Japan to Raise Residence Status Fees for Foreign Nationals to Up to ¥75,000, Permanent Residency Fee to ¥200,000
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On July 3, 2026, the Immigration Services Agency published a draft cabinet order for a sharp increase in fees for residence-related procedures for foreign nationals. Fees for changing or renewing residence status, previously a flat 6,000 yen, will rise in tiers depending on the length of the residence period: 10,000 yen for stays of three months or less, 33,000 yen for one-year stays, and 75,000 yen for stays of five years or more. The fee for permanent residency applications will be sharply increased from the current 10,000 yen to 200,000 yen.
A 30-day public comment period ran from July 3 to August 2, and the revised fees are set to apply to applications filed on or after October 1, 2026. The agency has also published draft guidelines for fee waivers in cases that meet both financial hardship and humanitarian consideration criteria.
The steep increases have drawn concern, with critics warning the fees are "too high" and could cause some people to lose their residence status. Along with the emergency increase in immigration staffing (related coverage), the fee revision appears to be part of a broader series of institutional reinforcements tied to the "Zero Illegal Overstayers Plan – Strong Promotion Package" (related coverage).