Residence Fees for Foreign Nationals｜Fees to Increase on 1 October 2026

The Immigration Services Agency of Japan has announced a draft Cabinet Order that would significantly revise the fees for residence-related permission procedures for foreign nationals. The revised fees are expected to apply to applications submitted on or after 1 October.

The main procedures affected are Change of Status of Residence, Extension of Period of Stay, and Permanent Residence Permission.

The key point is that fees, which have until now been uniform or relatively low, will change depending on the period of stay granted and the type of application.

Comparison Table: Current Immigration Fees and Fees After the October 2026 Change

*The fees after the October 2026 change are based on the draft Cabinet Order.

*For Change of Status of Residence and Extension of Period of Stay, the fee will vary depending on the period of stay granted.

*Permanent Residence Permission is expected to remain available only through counter applications.

Procedure	Period of Stay	Current: Counter Application	Current: Online Application	After October Change: Counter Application	After October Change: Online Application
Change of Status / Extension of Period of Stay	3 months or less	¥6,000	¥5,500	¥10,000	¥10,000
	6 months or less			¥18,000	¥3,000–¥10,000 discount 1 year:  ¥27,000 5 years or more :¥65,000
	Less than 1 year			¥25,000
	1 year			¥33,000
	Less than 3 years			¥48,000
	Less than 5 years			¥64,000
	5 years or more			¥75,000
Permanent Residence Permission Application		¥10,000	Counter only	¥200,000	Counter only

Under the current system, the fee for Change of Status of Residence and Extension of Period of Stay is ¥6,000 for counter applications and ¥5,500 for online applications, regardless of the period of stay granted.

However, after the planned revision in October 2026, the fee is expected to increase according to the length of the period of stay granted.

This will have a particularly significant impact on cases where a longer period of stay, such as three years or five years, is granted. A fee that has previously been ¥6,000 may increase to several tens of thousands of yen.

In addition, the fee for Permanent Residence Permission is expected to rise sharply from the current ¥10,000 to ¥200,000. Since Permanent Residence Permission is not covered by online applications, no online application discount will be available.

If You Are Considering Applying for Permanent Residence, Start Preparing in August

Those considering applying for Permanent Residence may wish to submit their application before the fee increase takes effect. In that case, it is advisable to start preparing your application in August.

If everything goes smoothly, the preparation of documents for a Permanent Residence application can usually be completed in about one month. However, in some cases, it may take more than one month, for example if it takes time to obtain documents from your employer, or if additional documents are needed beyond those specifically listed by the Immigration Services Agency.

To ensure you are ready in time for 1 October, it is best to allow enough time and begin preparing your application once August starts.

If you feel unsure about preparing the application on your own, or are worried that starting now may not leave enough time, please feel free to contact us.

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