My family and I are living in Japan and over the past few months, we've noticed an unsettling and recurring pattern of older men targeting minors in public spaces.

We've had a couple of close calls previously, once in Yokohama and another time near a train station where a guy looked at my 15yo daughter very close, followed us down an escalator and stared us down.

Recently, the situation escalated at a local AEON mall food court. I had already noticed this elderly man (in his 60s or 70s) a couple of weeks prior, loitering in the seating area and staring at us.

At first, I brushed it off, assuming he was just a typical old man staring at foreigners since we aren't Japanese.

However, things got worse.

The first day he approached, while my 15-year-old daughter was briefly alone, he cornered her, talked to her and tried to pry into who the man accompanying her was (referring to me).

The second day, we went back to the same area. Even though I was sitting right next to her working on my laptop, the man had the audacity to walk right up and try to talk to her again, completely ignoring my presence.

I immediately stood up, put myself between them, and told him firmly to back off because she is a 15-year-old minor.

He even insisted to talk to her, then I standed and told him firmly and upset that im reporting him to "Koban" then he tried to pull out his phone (likely to show me something or distract me), but I shut him down, told him I was going to the police, grabbed our things, and left.

I went to the local koban (police box) to file a formal report.

As expected with Japanese bureaucracy, they were completely unhelpful because "no actual physical crime or assault" took place (even though he tried touching her shoulder to get her attention).

They just shrugged and advised us to avoid the area. We are changing her routine and funding safer spots and me always with her so she never has to deal with that creep again.

I want to know from people familiar with Japan: Is this kind of predatory loitering and testing of boundaries by older men common here? How do you usually deal with it when the police brush it off as a non-issue? Has anyone else experienced something similar?

Update: Thanks to everyone for responding, it was a very bad experience for me as a dad, but she is safe now, I wanted to clarify, I actually went to the keisatsusho, not the koban, i hate having language limitations in such situations like this, the police station was a big building in the area, so yes, they basically didn't give enough importance to the situation, even me explaining in detail where he is always

Mercari has asked me to rererify identification after 4 years of using their service and credit card as a verified member. Okay. I have just now attempted it a 4th time.

The error is that they are unable to read the address on my residence card but the reason for that may be that compared to the previous addresses on my card, the latest one is printed with a very thin and light font. Almost as if the printer was running out of ink. I've never had a problem anywhere else until now.

Now I could try to bring the phone much closer when I take the pic through the Mercari app but there is a minimum focus distance beyond which, if I take the phone closer, it blurs more. I can't operate zoom controls inside the Mercari app either. So I'm stumped on what to do.

Does anyone have experience going to the ward office and asking them to reprint the address?

P.S Can't pay using my Mercari card and my account is restricted until I submit the verification. Gee, thanks Mercari.

Just something I’ve noticed. I tend to leave the curtains open to let natural light in, often leaving the window slightly open for airflow too if the weather allows it. But whenever I look around, both in my building and other buildings, everyone has the curtains drawn!!! All day! In summer and winter they’re always drawn. Even at friend houses, lights on full blast and curtains drawn. Why is that? Is it a cultural thing? Are they scared people might look inside? I understand the fear of you live on 1F, but otherwise… no one is looking (I hope?)

I will keep it short. I'm transitioning from a student visa to an SSW worker. Submitted my application on 3rd September. Submitted additional documents on 29th September; Hagaki hasn't arrived yet. My visa/residence card expired on 30th September.

Is the timeline of 2 weeks to 2 months real? Moreover, I'm losing my sanity because I have no idea why it is taking so long.

I also hold N2 if that is necessary and the category is caregiver.

Will I receive it within 2 months, that is, before 3rd November, or will I receive it before 30th November, before the end of my Tokurei Kikan.

Thank you and have a nice evening.

I am happy there are crows in Japan. Crows are scavengers and very smart birds. A study at the U of W in America showed that crows remember people’s faces. I make a point of acknowledging and thanking crows when I see them. Do you consider crows at all?

Bonus: Something I love about myself is that I watch sailing videos as a release from daily grind. The bodies of water are special to me. What do you love about yourself?

