For clarification for the moderators. I'm currently living in Japan and have been for three years switching to a new visa.
I'm still crying happy tears. I just got a call from immigration that my visa has officially been approved. As a gay American married 3rd generation Zainichi Korean born in Japan with a special permanent visa, I wanted to share my story in case it helps someone else—because when I was doing my own research, there was barely any information out there. For clarification the lawyer we used said our case would be more difficult than if he was a Japanese citizen since he has done many cases just like this.
Here’s a quick rundown of my journey:
I moved to Japan in 2022 to work at an eikaiwa (English conversation school). Not long after arriving, I met an amazing Korean man who was born and raised here. We connected instantly, and we've now been together for 3 years.
About a year and a half into my 3-year working visa, I left my job. That’s when we started seriously thinking about our future—and we knew we wanted it to be in Japan. On Christmas Eve of 2024, we got married in the U.S.
From there, we decided to try applying for the Designated Activities Visa based on our same-sex marriage. At first, it felt like a long shot—but today, we got the best news we could’ve hoped for: it was accepted!
A huge piece of advice I want to give anyone in the same boat—get a lawyer. We did, and it made the whole process so much smoother. They helped us prepare and submit everything properly. We paid half up front, and we’ll pay the rest now that it’s been approved. It was absolutely worth it.
So yes—it is possible to get a visa through same-sex marriage in Japan under the Designated Activities category. If you can show that your relationship is real and well-documented, there’s hope.
This was just a quick overview, but I’m more than happy to answer any questions anyone has. I know how hard it is to find clear info on this, so feel free to reach out.
by Smooth-Standard9209