The folks at immigration are not too cool about the 3 month visitor visa run (it's so late 80's, early 90's:D ),they now have the capability to link old and new passports etc. Self sponsorship might be an angle to pursue (I believe a guarantor is needed), the domestic sponsorship (via your partner) route might be the toughest route (that's my honest gut feeling) and it might be worth it to explore other avenues first!

I heard of a couple of people with dual nationalities playing that game. One of them got stopped eventually. He was turned back to Canada and had to write letter of apology etc. before coming back. (Had to wait several months too). So much better to get a legit. status during your first 90 days. Even if it is a job that you don't intend to keep - for example you mightfind it easy to get hired by one of the English language sweatshops during you forthcoming visit. Let them sponsor your visa. Do the job for a minimum period of time and then quit.
Tip: Bring your resume and graduation certificate with you (and wear a suit and tie). Those seem to be the only requirements for most of the Eikaiwa chains.

Self sponsorship only applies for people on their second (or later, so not your first) working visa. Even then, you have to show that you're making a certain amount of money (with a contract or bank records, pay stubs, etc.).

You can self-sponsor your visa from the start if you go to Japan to start a business, though. Unfortunately, you need a ton (seriously, a ton) of money behind you to do this. I think it was something like $500,000 in cash laying around in an account somewhere.

go for it
 

Hey, my sister's family has lived in Japan for a bazillion years, and she has a very well regarded site on homeschooling there. My nephew is a teen now, and he is so smart that it's scary. Seems to have been a wonderful opportunity for him and the entire family. I hope it is OK to post a link. I think it is a nonprofit site, in any case, I don't get a dime for suggesting it. Take a look.

http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~ja8i-brtl/index.htm

I don't know any more if she spoke Japan before moving there. She for a certainty already spoke many other languages. They all speak it now, and she says that my nephew speaks it the best. Beautiful, safe country from what I've seen of it. A great outdoors ethic, everybody believes in walking up mountains. Great for technology buffs too. Seems to be a great environment for a kid, judging from the way my nephew has turned out.

I used to know a great woman who worked in the imigration office. A few years back she told me that there was no such thing as sponership anymore. She would get angry with me if I used the word sponcership. All people were self sponcered. In the past sponcership meant that the sponcer was responcible for your bills if you vanished. This never worked.

Your country (or the country that your passport is from) determines how easy or difficult it will be to get a visa. Some countries have recipricol agreementswith Japan..for example working holiday visas. A Chinese or African will have a much more difficult time getting into America than a Japanese will.

The import thing is to show that you can earn an income that will suport you. The magic number here used to be 250,000 yen a month. It is now around 230,000...a bit grey here. As you start to live here, you will find that grey is the most popular color in Japan.

A good option would be to try and get a job with an English school before you arrive.

Over the years, I have met people who have ben nabbed on visa runs. These people had to waite six months before they could come back.

Good luck.

When I was a university student in Tokyo, my scholarships totaled 80,000 yen per month, and I was considered filthy rich by a few classmates :eek:

(Then again, paying 4000 yen -- no, that's not a typo -- for rent helped.)

I suppose a classic visa run would entail staying for close to the max of 90 days, then leaving for a day or two before returning.

What about a travel pattern (over a 12-month period) of staying for 1-2 months at a time, followed by an absence of 1-3 weeks - would that raise any alarm?

Nah. You'd completely bamboozle their computer systems. They'd have no idea that you were spending so much time in Japan. :rolleyes:
NOT.

I have no doubt their computer system is sophisticated. I'm just trying to understand what causes concern. Is it repeatedly staying close to 90 days at a time? Is it the total # of days spent over a 12-month period? What does "so much time in Japan" mean?

Perhaps the rules are clearly published - I'll do some research on the government's official website.

What did I do to deserve your sarcasm? :(

Anything that looks like the person entering Japan does not intend to comply with the terms of his visa.

If you spend the best part of a year in Japan on a series of temporary visitor visas - regardless of whether it's ten separate visits or four, the immigration authorities are going to get inquisitive. In these circumstances I guess they will inquire about the purpose of your visit and your itinerary in the country. They may also ask how you are supporting yourself in Japan.

(1) You seem to be looking for a way to trick the system.
(2) Your idea for tricking the system is a "cunning plan", the like of which I haven't seen since Baldrick and his buddies died in the final Blackadder episode (i.e. comically simplistic)
(3) You're asking for advice about legal and immigration issues on FT - and I think I'm doing you a favor if I can discourage you from planning visa runs based on whatever "legal" advice you might get on this forum ....
(4) You gave me a mental picture of a guy at NRT arguing with the immigration bad-asses "But jib71 on FT said that it would be fine."

Oh, my, I had no idea that I have given you such a terrible impression!

(1) I am in no way trying to 'trick the system' or do anything illegal. I am merely trying to understand what the system is. Since people were talking about running afoul by doing 'visa runs', I wanted to enquire more about what is considered visa runs. In particular, if someone has to come in and out of the country for business or personal visits that are well short of the 90-day limit, would that be considered 'visa runs'?

(2) I don't know about your reference here, but I can assure you I am not a cunning person and harbor no ill intentions.

(3) I am in no way asking for legal advice. I just wanted to tap into the collective experience of the community here.

(4) Oh, please, I am not that naive, and you give yourself way too much credit!

May I suggest that you not jump to such quick conclusion or accusations about me or anyone.

If the general wisdom is that it doesn't matter how many times someone enters the country and how long they stay each time, but rather it's a matter of the cumulative number of days of the combined stays, then that's good to know, as earlier threads kept talking about the danger of visa runs.