Craig1987

Yes. We will be getting married shortly after I arrive. I can make a little trip to see some friends in Seoul if I need to.

Edit: and as it happens, my fiancee's father is delighted that his daughter is getting married and will help us get the visa.

DigitalGhost

OK, just be aware though that if you do need a visitor extension for any reason then they may grill you a bit since quite a few bad apples have tried to exploit that system in the past and teach English or work in hostess bars whilst on visitor status.

From the sounds of it, that shouldn't really be an issue for you though and good luck with your move.

Craig1987

Thank you. I have read stories of people being detained with no explanation, banned from Japan for up to 10 years and being charged ridiculous amounts per day for detainment.

I think I have a good idea of what to expect, mostly thanks to yourself.

DigitalGhost

No you're very welcome. To be honest, I have found their immigration inspectors to be pretty relaxed and friendly in comparison to countries like the UK but it is probably one of the most dangerous westernised countries in which to commit an immigration offence, second only to the United States and you wouldn't want to get on their bad side unless you have a taste for Japanese porridge.

You're definitely at an advantage though being a westerner with a Japanese spouse so as long as you behave yourself there then you shouldn't have any kind of trouble with them. I'd check the FCO advice for their customs policies before you go though because they ban some off the shelf and prescription medicines and creams which are available widely in the west and unlike their arrival immigration officers, the customs employees do not routinely speak or understand a lot of English.

DigitalGhost

Don't be offended if the officer processing you at customs or immigration is wearing a face mask as well. It has been accepted as part of their uniform there since the breakout of H1N1 a few years ago and is particularly common amongst the younger female staff from what I've seen. You also need to go through a body heat sensing detector prior to reaching passport control at most Japanese airports and may have a bit of explaining to do if you suffering from cold symptoms or similar when you land.

Craig1987

The only thing I'll be taking with me will be an inhaler for asthma. I don't have bad asthma, but occasionally use it when I get a cold. My Fiancee will be waiting for me at the airport and is going to type a letter for me to hand to an immigration officer in the event of a communication breakdown.

I'm aware that wearing face masks is quite common in Japan. I have a bit of a cold now though. It's not too bad, but I hope it clears before I fly.

My certificate of no impediment will be ready on the 8th of February. Think I have most things covered, but If I forget something, I'll post here or pm you if that's okay.

Holliver

I've been through with a slight cold and I was fine. Wouldn't worry about it. I've never had any problems with immigration or customs, you should be fine. I"m sure a lot of asthma sufferers carry an inhaler, shouldn't be a problem. Ganbatte! (Good luck)

Craig1987

Thank you Holliver. Will keep you posted.

10k

Inokashira, that's lucky, it's a nice area. I worked in an eikaiwa not far from there and it was really horrible.

That kind of job can be just fine if you find one with a nice boss. I ended up at one really good eikaiwa on Saturdays and the horrible (and low pay) one Mon-Fri. Then did privately arranged lessons on Sundays to make up for the low pay. It was a really hard year, but I had a few problems that you won't have (paying rent alone, and most good employers wouldn't take me on because my working holiday visa would only allow me to stay there for a year). For the latter half of the stay I ended up renting a room in a house with no shower, no internet (they lied to me about that), no curtains, no fridge.. one thing it did have was cockroaches. I chose a cheap place so that I'd have money left over for fun things.

Overall I did enjoy the stay though, I'm glad I went and I still want to live there.

I imagine you'll be fine since you have some support and prospective employers will like the spouse visa situation.

Craig1987

Thanks everyone. I fly out on Wednesday, so I'll arrive at Narita at 9.55am. I have a letter from my fiancee for the immigration officer and I booked a return flight incase my spousal permit isn't granted in time.

Now I'm a bag of nerves because I'll be taking my guitar with me and hope I can take it on the flight. If they force me to check it, it will be a very nervous flight.

DigitalGhost

Musical instruments are usually OK as carry-on I think, in fact some airlines may insist that you take it on as carry-on like they do with laptops now to prevent any possible insurance fraud.

I have to say that I slightly envy you, good luck with everything over there.

DigitalGhost

You shouldn't really be teaching ALT/Eikawa full-time on a WHV there to be honest which is probably why a lot of schools wouldn't want to hire you. The Japanese WHV is usually orientated only around really short-term work and is much more strictly controlled than it is in places like Canada. The fact that you legally can teach on a WHV is kind of a loophole and I can imagine Japan legally closing it at some point in the next few years in a similar way to how the Koreans did, making it impossible to teach unless you have the correct type of visa and a degree.

A spousal visa is undoubtably the single best visa to have in Japan apart from PR/SPR so as you say, the OP should probably be fine although I think it still can be slightly harder than it used to be to find work these days without any Japan-based teaching experience and a university education.

10k

Some places may want to make use of your musical ability and mix it in with teaching children, if you're interested then that kind of work exists. In a few interviews they asked if I can play any instruments, although those interviews weren't at very nice places.

Sorry for going off topic but in reply to DigitalGhost--

I would have struggled or not made it, if I were just doing temporary work like privately arranged lessons. Certainly wouldn't have been able to stay for the full year, probably could have managed half a year or a bit less.

So it was either take the eikaiwa jobs or go back to the UK. I'm sure you can imagine.

DigitalGhost

No, absolutely, I would have done exactly the same thing if I was in that position and if the employers were willing to hire you whilst you were under that status then you didn't really do anything wrong.

I believe that it is discouraged now though unfortunately and a lot of the teaching job ads I've seen online over the last year or so will not hire anyone with a WHV, or at least their ad says that they won't anyway.