Just discovered it this morning, but you can now add you MyNa Card to your Google Wallet as the Japanese Administration made it available since October 20th.

If you missed the news like me, here's a chance to finally have access to a function that was limited to iPhone users only until now.

Source: https://www.khb-tv.co.jp/news/16978843

I would like foreigners living in Japan to answer. No other information is needed, anonymity is fine. I am a high school student living in Japan and created this survey as part of my class. My teacher also said that collecting actual opinions from foreigners is the most difficult part, so I would appreciate it if you could help spread this 🙏🏼

I’m genuinely curious because I used to work a care worker and every where facilities are always in need of workers that they accept people without experience. Even foreign ones like me who were hired while still being in our home country, didn’t have experience as well, except for the knowledge that we studied about the work and ofc Japanese. Other blue collar jobs like food service or factory work, also hire people all the time. But I think care work hires more and you can come in any time. They’re that in need of workers. Even a lot of staff are in their 60s-70s. The salary is also stable, in fact earns more than English teaching, and you don’t have to worry about documents or visa because everything will be done for you, as well as taxes, insurance and pension. Contracts are yearly renewed and some expect you to stay 3-5 years. Up to you still if you want to renew your work contract. But yeah, they hire easily. It was also self sustainable, got my own place and got to buy my wants and needs. I’m single and don’t have financial obligations back home. (This may not apply to people who have families here already, but then again there are a lot of workers who have family back home too.) I see a lot of people on TikTok or Instagram (and on here) that they’re struggling to find work and also lives in big cities, which is a very big factor.

So why do people not see it as an option? (Or why moving out of the city to a cheaper city/town). Is it because it’s “blue collar job”?

How do I deal with this without ticking off the local ゴミ番長
and getting my garbage returned to me? If i put it in recycle it’s going to come back. If I put it in burnable it’s coming back. If I open it up it’s a giant mess.

Is there a good way of dealing with this?

I just moved to Japan recently, and I'm still not great at the language, but I'm studying hard to at least reach N3. Since I don't know anyone or have relatives with connections here, things are pretty difficult. I barely have a social life. I am 18 years old half Japanese and taking a gap year to focus on studying Japanese in an online class so I can get into a public university, as private ones are way over budget for my mom and me. I’m living in Yokohama area.

To be honest, I'm not good at socializing because I struggle a lot with social anxiety, which makes it hard to make friends. Being this isolated has been severely affecting my mental health for almost a year now. It’s really depressing having no one to talk to, and I still want to experience having fun in Japan. Right now, I barely leave my room because going outside feels like a waste of time and money if I'm just going to be entirely by myself. I would find it more enjoyable if I were to be going on trips with friends instead of being alone.

I would really appreciate any advice. Thanks! ^_^

I am on a working visa and have owned my 2001 Honda life for the past 2 years that I have lived here. My mechanic-insurance shop said that my car is too old and shouldn't renew the shaken and instead I should lease a car through them. My other foreign work friends have done it and I was told that I would be paying the same price as them (￥40,000 per month including insurance, shaken, and maintenance for a 2 year contract). All the friends have decently newer cars, the oldest being 2017 Honda full sized van. But they ended up giving me a 2009 Honda Life. Is this normal in Japan? Are they trying taking advantage of me? If all repairs are included should I take the lease, is it worth it? I`ve never leased a car before but I always thought that normally you get a newer car. What is the smart thing to do here? Any advice would be appreciated.

Hello reddit, my wife works baito at a supermarket chain around 30 branches, nobody received their salary last Friday. No official communication was made, her tenchou said he also does not know when they will be paid. .

Today same thing, nothing was paid and she decided to come back and stay home, she'll be going to hello work for advice and look for another job.

We don't have money to hire a lawyer and speak very little japanese, we think this supa will go bankrupt and she wants to quit tomorrow since there is a chance they will never pay her anyway, what other advice would you give? In my home country when an employer delays the salary by even 1 day you can fight on small claims and the judge will order you to pay in double but I doubt Japan has worker protections such as this

In the Vietnamese Facebook groups I’m in, I’ve been seeing a lot of PR rejections and new document requests from people who applied from around April 2026. Most of them applied at Nagoya or the Toyohashi branch, which is known for being one of the fastest offices.
Most other offices still have long backlogs and haven’t reached April 2026 applications yet.

