Spouse visa to Japan PR: 3 years married, 1 in Japan — then 2027

If you are married to a Japanese national, a permanent resident or a special permanent resident, you can apply for permanent residence after 3 years of marriage and 1 year of continuous residence in Japan, as long as you file by 31 March 2027. For applications filed from 1 April 2027, the revised guideline raises this to 5 years of marriage and 3 years in Japan. ISA reviews 3 years of 住民税 (resident tax) payments and 2 years of pension and health insurance. Children of Japanese nationals or permanent residents have 1-year windows.

Marriage and residence: before and after April 2027

The current guideline (2026-02-24 revision, 2(1)) says: 「日本人、永住者及び特別永住者の配偶者の場合、実体を伴った婚姻生活が３年以上継続し、かつ、引き続き１年以上本邦に在留していること。その実子等の場合は１年以上本邦に継続して在留していること」.

The 2026-10-01 revision (第３の１) changes the numbers: 「実体を伴った婚姻生活が５年以上継続し、かつ、引き続き３年以上本邦に在留していること。その実子等の場合は３年以上本邦に継続して在留していること」.

Applicant	Filed by 31 March 2027	Filed from 1 April 2027
Spouse of a Japanese national, permanent resident or special permanent resident	Real married life for 3+ years, and 1+ year living in Japan without a break	Married life for 5+ years, and 3+ years in Japan
Child (実子等)	1+ year living in Japan without a break	3+ years in Japan

The filing date decides which column applies, not the decision date. 「実体を伴った婚姻生活」 means an actual shared married life, not just a registered marriage. In its public-comment answers, ISA said why it lengthened the periods: 3 years of marriage and 1 year in Japan were not long enough to confirm that a marriage is real and lasting. It also said it will not publish how it checks this.

Under 入管法 第22条第2項, spouses and children of Japanese nationals and permanent residents do not have to meet two of the three requirements: good conduct and an independent livelihood. The third, the national-interest requirement, still applies to them. That includes paying taxes and premiums on time.

Review windows

These come from ISA's self-check sheet for 「日本人の配偶者等」 and 「永住者の配偶者等」 and from its document list:

Applicant	住民税	Pension	Health insurance
Spouse	3 years	2 years	2 years
Child of a Japanese national or permanent resident	1 year	1 year	1 year

If your spouse supports you as a dependant, the sheet's notes tell you to answer the tax and premium questions with your supporter's record: 「あなたが扶養を受けている場合は、あなたの扶養者の納税状況を回答してください」. ISA's document page also asks for the tax and premium records of both the applicant and the person who supports them. So a 住民税 installment your spouse paid late can be part of your application.

The on-time rule is the same as everywhere else. A payment made after its original deadline is evaluated negatively in principle (原則として消極的に評価). See resident tax installments and receipts and late pension payments.

Two couples, two different dates

Married in January 2024. Sara married her Japanese husband on 15 January 2024. She has lived in Japan without a break since April 2023, and on Friday 15 January 2027 she reaches 3 years of marriage. Suppose her record is clean for the 3-year 住民税 window and the 2-year pension and health windows, and so is her husband's if he supports her. Then she can file under the current guideline between 15 January and 31 March 2027.

Married in May 2024. Ana married on 10 May 2024 and has lived in Japan since 1 October 2023. Her third wedding anniversary is 10 May 2027, which is after 31 March 2027. She cannot reach 3 years of marriage while the current guideline still applies. So any spouse-route application she files falls under the revised guideline. That means 5 years of marriage, reached on 10 May 2029, and 3 years in Japan, which she already reached on 1 October 2026. Her earliest date on this route is 10 May 2029.

Both dates come only from the guideline's periods. Reaching them does not mean approval.

Period of stay and the transition

日本人の配偶者等 and 永住者の配偶者等 are granted for 5 years, 3 years, 1 year or 6 months. The guideline expects you to hold the longest period of stay, but for applications filed by 31 March 2027 a 3-year period counts as the longest.

For applications filed from 1 April 2027, a 3-year period counts only if all three of these are true:

• you held it on 31 March 2027;
• this is your first permanent-residence application filed from 1 April 2027;
• the application is decided before that 3-year stay expires.

ISA's standard processing period is 4–6 months, and in practice it often takes longer. With a 1-year period of stay, the answer to question 6 on the self-check sheet is "no". Our 2027 rules page covers the transition.

Fee: ¥200,000, or ¥20,000 in hardship

Applications received from 1 October 2026 pay ¥200,000 in revenue stamps if approved. Those received by 30 September 2026 pay the old ¥10,000.

There is a reduced fee of ¥20,000. For permanent residence, only spouses and children of Japanese nationals, permanent residents and special permanent residents can get it. It is meant for people found to be in hardship close to that of people who need public assistance under the 生活保護法 (要保護者に準ずる程度に生活に困窮), where humanitarian consideration is needed. You submit evidence with the application, such as a 生活保護受給証明書 (certificate of receiving public assistance). The reduction is not available for online applications, so you would file at the counter.

What else changes from 1 April 2027

• Taxes and premiums are reviewed per household. The revised guideline looks at them 「原則として同一生計世帯単位で」, for the household as a unit. Past non-payment, such as a 滞納処分 (delinquency disposition), is evaluated negatively in principle even if nothing is unpaid when you file.
• Being a public burden. Spouses and children don't have to meet the livelihood requirement. Even so, the guideline may evaluate negatively a household that is a public burden now, or realistically likely to become one, unless there are special circumstances. ISA weighs family stability and humanitarian considerations here. This factor already applies to applications filed from 1 April 2026 that were pending on 1 October 2026.
• Japanese at CEFR B1. Spouses are not among the listed exceptions. ISA's public-comment answer says it would not be appropriate to exclude them. Children of permanent residents are an exception if a parent raising them has B1-level Japanese and they were born in Japan.
• Time abroad, understanding of Japan's rules, and school attendance count here as on other routes. See Japan PR requirements in 2026.

In the free check, the spouse route shows its review window next to each payment question. In the full audit, you can add your spouse's documents as your supporter's record.