Immigration Guideline No. 8

Breaking News: Immigration softens stance on Guideline No. 8

"Accordingly, if a health insurance ID card is not presented, that alone cannot be sufficient reason for rejection or denial of an application," Immigration Bureau

The 'internal' Immigration document as faxed to a Lower House lawmaker. Printable version?

Free Choice Foundation obtains 'internal' Immigration Bureau document . . .

A DPJ Lower House lawmaker has produced an 'internal' Immigration Bureau document that shows the infamous new guideline may be considerably more bark than bite.

The document was given by the lawmaker to a Free Choice supporter. Initially, the lawmaker contacted and questioned Justice Minister Chiba about the vagueness of the guideline and was told that enrollment in one of the nation's health insurance programs is not mandatory for visa renewal. Although delighted, we nevertheless requested that the lawmaker confirm this information with something in writing. The Immigration Bureau faxed the document as displayed above to the lawmaker, who then forwarded it to our supporter along with the following cover note:

"I've heard that this was prepared internally by the Immigration Bureau to respond to a rising number of inquiries concerning Guideline (8). They said that when such an inquiry was made from the outside, they were making the reply orally as described in the attached paper. I hope this will be useful to you."

The faxed Immigration document states:

FROM Immigration Bureau of Justice Ministry Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 17:01 Document # 4801055130

"After April 2010, the requirement at the application acceptance window is to check whether an applicant has enrolled in health insurance, which the National Health Insurance Law, the Health Insurance Law, etc. mandate that all Japanese enroll in. For example, an association-managed health insurance plan or the National Health Insurance. Private accident insurance, etc., which people may purchase when traveling abroad, is not relevant here.

"Enrollment status in one of the public health insurance plans can be one of the factors considered when deciding whether to grant a change of the resident status and/or in giving permission for the renewal of the residence period. However, it has been decided that the judgment must be delivered after comprehensively considering all circumstances that an applicant has in addition to the other matters described in the Guidelines.

"Accordingly, if a health insurance ID card is not presented, that alone cannot be sufficient reason for rejection or denial of an application."

End of text

Reading between the lines . . .

Though still rather vague, the document does appear to clarify a few things. The first paragraph would seem to indicate that Immigration does not consider private insurance to be of any relevance when determining whether or not non-Japanese are enrolled in one of the plans that Japanese citizens are required by law to participate in. While it does not make a distintion between travel insurance and major medical, the use of "etc." is no doubt intended to exclude any insurance that does not fall under the National Health Insurance or Employee Health Insurance schemes. The phrase "association-managed health insurance plan" refers to either a National Health Insurance Association (insurance for an industry group such as construction workers, accountants, etc.) or a Social Health Insurance Association (such as Shigaku for private school teachers). It's interesting to note that while Guideline No. 8 cites only Social Health Insurance (for employees) and makes absolutely no reference to National Insurance, the above document finally does mention Japan's National Health Insurance plans (for part-time workers, the unemployed, etc).

The second paragraph of the document appears to indicate that, while the status of enrollment in a public plan could possibly be a matter of influence, the ultimate decision depends on other factors as well - such as an applicant's individual circumstances and the other seven guidelines. So, for instance, if you have any "bad behavior" on record and no insurance enrollment, that combination might be enough to tip the scale against you. Or, if you're out of a job, on welfare, your kids (if applicable) aren't enrolled in school, and to top it off you don't have a public health insurance card, these circumstances would certainly not weigh very favorably for you. On the other hand, if you're employed, your kids are in school, you pay income taxes, have no police record and possess some Japanese language skills, then not being enrolled in public insurance should not result in your visa application being denied.

The third paragraph makes it very clear that not being enrolled in one of the public plans will not single-handedly be sufficient cause for declining an application for change of status or renewal of a visa. So, if you are an honest, hard-working foreign resident who just happens to prefer private insurance, you can finally set your mind at ease.

Additionally, the lawmaker's cover letter suggests that the Justice Ministry is finally waking up to the fact that non-Japanese are indeed quite disturbed over this issue. Perhaps they were under the (mistaken) impression that, if kept quiet, the new guidelines could be 'pushed' through with little fanfare or trouble. After all, governments the world over have been known for such tactics. But, with your support and backing, the Free Choice Foundation has shown that such will not be the case this time around. By recognizing the flaws of the pending legislation and getting the word out to those that would be affected, together we have shown the Government that we are willing to stand up for what we believe to be fair and right. We feel certain that these actions will contribute to making Japan stronger and better as a whole - as well as enhancing its international image.

The Free Choice Foundation has contacted over 300 Upper and Lower House legislators in various parties, and a significant number of them have already contacted the Justice Ministry. The City of Kobe has sent an official communiqué to the National Government over the issue.