# Japan Re-Entry Permission Residency rule, Japan. Page: https://usecountr.com/trackers/residency-jp-reentry/ ## Summary A foreign resident of Japan who leaves with a special re-entry permission must come back within 1 year of the day of departure, or before the period of stay ends if that date comes first. The permission cannot be extended from abroad. If you miss the date, you lose your status of residence, and this includes permanent residents. For a longer absence you need an ordinary re-entry permit, which you get before you leave and which can be valid for up to 5 years. The Immigration Services Agency of Japan applies the rule. - Limit: 1 year away from Japan - Period: One trip, counted from the day you leave Japan - Earlier deadline: The end of your period of stay, if it comes before the 1 year - Extension abroad: Not possible for the special re-entry permission - Law: Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, articles 26 and 26-2 - Run by: Immigration Services Agency of Japan ## Who it applies to - Permanent residents of Japan who spend long periods abroad. - Foreign employees and their families who hold a residence card and travel home for some months. - Students who take a long break or study abroad during their course in Japan. - People who plan to work in another country for a year and want to keep their Japanese status. - People whose period of stay ends soon and who plan a trip before they renew it. ## The rule A foreign national who lives in Japan holds a status of residence with a period of stay. As a general rule, the status ends when the person leaves Japan. Two tools in the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act keep it alive during a trip: the re-entry permission in article 26 and the special re-entry permission in article 26-2. The special re-entry permission needs no application. Under article 26-2, a resident who holds a valid passport, and a residence card in the case of a mid-term or long-term resident, and who tells the immigration inspector on departure that they intend to come back, is treated as having re-entry permission. In practice you show this by ticking the box for it on the departure card at the airport. The permission is valid for 1 year from the day of departure, or until the period of stay ends if that is earlier. The limit is hard. Article 26-2 says that the rules on extension in article 26 do not apply, so you cannot extend a special re-entry permission at an embassy or consulate. If you are not back in time, the status of residence is lost. A permanent resident who stays away for more than 1 year on a special re-entry permission is no longer a permanent resident and must start again with a new visa. For a longer absence you apply for an ordinary re-entry permit at a regional immigration office before you leave. Under article 26 it can be valid for up to 5 years, but never beyond the end of your period of stay. If you have good reasons for not returning in time, a Japanese embassy or consulate can extend an ordinary permit by up to 1 year, as long as the total does not go beyond 6 years from the day the permit took effect. Some people cannot use the special permission and must apply for an ordinary permit, for example when the Ministry of Justice requires this for reasons of immigration control. Why it exists: A status of residence is given for a life in Japan. The special re-entry permission, introduced in 2012, removed the paperwork for normal trips, so that residents can travel for holidays, work and family without visiting an immigration office. The 1-year limit marks the point at which the state no longer assumes that the person still lives in Japan. ## Counting the days You count how long one trip lasts, from the day you leave Japan. You must be back in Japan within 1 year, or before your period of stay ends. 1. Write down the day you leave Japan. 2. Find the date 1 year later. That is the latest date for your return. 3. Look at the end date of your period of stay on your residence card. Permanent residents have no end date for the status itself. 4. Take the earlier of the two dates. Plan to land in Japan some days before it. 5. If you need more time, get an ordinary re-entry permit from a regional immigration office before you leave. 6. When you return, the count ends. The next trip starts a new count. How Countr counts it: Countr counts the whole days of your current trip away from Japan. The day you leave and the day you return are not counted as days away. The limit is set at 364 days, a little under 1 year, so the card warns early and never late, and the warning starts 30 days before. The card watches your current absence only. If a past trip already went over the limit, the permission may already have lapsed even though the card shows nothing, so check your History. If the app cannot see where you were on a day, the count starts again, so gaps make the number smaller and never bigger. The app cannot see the end date of your period of stay or which kind of permit you hold. ## Examples ### A permanent resident abroad for 11 months Maria is a permanent resident of Japan. She leaves from Narita on 1 April 2026, ticks the box for the special re-entry permission and goes to Brazil to care for her mother. She must be back in Japan within 1 year. She returns on 5 March 2027, after 11 months, shows her passport and residence card, and enters as a permanent resident. Her next trip starts a new 1-year period. ### The period of stay ends first Arjun is an engineer whose period of stay ends on 15 October 2026. He leaves Japan on 1 June 2026 with a special re-entry permission. The 1 year would run to 2027, but his permission lasts only until 15 October 2026, because the period of stay ends on that day. He cannot renew his period of stay from abroad. He must return before 15 October and apply to extend his stay in Japan. ### Two weeks too late Chloe is a permanent resident who leaves on 10 January 2026 with a special re-entry permission for a job in Singapore. Her project runs longer than planned, and she flies back on 25 January 2027. More than 1 year has passed. The permission ended, it could not be extended at the embassy, and her permanent resident status is lost. With an ordinary re-entry permit, obtained before she left, she could have stayed away for up to 5 years. ## Exceptions - An ordinary re-entry permit under article 26 can be valid for up to 5 years and is obtained before departure. - An ordinary permit can be extended abroad by up to 1 year for good reasons, to a total of not more than 6 years, but a special re-entry permission cannot be extended. - No permission can run beyond the end of your period of stay. When the period of stay ends, the right to come back ends with it. - Special permanent residents come under a separate law with longer periods, and official guidance gives them 2 years for the special re-entry permission. - People whom the Ministry of Justice requires to hold a re-entry permit, for reasons of immigration control, cannot use the special permission. ## Common misconceptions - "Permanent residence in Japan is for life, wherever I live." It is lost if you leave Japan and do not come back within the time your re-entry permission allows. With the special permission that is 1 year. - "I can extend the 1 year at the Japanese embassy." Only an ordinary re-entry permit can be extended abroad. Article 26-2 excludes the special re-entry permission from the rules on extension. - "The permission is given automatically when I leave." You must show your passport and residence card and state on departure that you intend to return, which is done by ticking the box on the departure card. - "I always have a full year." If your period of stay ends before the year is over, the permission ends on that earlier date. ## Questions and answers ### What happens if I come back one day late? The special re-entry permission has ended and your status of residence is lost. You would need a new visa to enter Japan and would start again from the beginning, including for permanent residence. ### Does a short visit to Japan start a new year? Yes. The permission covers one trip. When you enter Japan, that trip ends, and when you leave again with a new special re-entry permission, a new period of 1 year begins. ### How do I get more than 1 year? Apply for an ordinary re-entry permit at a regional immigration office before you leave Japan. It can be valid for up to 5 years, but not beyond the end of your period of stay. ### Can I renew my residence card or period of stay while I am abroad? No. An extension of the period of stay is applied for in Japan. If your period of stay ends while you are abroad, the status ends too. ### Does a long absence affect an application for permanent residence? It can. Returning within 1 year keeps your current status, but the Immigration Services Agency looks at your whole record of living in Japan when it decides on permanent residence. ### Does the special permission cost anything? No. There is no application and no fee. An ordinary re-entry permit needs an application and a fee. ## Sources - [Japanese Law Translation - Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, articles 26 and 26-2](https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/3624/en) - [Immigration Services Agency of Japan - New system of residence management, special re-entry permission](https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/content/930001517.pdf) --- Countr is an app for iPhone that counts your days in every country for visa, tax and residency rules, from the photos on your phone and your location. It explains rules and counts days. It does not give legal or tax advice. https://apps.apple.com/app/country-days-tracker-countr/id6810720800