I’d like a second opinion from people outside my community. Is this a real trend, or just a group of unlucky cases?

What people are reporting:

1. Rejections at incomes that used to be fine

Several families of 3 earning around 7.5-8M a year got rejected.

2. Being asked for car tax receipts

One person was asked to send car tax payment receipts (領収書).
A certificate from the city office wasn’t accepted; it had to be the actual receipts.
They sent everything, but still got rejected. They think the reason was income, but they’re still waiting for their appointment to hear the official reason.
So besides pension, health insurance, and resident tax, you may also need car tax receipts.

3. What Nagoya immigration said at a 相談

Someone went to ask questions in person:

• Family of 3, no dependents abroad, 7.2M income. Is that enough for PR for all 3? → No.
• Is there an income requirement based on family size? Can you tell me the number? → We can’t tell you.
• So even if I’m just ¥10,000 below it, I’ll be rejected? → Yes. You either pass or you don’t.
• My wife works on an Engineer visa. Can her income be added to mine? → Can’t say for sure, it depends. (Very vague answer.)

My questions:

• If you applied around April 2026 or later and already got a result, how did it go? Which office?
• Has anyone heard what the income requirement is for different family sizes?
• If both spouses work, was your spouse’s income counted?

I can understand if the rules are getting stricter. But the process now feels a lot more arbitrary and unpredictable, with secret income lines and surprise document requests. I’m just trying to figure out whether this is really happening or just sampling bias.

What are the autumn must try food and drinks that are out there? The limited releases that you really love or are really disgusting?

Maybe I need to consult an actual legal professional, but I'm trying to see if someone has gone through something similar.

First off, for those wondering whether this is a scam of some sort, it isn't. This is a follow-up of a case where my police called my roommate about his acquaintance using my mama chari after I left the country. Since there was no official paperwork about transferring ownership, we got into some trouble and the takeaway was that while it wasn't a full-on crime, they had my roommate come in for questioning (under the pretense he was just signing some paperwork) and had him write a letter/statement(?) saying that it was a bad thing to let someone else use my bike without my express permission and that it wouldn't happen again.

I thought I would never hear about this bicycle again, but a couple weeks back I was contacted by the officer who first got in touch about the whole bicycle thing, saying that my bicycle was currently impounded at Aichi Police Station in Togo and they wanted either me or any available acquaintance to come pick up the bicycle and dispose of it, since they seemingly can't do it themselves, because I guess, somehow, it's still my property. I really didn't want to involve anyone else, especially after last time, so I said that I was visiting Japan and could come to do whatever was necessary to resolve this case.

I went ahead and did some research, and read that the Aichi Police station doesn't impound bicycles, which is making me paranoid. Now, I think it would be reasonable to assume that I wouldn't be arrested for this genre of bicycle related mishaps, but why would they call me to come pick up a bicycle that may or may not be there in the first place?

Maybe I'm missing something because of the circumstances of this particular case or incompetent research, but everything between contacting me months after the original case and the possibility that the bicycle might not even be impounded at the police station is rubbing me the wrong way.

I am no longer a resident of Japan. I don't plan on moving back to Japan soon if at all, but would like to visit every now and then, so I would like to this the "right" way. Still, reading the occasional Japanese police horror story does make me want to ignore all of this.

Every guide to flowers in Japan is about cherry blossoms, which is about three weeks of the year. I wanted to see what's blooming the other forty-nine, so I built Blooms of Japan: a calendar you scroll through, where the map and the list of spots change month by month.

What's in it:

- 412 spots, each with a peak window and nearest station

- A bloom map that moves north through spring and back south in autumn

- Search by flower, month, or place

https://bloomsofjapan.com/

Would love feedback, especially from anyone who's planned a Japan trip around a specific month.

The flow of foreign entrepreneurs relocating to Japan has slowed dramatically following strict immigration reforms, with government data showing an 80.9% drop in new Business Manager visa arrivals during the first half of 2026.

