DigitalGhost

That's definitely a possibility but like you say it will cost you. What does your fiancee do for a living if you don't mind me asking?

Craig1987

She's just returned to Japan, so currently, nothing. In a few weeks she will get a job to help pass the time, but she is working towards becoming a translator or an interpreter. She has an exam in a few months and has been translating hundreds of documents over the past few months. She just finished a big project yesterday which I proof read for her.

DigitalGhost

That is my girlfriend's current job and Japan is definitely the best market in which to do it, both from the amount of vacancies available and the level of pay on offer. Europe and the US are also decent but my girlfriend has found the translation industry in Canada to be, for want of a better word, crap unless you are a translator of English and French.

Craig1987

Works out good for us. Spend a few years in Japan, save up some money and hope that CIC don't massively we-write the rulebook in that time.

DigitalGhost

Which sadly they probably will if previous recent years are anything to go by and bear in mind that it could be difficult to save a lot of money in Tokyo when you're working on an English teacher's salary.

I'm not saying don't do it but just prepare for what you're letting yourself in for if you do. As a foreigner in Japan you will also be required to carry an Alien Registration Card at all times and be prepared to show it upon demand if any officials ask you to, although as a white European it is highly unlikely that you would get all that much trouble unless you approached a policeman for assistance or committed some sort of offence.

Craig1987

I'm really looking forward to receiving my Alien registration card for some reason. Something to do with the name and my dodgy sense of humour.

DigitalGhost

They can give you quite a bit of a status symbol there. Just be careful not to lose it and do not let anyone take it from you. The category which you have will be in the most demand since it has an English name printed on it and as a spouse you will be amongst the few elite foreigners in Japan with no limitations on your working rights and a faster route to Special Permanent Resident status.

Craig1987

My fiancee and I figured that if we can afford to support the two of us on my salary alone, or at least mostly on my salary, then whatever she earns would go into our savings account.

I know it may take anywhere upwards of three years, but we are still both young and focused on our goals.

I once told my fiancee that I am terrified of the possibility of a white male committing a crime in the area I live in for fear of mistaken identity.

I must say that you seem very knowledgeable. Is this part of your profession or are you just well traveled?

DigitalGhost

Not exactly, I've been with my Japanese girlfriend for just coming up to four years now and we will have been living together for four years this Summer. My girlfriend was a student in the UK for a long time and also travelled across Europe pretty extensively and has now lived in Canada for nearly a year. Unfortunately because of that she now feels a bit like an outsider in her own country because she speaks English to native level and with a British accent but because of UK immigration laws she still isn't a permanent resident there (which is why we considered relocating to Canada) and we have considered moving there ourselves, which terrifies her almost as much as it does me.

I've been there with her to visit her family a few times over the last few years and they treat me like one of their own and her status in Japan has also earned her quite a bit of respect/kudos there because not many of them leave the country for an extended period or even speak any English at all. I've also managed to get to a fairly intermediate level with the Japanese language but still I would say at this point that you are a far braver man than I am and it would take one hell of a push for me to consider moving over there full time (my profession is IT by the way).

You do sound pretty determined about all of this and I really wouldn't want to put you off but I think I have to say that it would be very difficult for you two to live there on a basic English teacher's salary. Most of the English teachers there live in accomodation provided by the school/agency but I don't think they would allow her to live there with you because the English school like to keep their foreigners 'foreign' to an extent and can discourage heavy integration. English teachers also often get a free passmo card for public transport and a food/living allowance on top of, what can be a low, salary but again her subsistence would be entirely dependent upon the two of you.

Rent on even a very small place is rediculously expensive in Tokyo and Yokohama, although the neighbouring prefecture of Saitama is a bit more affordable but if you can live with her family for even just the first few months then that should help. The fact that you also don't need any humanities visa sponsorship might entitle you to slightly better working conditions and a higher rate of pay since not all schools qualify to sponsor foreign residents with the MOFA (Japanese immigration). If you haven't done so already, Gaijinpot offer a free daily email service which includes details of English teaching vacancies, so I'd definitely recommend that you sign up for that but most of the higher paid roles will usually be looking for at least some experience of teaching in Japan and a BA/BSc degree or formal qualifications in the industry. Japan places a far higher emphasis on academia than most western nations and dependant upon the stregnth of your (presumably Scottish) accent they may want your accent to sound slightly more neutral or even request that you feign an Americanised accent when you're speaking with the students.

DigitalGhost

Also, as I mentioned in one of my previous posts, jobs in bars/restaurants may seem like they have a unbelievably high rate of pay compared with western standards but bear in mind that tipping is not common in Japan (in fact it's frowned upon) so unless you are in daily contact with Western customers you will be unlikely to receive any extra on top of your paycheck and the costs of living there are also considerably higher than pretty much anywhere in the Western world, including London and New York.

nonthaburi

go , see what happens, if it doesn;t work out you're still young with a bit more experience to take somewhere else.

Craig1987

Thank you. I'm looking forward to joining my fiancee and having our wedding.

Holliver

I live and work in Japan - though soon to be relocating to the US. Eikaiwa (conversation school) jobs are tedious, but if you can get a job in a school it's much better. I work 8.30 to 5 Mon to Fri, get paid a decent salary- plus school holidays and get 12 days off a year. I also am working directly for the board of education so get a better salary/paid holiday than agency school jobs. Interac is one agency I know that provides ALTS to schools. Have a look at their website. Although there is a lot of competition in Tokyo for jobs there are also a lot more jobs available. Eikaiwa is probably your best bet to start you off. Especially with recent circumstances - ie radiation, many foreigners are leaving.
I don't live in Tokyo, I'm an Osakan! haha. But please be sure to read up about the radiation etc. I don't want to scare-monger but the government has been lying to the public about levels of it and even upped the safety level because it had risen above the previously advised guidelines of radiation. (Did that make sense?)

Tokyo is a lot of fun. YOu can eat out cheaply or very expensively! Renting is expensive and places are tiny. Transport is great.

You are in for a massive culture shock, Japan, like all countries has its pros and cons. I have found my time here to be immensely enjoyable though at times hugely frustrating. If you make the effort with the language it will help a lot. Though, I'm afraid you will always remain a 'gaijin' (alien/foreigner). That too has its benefits but also downfalls. I suppose it depends which way you look upon it.
Let me know if you have any questions.

Craig1987

Thank you. I'm going to do everything I can to grab this opportunity with both hands. Radiation levels are a slight worry for me, but at the same time, may also make things easier for me in terms of competition for jobs. It looks like I may be going even earlier than I thought. My fiancee is getting a room on the 15th near Inokashira park. As the rest of my studying for tefl is online, I am planning on going sooner.

That will help occupy the time when I'm waiting for my visa to be processed. Along with my Japanese lessons.

DigitalGhost

Are you going to be getting married within your first 3 months of arriving there? Because I'm assuming that you already know this but the 6 month visitor waiver allowance for UK citizens is limited to 90 days upon arrival and any further extension is granted inland by MOFA who will want to see proof of available funds before they will grant you a temporary gaijin card.