants of their parents are assessed without combining their parents’ income
- Income of those holding a status not for the purpose of work, such as Dependent (家族滞在), is not combined — income earned under permission to work outside one’s status is regarded as exceptional and limited
- Relatives supported by the applicant are counted in the household size even if they live abroad
- Where the household has five or more members, an additional amount for increased living costs is added to the required level
The revised guidelines still give no monetary figure and no source statistic for this standard. From the published materials, it is not possible to say for certain whether a given household meets it.
Pension (Part 2, 4(3))
It is a consideration whether projected future pension entitlement, estimated from the applicant’s age, enrolment history and current income, reaches a certain level.
That level is what someone would receive who worked for thirty years at an income above the average for Japanese households, enrolled in the employees’ pension scheme throughout. A shortfall can be covered by sufficient financial assets, with a lower asset threshold for younger applicants. Where the applicant has a spouse, the two projections are assessed together.
No figures are given here either.
Time spent outside Japan (Part 2, 5(6))
A negative assessment is in principle made where, within the ten years before the application and without reasonable grounds, the applicant was absent for six months or more on a single departure, or for two years and six months or more in total.
Japanese language ability (Part 2, 5(8))
It is a consideration whether the applicant has Japanese language ability at B1 or above under the Framework for Japanese Language Education (日本語教育の参照枠).
This is not applied to highly skilled foreign professionals under Part 3, 6 to 8 and their families, those who have received six years or more in total of primary or secondary education under the School Education Act, children of permanent residents born in Japan whose parent holds B1 or above, and others for whom requiring B1 would not be necessary or appropriate.
Understanding of Japanese systems and rules (Part 2, 5(9))
Understanding is checked by a method designated by the Commissioner of the Immigration Services Agency, centred on the Guidebook on Living and Working in Japan (生活・就労ガイドブック), and whether it reaches a certain level is a consideration. The specific method is not described in the guidelines.
School attendance of children (Part 2, 5(10))
Where the applicant is raising a child of compulsory education age, it is a consideration whether the child attends elementary or junior high school. The same applies where the applicant is of that age.
Not becoming a public burden (Part 2, 5(7))
Spouses and children of Japanese nationals, permanent residents and special permanent residents, and those recognised as refugees or as persons under complementary protection, are not required to meet the self-sufficiency requirement. Nevertheless, where the household is currently a public burden, or that prospect is realistic, and there are no particular circumstances to explain it, a negative assessment may be made.
The guidelines add that this is judged comprehensively, with weight given to the stability of the family unit and to humanitarian considerations.
What has changed
The spousal exception (Part 3, 1)
| Version of 24 February 2026 | Version of 1 October 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse of a Japanese national, permanent resident or special permanent resident | Genuine marriage of 3 years or more, plus 1 year of continuous residence | Genuine marriage of 5 years or more, plus 3 years of continuous residence |
| Their biological children | 1 year of continuous residence | 3 years of continuous residence |
Which statuses count as work-related (Note 2)
Of the ten years normally required, five must be held under a work-related or residence-based status. Statuses with particular restrictions, such as not permitting accompanying family members, are now excluded from “work-related”: Technical Intern Training (技能実習), Employment for Skill Development (育成就労), Specified Skilled Worker (i) (特定技能1号), Intra-company Transferee (企業内転勤), and certain Designated Activities (特定活動). The 24 February version excluded only Technical Intern Training and Specified Skilled Worker (i).
Designated Activities (Part 5)
A separate part now sets out which Designated Activities count towards the ten years, and which count as work-related, with examples.
- Not counted towards the ten years: continued job-seeking, holding a job offer before starting work, start-up preparation by graduates of Japanese universities, pending refugee recognition procedures, and residence permitted due to instability in the home country
- Counted as work-related: Notice 6 (amateur athletes), Notice 8 (international arbitration representation), Notice 36 (specified research activities), Notice 37 (specified information processing activities), Notice 46 (graduates of Japanese universities), and EPA nurses and care workers (excluding time as a candidate)
- Not counted as work-related: Notices 5 and 5-2 (working holiday), Notice 9 (internships), and employment after graduating from a Japanese high school
What stays the same
The framework of ten years of residence, including five under a work-related or residence-based status, is retained, as are the exceptions such as the Highly Skilled Professional points routes (three years at 70 points, one year at 80).
