【Must-Read for Applicants!】Can a Colleague Serve as a Guarantor for Permanent Residency?
When applying for permanent residency, you must submit a “Guarantor Statement.” This document requires the signature of a guarantor who vouches for the applicant. Can a colleague from the same company serve as this guarantor?
What is Permanent Residency?
Permanent residency is a status of residence defined as follows:
Foreign national A works for a Japanese company and currently holds a work visa. If A marries B (a Japanese national) from the same company, A can change their status from the current work visa to the “Spouse or Child” status. This status is commonly referred to as “Permanent Residency.”
Besides the spouse of a Japanese national, “permanent residency” can be obtained by: the spouse of a permanent resident; the spouse of a special permanent resident; the biological child of a Japanese national (including through special adoption); and the biological child of a permanent resident or special permanent resident.
Obtaining permanent residency removes restrictions on the period of stay. There are also basically no restrictions on the type of employment one can pursue. Therefore, foreigners with permanent residency can live a life almost identical to that of Japanese nationals.
What is a guarantor?
To obtain permanent residency, you must first submit an application and required documents to the Immigration Services Agency. Following this, you undergo an examination and receive approval. Among the documents submitted is a “Guarantor Certificate,” which is quite important during the examination process.
The presence of a “Guarantor Certificate” indicates that there is a person (the guarantor) who will vouch for the identity of the foreign applicant. Note that guarantors are limited to Japanese nationals or foreign nationals holding permanent residency status.
If you lack a guarantor, cannot find one, or are refused despite asking, it suggests you lack trustworthiness, making future permanent residency in Japan difficult.
Typically, guarantors are the spouse if the applicant is married to a Japanese national, or the adoptive parent if the applicant is an adopted child of a Japanese national. Alternatively, it must be someone with a certain level of social standing, such as a supervisor at the applicant’s workplace, a former teacher from their student days, a friend who already holds permanent residency, or an acquaintance who is a lawyer.
Can a coworker be acceptable?
What should one do if they wish to apply for permanent residency but absolutely cannot find a guarantor?
In such cases, the only option is to search for someone willing to act as a guarantor within one’s personal network and persistently ask them.
When Japanese people hear “guarantor,” they often immediately associate it with negative connotations like “having to shoulder debt” or “being asked for unreasonable favors later.” However, a guarantor for permanent residency carries no such burden. Their role is solely to guarantee that the applicant “will have no impediments to living in Japan with permanent residency.”
Therefore, a company colleague is perfectly acceptable. However, it is preferable to choose someone with a longer tenure at the company, a position of responsibility, or someone who has a certain level of social credibility.
Summary
A guarantor is essential for a foreigner applying for permanent residency. If no one is willing to act as a guarantor, obtaining permanent residency will be difficult. While a company colleague is acceptable, it is best to ask someone with social credibility.
