Immigration law specialists | Nationwide · Free first consultation · English & Vietnamese support
DEPENDENT
A status of residence for those in Japan on a work or student visa to bring over a spouse or child from overseas to live together. Examination focuses heavily on the substance of the arrangement, and there are many practical points to manage, including part-time work.
Reach us by phone, LINE, or Messenger for a quick consultation.
ELIGIBILITY
Dependent status is granted to family members who live relying on the financial means of a sponsor residing in Japan. Because of this, there are strict limits on who can sponsor and who can be sponsored.
Work-based visa holders
Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, Business Manager, Highly Skilled Professional, Professor, Artist, Religious Activities, Journalist, Legal/Accounting Services, Medical Services, Researcher, Instructor, Intra-company Transferee, Nursing Care, Entertainer, Skilled Labor, Specified Skilled Worker Type 2, and more
Non-work visa holders
Cultural Activities, Student
⚠️ Visa statuses that CANNOT sponsor family under Dependent status
SCOPE OF FAMILY
Limited to a husband or wife in a legally valid marriage. An unmarried partner, a same-sex marriage not recognized under Japanese law (even where legally valid overseas, this is not currently accepted in practice), or a "second wife" under a foreign law permitting polygamy are all excluded.
This includes not only biological children, but also ordinary and special adopted children, and legally acknowledged children born out of wedlock. Even a child who has reached adulthood (18 or older) remains eligible if they are, for example, still attending university or a vocational school and are actually being supported by their parent. By contrast, the sponsor's parents, siblings, grandparents, and other relatives can never be sponsored under Dependent status, however close the relationship (bringing over an elderly parent requires a separate, very demanding procedure such as "Designated Activities [support for an elderly parent]").
REVIEW POINTS
Examiners look not only at whether the paperwork proving the family relationship exists, but at the substance of whether the family is genuinely being supported and building a healthy family life in Japan.
① The sponsor has sufficient means of support
The essential premise is a financial basis sufficient to live independently without relying on public assistance. For work-visa holders, the sponsor's own stable salary/income is examined — the more dependents, the higher the income benchmark expected. Students and Cultural Activities visa holders, who generally cannot work, must prove that living costs in Japan are secured through evidence such as a record of remittances from parents overseas, a scholarship certificate, or a bank balance certificate in the sponsor's name.
② For a spouse, living together is the premise
"Activity as a spouse" under Dependent status generally means living together and depending on your partner economically. Living apart without a reasonable justification (for example, the husband working in Tokyo while the wife works separately in Osaka) invites suspicion that the marriage lacks substance, or that the separation is for work purposes — this can lead to a refused renewal, or in the worst case, revocation of status.
③ For a child, they must actually be in the parent's care
When sponsoring a child, there must be an actual record of the parent taking responsibility for food, clothing, shelter, and appropriate guidance and education. If a parent works long hours and effectively leaves the child unattended for extended periods, this can be assessed as lacking the substance of parental care.
④ The main purpose is not employment
Dependent status is a non-work visa premised on being supported by someone else. Entry with the goal, from the outset, of working full-time in Japan to earn money or becoming financially independent is not accepted — in that case, the appropriate work-based visa must be obtained instead.
COMMON PITFALLS
Getting these wrong without realizing it can lead to a refused renewal and having to leave Japan.
A Dependent visa does not normally permit work, but part-time work becomes possible if you obtain a "Permission to Engage in Activity Other Than That Permitted" from the Immigration Services Agency. This is capped at 28 hours per week — and if you hold multiple jobs, the total across all of them counts toward this limit. At establishments in the adult-entertainment business (snack bars, cabaret clubs, girls' bars, mahjong parlors, pachinko parlors, game centers, and the like), you may not work even for a single second, even in a back-of-house role like cleaning or washing dishes. If working beyond 28 hours a week is discovered, both the individual and, where the employer knowingly hired them, the employer can face serious charges such as aiding illegal employment. The individual will be regarded as having a poor residence record, which can lead to a refused renewal, and can also lead to refusal of a future application to change to a work visa such as Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, on the grounds of that poor record.
