Application for special permission to stay
What is application for special permission to stay?
Special permission to stay is granted to foreigners who are subject to deportation grounds, and is granted special permission to stay by the Minister of Justice for humanitarian reasons, etc., while the deportation procedure (from detention (provisional release) to departure) is being applied.
When special permission to stay is granted, some type of residence status (usually "designated activities") is granted.
Traditional procedure
Previously, special permission to stay was only granted by filing an objection at the final stage of the three-stage deportation procedure, which consisted of an examination by an immigration inspector, an oral hearing by a special inquiry officer, and a decision by the Minister of Justice on the objection.
In order to receive permission, one had no choice but to wait.
"Application" for Special Permission to Stay (New procedure from 2024)
- -When detained by a detention order (including those who have been granted provisional release)
- -When placed under supervision (※)
※Supervision is a system also newly established by the amendment, and is described as "a measure to proceed with deportation procedures without detention, while allowing a person to live in society for a considerable period of time under the supervision of a supervisor, while preventing escape, etc."
A new page ("Application for Special Permission to Stay") has been set up on the Immigration Bureau website. The application form format itself is very simple, but from a practical standpoint, the way in which the documents to be submitted "documents proving the relevant circumstances" are compiled remains as important as ever.
Guidelines
In line with the revision of the Immigration Control Act in June 2024, the guidelines for special permission to stay (which set out the criteria by which the Minister of Justice determines whether or not to grant special permission) have also been revised.
The change in the new guidelines is that, as a reason that must be taken into consideration from the perspective of the need for humanitarian consideration, the following has been added: even if the foreign national has not been recognized as a refugee or a person eligible for complementary protection, it is objectively clear that the foreign national is in a situation where it is difficult for him or her to return to his or her home country in light of the unstable situation in that country.Approval/denial cases
Special permission to stay is left to the discretion of the Minister of Justice, so there is no guarantee that permission will be granted. For this reason, in addition to guidelines showing the cases in which special permission will be granted, "Cases in which special permission to stay was granted and cases in which special permission to stay was not granted" is published once a year for the previous year.