Essential When Changing Jobs or Leaving a Company! Cases Requiring the “Notification Regarding the Accepting Organization” and Penalties for Failing to File

When a foreign national changes jobs or leaves a job, the law requires that a “Notification of the Accepting Organization (Notification concerning the organization of affiliation)” be submitted to the Immigration Services Agency (Immigration Bureau) within 14 days from the date the event occurs. Failure to do so may result in disadvantages at the time of your next visa examination, so caution is required. This article explains the cases in which notification is required or not required, as well as the details of the penalties.

1. Cases Where Notification Is “Required” and “Not Required”

Not all foreign nationals have an obligation to submit this notification; it depends on the “type of status of residence (visa)” you currently hold.

Cases Where Notification Is [Required]

This applies to those holding a status of residence that presupposes activities at a specific “organization of affiliation (company or school),” such as a work visa or a student visa.

• Main statuses of residence covered: “Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services,” “Skilled Labor,” “Highly Skilled Professional,” “Student,” etc.

• Specific examples where notification is required:

  • You resigned from your current company, or changed jobs (transferred) to a new company.

  • A student graduated from or withdrew from school.

  • The name of the company you belong to changed, or its location moved.

  • Your organization of affiliation changed due to a merger or dissolution of the company.

Cases Where Notification Is [Not Required]

In the case of a status of residence based on personal status, or a status of residence that does not presuppose a specific organization of affiliation, this notification is not required.

• Main statuses of residence covered: “Permanent Resident,” “Spouse or Child of Japanese National,” “Long-Term Resident,” “Dependent,” “Cultural Activities,” “Temporary Visitor,” etc. (* However, if a person holding a spouse visa or a dependent visa divorces or is bereaved of their spouse, a separate “Notification concerning the spouse” is required.)

• Specific examples where notification is not required:

  • When a student or a dependent visa holder quits a “part-time job (activities outside the scope of the permitted status)” or changes their part-time workplace.

2. Severe Penalties for Failing to Submit the Notification

If you take the notification lightly as “just a notification” and fail to submit it, or if you submit a false notification, you risk the following severe penalties.

• Application of penal provisions (fines or imprisonment): Under the law, there are provisions for imprisonment of up to 1 year or a fine of up to 200,000 yen.

• Negative impact on the next visa examination (negative evaluation): This is the most realistic risk. Violation of the notification obligation is regarded as poor residency status, and will be disadvantageous in the examination for your next extension of period of stay or change of status. Your period of stay may be shortened, or your application may be denied.

* Even if you notice after the 14 days have passed, do not leave it unattended—submit the notification promptly.

3. There Are Also Notification Rules for Companies (Accepting Organizations)

So far we have explained notifications made by the foreign national themselves, but there are also notification rules for the “company side” that employs foreign nationals. However, if the company is obligated to submit the “Notification of Employment Status of Foreign Nationals” to Hello Work, the “Notification by the organization of affiliation” to the Immigration Bureau is exempted. (* When employing Specified Skilled Worker (Tokutei Ginou) foreign nationals, separate periodic notifications and ad hoc notifications are required.)

4. Notification Formats and Online Application Links

The notification can be submitted in person at an Immigration Bureau counter, by mail, or via the internet (Electronic Notification System). No attachments such as an employment contract are required (when sending by mail, enclose a copy of your residence card). Currently, using the online system, which allows you to complete the procedure from home or the office 24 hours a day, is the most convenient and recommended method.

• Immigration Services Agency Electronic Notification System (for submitting the notification online) Immigration Services Agency Electronic Notification System Portal Site

• Notification formats and forms (for mail or counter submission) [For Foreign Nationals] Notification concerning the Organization of Affiliation (Immigration Services Agency website)

If you are unsure about making the judgment or completing the procedures on your own, or if you want to prepare for your visa renewal after changing jobs, please consider obtaining appropriate advice and support from a specialist.