“Official” Status of Residence in Japan

The “Official” (公用) status of residence is granted to foreign nationals who stay in Japan for the purpose of performing official duties on behalf of a foreign government or international organization.

Typical examples include employees of foreign embassies and consulates, as well as officials dispatched to Japan by foreign governments or international organizations to perform official duties. Family members belonging to the same household may also be granted “Official” status.

Difference Between “Diplomat” and “Official”

Although the “Diplomat” and “Official” statuses are similar, they apply to different categories of individuals.

• Diplomat: Ambassadors, ministers, consuls-general, and certain other members of diplomatic missions or consular posts.
• Official: Embassy and consular employees and other individuals who perform official duties for foreign governments or international organizations but do not fall within the “Diplomat” category.

For example, an ambassador would generally hold “Diplomat” status, while certain embassy employees performing official duties may hold “Official” status.

Difference from Ordinary Work Visas

“Official” status differs significantly from ordinary employment-based statuses such as Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services.

This is because “Official” status is specifically based on the individual performing official duties for a foreign government or international organization, rather than ordinary employment in Japan.

The currently available periods of stay are five years, three years, one year, three months, 30 days, or 15 days.

For immigration purposes, persons holding “Diplomat” or “Official” status are also not treated as mid-to-long-term residents. For example, they are not eligible to use the online residence application system available to ordinary mid-to-long-term residents.

If a person completes their official assignment and subsequently wishes to work for a private company in Japan, they would generally need to consider changing from “Official” status to an appropriate status of residence, such as Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services or Highly Skilled Professional, rather than continuing to work under “Official” status.

The Immigration Services Agency also provides a procedure for applying for a change of status of residence from “Official” status.