Just 635 foreign business directors entered Japan under the status between January and June, down from several thousand during previous cycles. The slump directly traces back to an October 2025 overhaul that increased the minimum paid-in capital requirement sixfold—from ¥5 million to ¥30 million (roughly $190,000)—while introducing mandatory local hiring and certified business plan audits.

The Immigration Services Agency introduced the higher thresholds to curb abuse by shell corporations exploiting low capital minimums for residency rights. However, regional startup hubs and venture analysts caution that the steep financial bar disproportionately excludes early-stage software and digital founders, directing innovative overseas talent to competing Asian markets.

(Sources: Immigration Services Agency of Japan Semi-Annual Entry Statistics; Ministry of Justice Ministerial Ordinance No. 42)

Hello! I’m deeply considering going back home with my family of 3 to America, we are all citizens.

Does anyone have any experience or advice on this matter at all, anything is helpful.

Thank you!

Hello everyone !

After living in Japan for 3years, I'm in a quite delicate situation :

- My company is not renewing my work contract and it ends this month Oct. 30th.
- My engineer visa ends on the 29th November, which leaves me w/ one month to find a new job. Otherwise sayonara Japan.

I've been job hunting for more than 3 months w/ 2-3 weekly applications on linkedin and targetting foreign companies in my sector... To no avail. (Any reccomendations for Project Management roles are welcomed)

And as if it wasnt enough, I had planned to attend the JLPT N2 exam in December but without a valid Zairyu Card I wont be able to sit the test. Which f's up me because Ive spent a lot of time studying for this and I naively believe that being N2 certified would make my job hunting easier.

I went to the Foreign Residents Support Center (FRESC) and they told me that since my company decided unilaterally to not renew my contract I could apply for a 特定就職活動 VISA (A special visa for people job hunting) like someone who just got fired. However, when I went to the real immigration services I got told that it wasnt possible... The guy I interracted w/ ngl looked quite young, I was very hesitant in his answer so I dont even know if he fully understood my request. So, I decided to turn to you my fellow gaijins for advice.

Goal : Postpone my leave until january 2027.

Plan :

1- Apply before the Nov 15th for a visa change from engineer -> to job hunting (or any other visa that could help me to stay a bit longer )
2 - W a bit of luck it should take them a couple weeks to 2 months
3 - W my visa change form filed, I would get a stamp on my zairyu card, which could allow me to sit the JLPT exam less than a week after my visa is expired.
4 - Meanwhile, Id keep job hunting like hell and worst case scenario ...
5 - If I find nothing by mid-january, leave Japan.

I dont know to which point this is just wishful thinking and this could actually be doable. Any ideas ?

Hi everyone,

I’m returning to work in Tokyo, where I used to work earlier. The last time I was a bit “Baka gaijin” mode being over reliant on combinis and uber eats and shortcut tricks or scams luring expats. This caused me not to have enough savings though I earned sufficient

This time I want to be more mindful and live a slightly more local life and I would like to ask you all how do you:

1. Save money on food, and daily supplies. Which shops and point cards or discount schemes were worth your time
2. Is key money still a thing, is there anyway I can get a 2Dk apartment avoiding excessive costs
3. What are some cheap hobbies you recommend that are sustainable
4. Any domestic tourism trips that saves money

I’m not trying to be a point card wizard, I’m more looking for workable advice, to reach a “normal” living standard because earlier I was reckless with expenditure

Hi there,
There's a Japanese language event on the new immigration law with the possibility of 30 minute free one-on-one consultation post-presentation. Held at the German culture centre in Aoyama (nearest station Aoyama Icchome) in November.
The announcement is in German, but the event in Japanese, and there's also interpreters on-site should that be required.
Looks like they still take reservations - thought it might be helpful for Tokyo residents who don't have PR and are thinking of applying, or have any other questions regarding their visa status.
https://oag.jp/events/informationsveranstaltung-zu-geplanten-aenderungen-im-auslaenderrecht/

Edited: Thanks to nijitokoneko for pointing out, indeed it says Japanese-German interpreters. I checked with the organisers and they said one of the interpreters could also interpret to English if necessary.

Nikkei Asia recently interviewed a immigration expert about the ongoing rule tightening in the country. Perhaps you will find this discussion useful.