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Can I still extend 家族滞在 if my YouTube income grows?

Foreigners Employment Support Organization (FESO) / Published  / Last updated

This article is a translation of the Japanese original. Where the two differ, the Japanese version prevails. Read the Japanese original(日本語版を読む)

Answer

The more your income grows, the harder it becomes to keep 家族滞在. 家族滞在 is a status of residence that assumes your living costs are met by the income of the person supporting you, and 資格外活動 is limited to cases where it is a supplementary source of income. If you are aiming for permanent residence, please consider changing to a status of residence that stands on its own.

What is this enquiry about?

An enquiry from a person streaming on YouTube on the status of residence 家族滞在, about her status of residence once her income grows.

Why does a larger income make 家族滞在 harder to keep?

Because 家族滞在 is a status of residence that assumes your living costs are met by the income of the person supporting you.

「家族滞在」 is a status of residence that assumes your living costs are met by the income of the person supporting you (your spouse). 資格外活動 is permitted only where it is a supplementary source of income for the household.

The original purpose of 家族滞在 is the everyday activities of a spouse or child who is supported by a person residing in Japan. Those everyday activities mean mainly things other than work: living in Japan and sharing a home as a family member who is supported. Working actively is not part of what 家族滞在 is for.

If your income rises and takes up too large a share of the household's total income, the premise that you are being supported breaks down. If it reaches the same level as the income of the person supporting you, or higher, it is said that extension becomes harder to obtain, on the ground that this departs from the original purpose of 家族滞在.

How is work whose hours cannot be proved treated?

If you cannot show that you are keeping to the 28 hours per week of the blanket permission, individual permission may be needed.

Streaming on YouTube is work whose hours are hard to prove. If your annual income passes 1 million yen (100万円) and grows further, you will be asked whether, in practice, you are going over 28 hours per week. Not being able to prove it is itself a risk.

資格外活動許可 is divided into blanket permission and individual permission. If you take on work where managing and proving the number of working hours is difficult, you need to obtain individual permission from the 地方出入国在留管理局 (Regional Immigration Services Bureau).

If your income keeps growing like this, it will become harder to keep your current 「家族滞在」.

Which status of residence should I choose to aim for permanent residence?

The starting point is to switch to a status of residence that stands on its own, rather than making 資格外活動 your main work.

An 永住許可申請 (Application for Permanent Residence) assumes that you hold a stable status of residence and are meeting your tax obligations in good faith. If you are aiming for permanent residence, you need to switch to a specialised status of residence that stands on its own, rather than making 資格外活動 your main work.

Option 1: 「経営・管理」

Streaming on YouTube can be judged to be a business activity that requires specialised knowledge, planning ability and marketing ability. To establish this activity as your main work, an 在留資格変更許可申請 to 「経営・管理」 is one option.

Option 2: 「技術・人文知識・国際業務」

If the knowledge and skills behind your streaming work relate to what you majored in at a Japanese university, or if you have specialised practical experience, a change to 「技術・人文知識・国際業務」 (Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services) is also an option.

What should I do first?

Start by putting your activity into the form of a business, and checking requirements such as capital of 30 million yen (3,000万円) or more and business premises.

  1. Consider setting up a company
    To establish your YouTube revenue as a business, the surest route is to set up a company and apply for 「経営・管理」 as its representative director.
  2. Check the requirements and prepare
    An application for 「経営・管理」 needs a lot of preparation: securing capital of 30 million yen (3,000万円) or more, drawing up a business plan, securing business premises, and so on. This figure of 30 million yen comes from an amendment that took effect on 16 October 2025 (令和7年10月16日). Before that the figure was 5 million yen (500万円) or more, so please take care if you are reading older information.
  3. Consult a specialist
    Which status of residence is realistic depends on your education, your practical experience and the scale of your business. Please consult a specialist such as a gyoseishoshi at an early stage.

Extending 家族滞在 is only a temporary measure. As long as permanent residence is your goal, please treat the growth in your income as a prompt, and consider changing to a status of residence that stands on its own before too long.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens on 家族滞在 if my income from 資格外活動 grows?

The premise that you are being supported breaks down. If it reaches the same level as the income of the person supporting you, or higher, it is said that extension becomes harder to obtain, on the ground that this departs from the original purpose of 家族滞在.

Which permission do I need for work whose hours are hard to prove?

If you take on work where managing and proving the number of working hours is difficult, you need individual permission for 資格外活動 from the 地方出入国在留管理局, rather than blanket permission.

If I am aiming for permanent residence, can I stay on 家族滞在?

An application for permanent residence assumes that you hold a stable status of residence and are meeting your tax obligations, so you need to switch to a status of residence that stands on its own, rather than making 資格外活動 your main work.

Are there options other than 「経営・管理」?

Yes. If the knowledge and skills behind your streaming work relate to what you majored in at a Japanese university, or if you have specialised practical experience, a change to 「技術・人文知識・国際業務」 is also an option.

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This article provides general information. Immigration rules change, and outcomes depend on individual circumstances. Please check the Immigration Services Agency website or consult a qualified specialist.
This page is a translation of the Japanese original. Where the two differ, the Japanese version prevails.