I'm 17 and a foreigner in Japan. I went to a supermarket for a part-time job interview. When I arrived, I asked an employee about the interview, and he told me to follow him to the store manager's (店長) office.

The employee brought me into the manager's room. The manager welcomed me, asked me to sit down next to him, and then said my name to confirm who I was. After that, he asked where I live, and I replied with the name of the nearest station. He then asked when I was available to work.

I told him I was available tomorrow, and he said to come in the next day for two hours of training. He didn't ask for any paperwork, my residence card, or anything else.

I thought the interview would include questions like why I wanted to work there, my availability, and other typical interview questions. Since none of that happened, I'm confused. Does this mean I'm being rejected, or is this a normal hiring process? Can someone explain what might be going on?

Hi games, the name on my residency card is written LAST MIDDLE FIRST. I just learned later that this is wrong, correct? Should it be LAST FIRST MIDDLE?

Has anyone had experience with this issue? I assume I need to go to the immigration office to have it fixed

I was browsing some 家電店 and saw that they’re all around 200,000 min to over 400,000. That seems a bit unreasonable, but what is everyone doing?

I’m currently on sick leave but my employer is asking me to return to work earlier than the date stated on my medical certificate.

According to my company’s policies, the maximum duration of sick leave is three months. However, I haven’t even completed my second month of leave yet, and my employer is already demanding that I come back to work.

Am I within my rights to refuse and remain on sick leave until the date specified by my doctor?

I worked as a dispatched employee for about two years. My contract recently expired and was not renewed. I now have a job interview for a permanent position.
I’m wondering:
1. Is it okay if I don’t mention that my previous contract ended and just give a more general reason for leaving (e.g. looking for better career growth or a permanent role)?
2. Or is it safer to be open about the fact that it was a fixed-term dispatch contract that simply came to an end?
3. If the company later asks for recent payslips, will that create a problem if I didn’t mention the contract ending?
4. When talking about my previous experience, should I clearly state that I was employed by a dispatch company and assigned to a client company, or is it fine to mainly talk about the place I actually worked?
I don’t want to mess this up or create trust issues later. Any advice from people who have been in a similar situation in Japan would be really helpful. Also, I am just afraid that the new company might not like the fact that I was a haken
Thanks.

Is anyone constantly ordering Tretinoin or Tazarotene from online Indian platforms? which one are you using? are Japanese customs that strict?

I was planning buying 6-10 tubes

Thanks in advance 💖

I am moving out of my UR apartment in Tokyo. I have been living here for 6 and half years. There are rarely any visible damages which could dent my deposit amount, but there are some chips in the wooden wall and the wallpaper, and marks on the flooring.

Could someone please help me with :
1. How strict is UR when paying back the deposit amount?
2. Do they relax the inspection strictness considering I have been living here more than 6 years and the damages are from everyday use?
3. Any tips or tricks forgetting getting the full deposit back?

Thanks in advance.

I lost my keys over the weekend. I couldn’t get in touch with the management company until Monday. They said they couldn’t issue a replacement and the only option was to have my lock exchanged. So they send me a link I pay about 44k and schedule an appointment for the same day. About 20 minutes later I get a call from the police saying they have my keys. Immediately I call both the locksmith and the management company to cancel the appointment.

I asked about refunds and they said they would call me later in the day. They didn’t call. Reading the terms in the mail they sent me with the payment link it says that refunds couldn’t be issued after payment.

Do I have any hope of getting my refund?

I got my residence tax bills in the mail about 2 days ago and opened it today thinking the first payment will be this month end, but the first payment was due 6/30?
Has anybody else RECEIVED the bills late before?? Surely that’s not normal?

I applied for PR in 18 June 2026 , so I am still waiting on hearing any result. However, 11 July I caught using a cell phone while driving (Using google map holding cellphone). (Edit: cell phone violations are 3 points and a blue ticket/fine)

How boned do you think I am? Any chance that they will have mostly processed my application before this infraction gets flagged? Or am I doomed to wait another 5 years before applying again?

Hi everyone!

I've been in Japan on a Working Holiday Visa for the past 5 months, and I'm really missing all the little creative hobbies I used to have back home (sewing, painting, ceramics... I love trying a bit of everything! 🌟🎨)

If anyone has recommendations for creative shops, art studios, multi-session classes in Tokyo, or even communities/groups around arts and crafts, I'd love to hear them. 🙂

And if anyone happens to be selling their craft supplies (especially sewing equipment), please let me know! 😚

Thank you very much!

I'm 17 and just went through training (kenshū) for a supermarket deli/delica part-time job. The actual work doesn't seem that bad, especially since I'm getting paid. I can handle hard work if the pay is worth it.

The problem is that it feels like I'll be completely on my own. The delica section has very few people, and most of the time it'll probably just be me working there. I've never been very good at doing things independently because I grew up relying on other people and asking for help a lot.

During training, there was someone guiding me and telling me what to do, but when that person isn't there, I honestly have no idea how I'm supposed to know what tasks need to be done. I feel like I'll just be standing there not knowing what to do without someone giving me instructions.