Even when working lawfully within the permitted scope (28 hours a week or less), the total annual part-time earnings must not exceed the sponsor's own income. If the dependent's income exceeds the sponsor's, the Immigration Services Agency will conclude that the dependent "cannot be said to be relying on the sponsor and has become economically independent," leading to a refused renewal. A dependent spouse who works hard and ends up out-earning the sponsor is, in practice, a very common pattern of refusal.
When sponsoring a child from overseas, if the child is already around 15 to 18 years old (near the age of majority), the application invites strong suspicion that it is "not for the purpose of study or living together, but a disguised application to come to Japan to work" — significantly lowering the approval rate. Where a child is sponsored to join a parent several years after the parent came to Japan, the application must also give a reasonable, objective explanation in the written statement of reasons — such as a relative's illness or a milestone in schooling — for "why the child was left with another relative until now" and "why this particular timing." Without that, refusal becomes likely.
A child on Dependent status sometimes switches to a Student visa when entering a Japanese vocational school or university. If, afterward, the job search does not go well and a change to a work visa is not possible, returning to Dependent status to be supported by the parent again is not generally accepted. Once you have chosen an independent activity (pursuing education or work), you are considered unable to return to the substance of "the routine activity of a child being supported." A change of visa should therefore be made carefully, with an eye to your future career path.
Dependent status exists only in reliance on a sponsor who is lawfully residing in Japan. If the sponsor loses their visa by leaving their job, or has to leave Japan because their renewal was refused, the accompanying family members' Dependent status also loses its basis. Where the sponsor leaves Japan first but the family's period of stay has not yet expired, they may remain in Japan for the time being — but because the state of not being supported continues, this is assessed as a poor residence record, putting any subsequent application to change status at a significant disadvantage.
SPECIAL PATH
It is not true that a child who grew up on Dependent status can never work full-time in Japan. Where a child came to Japan with their parent, completed compulsory education (elementary and junior high school) in Japan, or graduated from a Japanese high school and has secured employment, a strong special provision allows a change to "Long-Term Resident" or "Designated Activities (not publicly announced)" status — with no educational requirement, and no restriction on full-time work, including manual or on-site roles.
Benefits of this special change of status
Requirements for this special provision (examples)
To keep your child's future options open, we recommend consulting an expert and preparing while they are still in high school.
FAQ
Yes. "Specified Skilled Worker Type 1," "Technical Intern Training," and "Trainee" generally do not permit family accompaniment given the nature of those programs. "Temporary Visitor" is also excluded, as it is intended for tourism or short family visits.
No. The spouse eligible for Dependent status is limited to a husband or wife in a legally valid marriage. An unmarried partner, a same-sex marriage not recognized under Japanese law (even where it is legally valid overseas), or a "second wife" under a foreign law permitting polygamy are all excluded.
No. Dependent status is limited to the sponsor's spouse and children — parents, siblings, grandparents, and other relatives are not eligible. To bring over an elderly parent, you would need to consider a separate and very demanding procedure, such as "Designated Activities (support for an elderly parent)," assessed on humanitarian grounds.
If working beyond 28 hours a week is discovered, the individual will be regarded as having a poor residence record, risking a refused renewal. An employer who knowingly hired them can also face charges of aiding illegal employment. Note that if you hold multiple jobs, the total hours across all of them count toward the limit.
Yes. If the child came to Japan with a parent, completed compulsory education or graduated from high school in Japan, and has secured employment, a special provision allows a change to "Long-Term Resident" or "Designated Activities (not publicly announced)" status — with no educational requirement and no restriction on full-time work, including manual or on-site roles. The requirements include having been under 18 at the time of entry, so we recommend consulting with us early, while the child is still in high school.
Yes. We confirm the reason for the refusal, analyze what was lacking — whether in proving the sponsor's means of support, the substance of living together or parental care, or the content of the written statement of reasons — and support you in reapplying after making improvements.
Reference: Immigration Services Agency of Japan: Dependent (official Immigration Services Agency of Japan website)
CONTACT
Your first consultation is free, and we accept cases from anywhere in Japan. If you are not confident in Japanese, we can assist you in English or Vietnamese.
日本語
まずは無料でご相談ください
English
Free first consultation
Tiếng Việt
Miễn phí tư vấn lần đầu