The transitional treatment of a three-year period of stay also carries over. For applications filed by 31 March 2027, a three-year period is treated as the longest available. For applications filed on or after 1 April 2027, the same treatment applies only where the person held a three-year period on 31 March 2027, the application is their first on or after 1 April 2027, and the decision is issued before that three-year period expires (Note 4).
What has been clarified
- Payment of public dues (Part 2, 5(3)): 公租 is defined as taxes generally (income tax, resident tax, corporation tax, fixed asset tax and so on), and 公課 as non-tax contributions such as public health insurance and public pension. A negative assessment is in principle made where the applicant has been subject to delinquency proceedings or otherwise has not paid properly in the past, even where nothing is outstanding at the time of application. This is assessed on a household basis
- Compliance with obligations under the Act (Part 2, 5(2)): notification of residence address, carrying and presenting the residence card, not engaging in activities outside one’s status and so on. A past breach that comes to light is in principle assessed negatively
- Criminal penalties (Part 2, 5(4)): in addition to imprisonment or a fine, protective measures under the Juvenile Act are in principle assessed negatively
- Grounds for denial of landing (Part 2, 5(5)): a person falling under Article 5(1) of the Immigration Control Act is assessed negatively
- The national interest requirement (Part 2, 5(1)): permanent residence must positively and concretely bring benefit to Japan, not merely not be contrary to its interests. Contributions to the measures in the Comprehensive Measures for Acceptance of Foreign Nationals and the Realisation of an Orderly Society of Coexistence (外国人の受入れ・秩序ある共生のための総合的対応策), adopted on 23 January 2026, may also be taken into account (Part 2, 5(11))
- Good conduct (Part 2, 3): someone found to have repeatedly engaged in illegal acts or nuisance behaviour is assessed as not meeting the requirement
What can be done now
The revised guidelines still give no figures for income or pension. One thing, however, is certain.
Pay taxes, pension contributions and health insurance premiums by the due date, and make your notifications to immigration properly. The revised guidelines count past improper payment and past breaches against an applicant. The record you create now is the record that will be assessed.
If you are thinking about when to apply, the standard used changes depending on whether you apply by 31 March 2027. See Japan’s New PR Guidelines: What Changes for Your Visa Status and When to Apply.
Summary
The Guidelines on Permanent Residence Permission were revised on 1 October 2026. Household income, projected pension, Japanese language ability, understanding of Japanese systems and rules, school attendance of children and limits on time abroad are newly set out. The spousal exception becomes five years of marriage and three of residence, and Intra-company Transferee and other statuses no longer count as work-related.
The revision applies in principle to applications filed on or after 1 April 2027, but income and the public burden provision already apply to applications filed on or after 1 April 2026.
We can look at how the revision applies to your own situation, and how to think about the timing of an application. Consultations are in English and free of charge.
Related reading: Japan’s New PR Guidelines: What Changes for Your Visa Status and When to Apply
Related reading: PR with Highly Skilled Professional Points: The 3-Year and 1-Year Routes
Related reading: Permanent Residence or Naturalisation in Japan: What Is the Difference
About this article
This article is a summary intended to help foreign nationals living in Japan understand the Guidelines on Permanent Residence Permission as revised on 1 October 2026. The guidelines contain items not covered here. Please check the original for anything relevant to your own situation.
Disclaimer
This article sets out general information based on the published Guidelines on Permanent Residence Permission (as revised 1 October 2026). It does not guarantee that any individual application will be granted or refused. Assessment practice may change. Before applying, please check the latest official information or consult a professional.
References
- Immigration Services Agency, Guidelines on Permanent Residence Permission (永住許可に関するガイドライン) (as revised 1 October 2026) https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/10_00279.html
- Immigration Services Agency, Guidelines on Permanent Residence Permission (永住許可に関するガイドライン) (as revised 24 February 2026) https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/applications/resources/nyukan_nyukan50.html
- Immigration Services Agency, Public comment on the appropriate operation of permanent residence https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/11_00112.html
Last updated: 24 October 2026 (fully revised following the confirmation of the guidelines on 1 October 2026)