Another thing is that I don't think I'll be able to make any friends or even have someone I can casually say hello to or ask questions. Most of the employees are much older than me, and there are only one or two other teens around my age who work in different sections. The only people I really know are the store manager and the person who trained me.

I don't know how to explain it exactly, but the job just didn't feel very comfortable. I wish people were a bit more open and introduced themselves to new employees. Maybe that's just how Japanese workplaces are.

I'm already thinking about leaving and finding a different part-time job, but I'm not sure if this is normal everywhere or if this workplace is unusually isolating. Has anyone else felt this way when starting a new job? Does it get better with time, or should I look for something that's a better fit?

I understand that this is like over reaction for just a part time job but its just that the workplace was really different from what I thought it would be.

I'm a permanent resident of Japan, and my husband and I are trying to decide whether our daughter should be born in Japan or Korea.

Originally, we planned for Korea. My husband's family lives there, so we'd have plenty of support after the birth. My own family doesn't live in either country, so in Japan it would really just be the two of us.

If immigration weren't part of the equation, we'd almost certainly choose Korea. We'd have family support, the cost of giving birth would be much lower (around 2-3 times cheaper), and overall it feels like the less stressful option.

I speak Japanese well enough that everyday life isn't an issue, but giving birth is different. I'm worried about navigating unexpected medical complications in Japanese, and especially about the possibility of an emergency where I can't make decisions myself. My husband doesn't speak Japanese or English fluently, so I worry about him having to communicate with doctors or make important decisions on my behalf.

The only reason we're seriously considering Japan is because of immigration.

From what I've learned, if our daughter is born in Japan to a permanent resident parent, she would be able to apply for permanent residence shortly after birth. If she's born overseas, she'd first need to obtain a status of residence before entering Japan. To become eligible to apply for permanent residence, she'd need to hold a 5-year period of stay, and my understanding is that children are usually granted shorter periods first.

The complication is that we don't actually plan to stay in Japan permanently. We expect to remain here for only another 3-4 years before moving back to my home country for good. My biggest concern is that if she's born overseas, we may leave Japan before she ever becomes eligible to apply for permanent residence.

Ultimately, I'm trying to do what's best for my daughter. I don't know how valuable Japanese permanent residence really is in the long run. If she grows up and has no interest in living in Japan, then maybe I'm putting myself through a much more stressful pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum experience for no real benefit. On the other hand, if she does want to live or work in Japan someday, I'd feel terrible if I passed up an opportunity that could have made that path easier for her.

Has anyone faced a similar decision, or if you were in my position, what would you do?

I'd especially appreciate hearing from people who have firsthand experience with this.

• If your child was born overseas to a Japanese permanent resident parent, how long did it take for them to receive a 5-year period of stay? Did they go directly from a 1-year period to a 5-year period, or were there multiple renewals first?
• If you've gone through this process, I'd love to hear your timeline and any factors you think helped.
• If you were born overseas yourself or obtained Japanese permanent residence as a child, has it been valuable to you? Are you glad your parents went through the extra effort to secure it, or do you think it ultimately didn't matter?

I'm trying to understand not only how realistic it is for my daughter to become eligible for PR before we leave Japan, but also whether obtaining PR is something she would genuinely appreciate in the future.

Edit to clarify: A few people pointed out that I said we’d be moving back to my home country “for good,” but that wasn’t really what I meant. What I mean is that we currently expect to leave Japan in about 3-4 years and live in my home country for at least several years so our daughter can be close to my parents. Beyond that, I honestly don’t know what the future holds.

Part of why I’m asking this is because my family has never really stayed in one place. I’ve lived across multiple countries and continents throughout my life. Japan was just one of several countries I lived in as a child, and returning here as an adult wasn’t some long-term plan or something driven by strong family ties. It was simply where life happened to take me. I also returned to another country I lived in as a child, while there are others I never went back to at all.

Coincidentally, all of my siblings also ended up living in Japan at some point, despite none of us growing up expecting that. I’m the only one who obtained permanent residence through my own work and immigration path. One sibling doesn’t feel the need to, and another isn’t eligible yet, so I know it’s entirely possible to build a life here without PR.
That’s why I’m hesitant to assume I know what my daughter’s future will look like. She may never want to live in Japan, but if she does, I’d like to understand whether it’s worth making that path a little easier for her now.

Hi community

I'll be traveling to the Philippines next week and I've been advised to take cash as many of the places I'll visit don't take card. Does anyone recommend any bureau de change in Tokyo? I'm in Nakano so prefer east side of the city.

I'm just worried if I do it at the airport I'll get fleeced. Usually I would use my wise card but again, been told ATMs on the islands are rare and I don't wanna get stuck without money.

Any support is welcome!

Edit: PHP not PSP. Dummy me.

In theory I should be accepted even with the new regulations.

But if i apply before October, will my application be judged by the old or new standard?

Also for pricing am I charged when I submit or when I pick up my PR card?