Dependent Visa: Complete 2026 Application Guide

The Dependent status of residence lets the spouse and children of many foreign workers and students in Japan live here as a family. It is one of the most common family statuses, but it is also one of the most misunderstood — especially around who can bring family, and the strict 28-hour weekly limit on how much a dependent may work.

This 2026 guide explains which workers can sponsor a Dependent visa (and the important cases that cannot, such as Specified Skilled Worker Type 1 and Technical Intern Training), who counts as a qualifying spouse or child, the work restriction, the period of stay, the documents, and the step-by-step application process for both the overseas and in-Japan routes.

What the Dependent Status Is

Dependent is a status of residence for the spouse or child of a foreign national who lives in Japan on one of the qualifying work or study statuses. Its purpose is to allow the family to carry out ordinary daily life together — living in the same household, attending school, and so on. Because the status exists for that purpose, the dependent's own activities are limited: work is not permitted by default, and is allowed only up to 28 hours a week after obtaining a separate permission (explained below).

The Dependent status is distinct from the identity-based spouse statuses (Spouse or Child of Japanese National, and Spouse or Child of Permanent Resident), which carry no work restriction. If your partner holds Permanent Residency or is a Japanese national, you do not use the Dependent status — you use the relevant spouse status instead, which is far more generous on work.

Which Status Holders Can Bring Family on a Dependent Visa

The Dependent status is available to the family of a person holding one of the qualifying activity statuses in which family accompaniment is recognised, including many working statuses, Cultural Activities, and Student. In broad terms, family can be brought by holders of statuses such as:

• Engineer / Specialist in Humanities / International Services, Intra-company Transferee, Business Manager, Legal/Accounting Services, Medical Services, Researcher, Instructor, Professor, Artist, Religious Activities, Journalist, Skilled Labor, Nursing Care, Entertainer;
• Highly Skilled Professional (the dependent uses the Dependent status, with some additional benefits for HSP families);
• Specified Skilled Worker Type 2; and
• Cultural Activities; and
• Student — a student can, in principle, bring a spouse or child on a Dependent visa, subject to showing the means to support them.

Who Counts as a Dependent: Spouse and Child

Only two categories of family member qualify for the Dependent status:

• Spouse — a person in a legally valid marriage with the main holder. As with other statuses, the marriage must be genuine; common-law or de-facto relationships do not qualify.
• Child — a child of the main holder, including an adopted child. There is no strict statutory age limit, but the child must genuinely be a dependent supported by the main holder. An adult child who is independent will find it difficult to qualify.

Parents, siblings, and other relatives cannot be brought on a Dependent visa. (Bringing a parent to Japan is only possible in narrow circumstances, usually through a Designated Activities status granted on humanitarian grounds, and is assessed case by case.)

Work Is Limited to 28 Hours a Week

This is the single most important practical limit of the Dependent status. By default a Dependent holder may not work at all. To take a part-time job, the dependent must first obtain permission to engage in an activity other than that permitted. With the standard comprehensive permission, the dependent may work:

• Up to 28 hours per week, counted across any seven-day period and across all jobs combined; and
• In ordinary part-time work, provided that the activity does not take place at a business where fūzoku eigyō or related regulated entertainment or sex-related businesses are operated.

Unlike students, dependents do not get an increased daily limit during long school holidays — the 28-hour weekly cap applies all year round. Working beyond 28 hours, or working without the permission, is a serious immigration violation that can lead to refusal of the next extension and, in serious cases, deportation; the employer can also be liable for promoting illegal work. If you want to work full time, you should change to an appropriate work status rather than stay on Dependent.

For the full rules on the permission, how the 28 hours are counted, and the penalties, see our dedicated guide to the Dependent visa 28-hour work permit.

Period of Stay

The period of stay granted for a Dependent visa is individually designated by the Minister of Justice within a maximum of 5 years, often with reference to the main holder's status and remaining period of stay. In practice the family may renew around the same time as the main holder.

Because the status depends entirely on the main holder, if the main holder loses or changes their status — for example by leaving their job and failing to maintain a work status — the dependents' statuses are affected as well. The dependent visa is not independent of the worker it is attached to.

What Immigration Examines

For a Dependent application the examiner mainly checks:

1. The genuineness of the family relationship — a real marriage, or a genuine parent-child relationship, evidenced by official certificates.
2. The main holder's ability to support the family. The main holder must have enough income and stability to support the dependent without the dependent needing to work. Immigration reviews the main holder's employment certificate and income/tax documents. There is no fixed legal figure, but the household must clearly be able to live on the main holder's income; a student sponsor in particular must show realistic means of support.
3. That the dependent will genuinely live as a dependent — not, in substance, come to Japan in order to work full time.

Required Documents

The exact list depends on whether you apply from outside Japan (Certificate of Eligibility) or change status from within Japan. A typical set includes:

• Application form (Certificate of Eligibility, or Change of Status of Residence) with a photograph
• Proof of the relationship — a marriage certificate for a spouse, or a birth certificate / family register for a child
• A copy of the main holder's residence card and passport
• The main holder's certificate of employment or, for a company executive, the company registration; for a student sponsor, a certificate of enrolment
• Documents showing the main holder's income and tax — a certificate of taxation and tax payment, or withholding records, and bank statements where helpful
• A certificate of residence for the household
• For a Certificate of Eligibility: a self-addressed return envelope with the correct stamp

Japanese certificates (such as the certificate of taxation and tax payment, the certificate of residence, and the certificate of employment) should generally be issued within the last 3 months, and foreign-language documents must be accompanied by a Japanese translation. Immigration may request additional or more recent materials after filing.

The Application Process Step by Step

Route A — family currently overseas (Certificate of Eligibility):

Route B — family member already in Japan (change of status): if the family member is already in Japan on another medium- or long-term status — for example a child changing from another status to Dependent — you apply for a Change of Status of Residence at the regional immigration bureau. The standard processing period is about 1 to 2 months. If the person is in Japan as a Temporary Visitor, change of status is exceptional and generally requires unavoidable special circumstances, so the Certificate of Eligibility and overseas visa route may be needed.

If you also want the dependent to be able to work part time, file the permission to engage in activity other than that permitted. A Dependent status holder generally applies at the regional immigration bureau after entry, or together with the change-of-status procedure if already in Japan; port-of-entry applications are not the normal route for Dependent holders.

Dependent vs Spouse-Type Statuses

People often confuse the Dependent status with the spouse statuses. The difference in work freedom is large, so it is worth being clear:

If your sponsoring family member later obtains Permanent Residency or naturalises, you would move from Dependent to the corresponding spouse status, gaining full work rights.

Children Who Grow Up in Japan

A common situation is a child who comes to Japan young on a Dependent visa, attends Japanese schools, and graduates — then wants to work full time, which the Dependent status does not allow. In defined circumstances, a young person who was raised and educated in Japan on a Dependent visa may be able to change to Designated Activities or Long-Term Resident status, which permits full-time work, rather than being limited to 28 hours or having to leave.

Frequently Asked Questions

Summary

The Dependent visa is the right way to keep a family together in Japan while one member works or studies — provided everyone understands its limits. Confirm that the sponsoring status allows family, remember that only a spouse and children qualify, and treat the 28-hour work cap seriously. When a dependent wants to build a full working life, plan the move to an appropriate work status or, for children raised in Japan, the change to a status that permits full-time work.