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）
In naturalisation applications in recent years, whether public obligations have been met is checked more strictly than before. There have also been changes, such as holders of 在留資格「特定技能2号」 (Specified Skilled Worker (ii)) becoming able to apply. If you have unpaid or late payments in your past, it is important to explain carefully how they came about.
A guide for people who want to know the recent trends in naturalisation applications.
Payment of tax, pension and insurance is checked more strictly, and over a longer period.
In a naturalisation application, whether you have properly paid income tax, resident tax, pension and health insurance is treated as important. If you have unpaid or late payments in your past, it is said that you must explain the reason and the background in detail, even if everything is now paid off. It is not enough to say that you have paid. You are asked to show why you fell behind and how you put it right. Where the applicant holds a work-related 在留資格 (status of residence), the contents of the work also tend to be checked closely, and some 地方法務局 (District Legal Affairs Bureau) ask for a document explaining the work in detail.
Holders of a 特定技能2号 visa have become able to file a naturalisation application.
Foreign nationals holding a 特定技能2号 visa have become able to file a naturalisation application. For 特定技能 holders, for whom naturalisation was difficult under the earlier practice, this is a big change. It covers holders of 特定技能2号, not the 特定技能1号 visa. As with an application for permanent residence, you are in principle required to have lived in Japan for at least 5 years without interruption. The period covering the switch from 特定技能1号 to 2号 is counted in as well. A stable income and a settled base for daily life are also important.
Traffic violations and criminal records tend to be judged more strictly.
The standard for the requirement of good conduct (素行が善良であること) has become stricter. Even minor speeding or parking violations are said to raise the risk of denial where there are many of them, or where a violation was serious, and traffic violations over the past 5 years are checked closely. A criminal record in your past is said to weigh heavily on screening, even a minor one. How you contribute to your local community, and whether you have had trouble with your neighbours, also tend to be judged indirectly.
Information is increasingly provided online, but the application itself has not gone fully online.
The websites of the 法務省 (Ministry of Justice) and of local governments now carry fuller and clearer information about naturalisation applications. At present, naturalisation applications have not gone fully online. In future, part of the procedure may become possible online, and things may become simpler.
Screening for naturalisation is moving towards a deeper question: not only whether you meet the requirements on paper, but whether you are prepared to carry your responsibilities as a member of Japanese society and to live honestly. If something in your past worries you, do not judge it alone. Talk to a specialist.
Even if everything is now paid off, it is said that you must explain in detail why you fell behind and how you put it right.
Holders of a 特定技能2号 visa have become able to file a naturalisation application. The 特定技能1号 visa is said not to be covered.
Even minor violations are said to raise the risk of denial where there are many of them or where they were serious, and violations over the past 5 years are checked closely.
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This page is a translation of the Japanese original. Where the two differ, the Japanese version prevails.