Visa & residencyPermanent residency

Permanent residency vs naturalization in Japan: which one fits you?

Permanent residency vs naturalization in Japan: PR keeps your nationality but can be canceled; citizenship adds the vote but means giving up your nationality.

Cover of a Japanese passport, issued only to Japanese nationals

By japanhow editors Updated 6 min read

PR fee
¥200,000 (from Oct 1, 2026)
Naturalization fee
None
Keep your nationality
PR yes, naturalization no
Vote
Japanese citizens only
Short answer

As of October 2026, permanent residency (永住) lets you keep your nationality and live and work in Japan without limits, but you stay under immigration control: you renew your residence card, need re-entry permits, and from April 2027 can lose PR for intentionally not paying taxes or social insurance. Naturalization (帰化) makes you Japanese, with the vote and no immigration control, but you must give up your current nationality. PR now costs ¥200,000; naturalization is free. Both expect about 10 years in Japan.

The main difference between permanent residency and naturalization in Japan is nationality. Permanent residency (永住, eijū) lets you keep your current passport and live and work without limits, but you stay under immigration law and the status can be canceled. Naturalization (帰化, kika) makes you a Japanese citizen with the right to vote, but you must give up your current nationality in principle. As of October 2026, PR costs ¥200,000 and naturalization is free, and both now expect about 10 years in Japan.

What is the difference between PR and Japanese citizenship?

Permanent residency (永住) Naturalization (帰化)
What you get A status of residence (在留資格) with no limit on activities or period of stay Japanese nationality
Your current nationality You keep it You must lose it, in principle
Handled by Regional immigration office (ISA) Legal Affairs Bureau, decided by the Minister of Justice
Legal basis Immigration Act, Article 22 Nationality Act, Articles 4 to 10
Fee ¥200,000 from October 1, 2026 None
Standard processing 4 to 6 months None set; about 1 year reported by scriveners
Vote and stand for office No Yes, from age 18
Residence card (在留カード) and re-entry permits Still needed No longer apply
Can be taken away Yes, under the Immigration Act Not under immigration law

Sources: ISA, Ministry of Justice, e-Gov law texts, as of October 2026.

How do the requirements compare?

Requirement Permanent residency Naturalization
Time in Japan 10 years in principle, 5 of them on a work or residence status 5 years in law; 10 years in principle since April 1, 2026
Spouse of a Japanese national 3 years married and 1 year in Japan (5 and 3 for applications from April 1, 2027) 3 years in Japan, or 3 years married and 1 year in Japan (Nationality Act, Article 7)
Age Not a stated condition 18 or older
Conduct Good conduct; no fines or prison sentences Good conduct, judged on criminal record, taxes and conduct
Money Independent livelihood; for applications since April 2026, household income above the Japanese average for your household size Able to make a living from your or your household’s income
Taxes and insurance Taxes, pension and health insurance paid on time Tax checked over 5 years and social insurance over 2 years since April 2026 (Kyodo)
Japanese language B1 level becomes a factor from April 2027 Enough for daily life in speaking, reading and writing
Nationality Keep it Lose it, in principle

The Minister of Justice said on March 27, 2026 that the stricter naturalization review is meant to match the PR review. The gap in residence time between the two has largely closed.

Can you keep dual nationality?

Only with PR. Under Article 5 of the Nationality Act (国籍法), you must be stateless or lose your current nationality when you naturalize. The Minister can waive this only if your country won’t let you give it up and you have special ties to Japan.

Japan also works the other way. A Japanese national who voluntarily takes another nationality, for example by naturalizing abroad, automatically loses Japanese nationality (Article 11).

Which one gives you more rights?

Voting. The Public Offices Election Act (公職選挙法) gives the vote in national and local elections only to Japanese nationals aged 18 and over. The right to stand for office is also limited to Japanese nationals. PR holders have neither.

Travel. A permanent resident still leaves Japan on a re-entry permit. The special re-entry permit (みなし再入国) is valid for 1 year from departure. A full re-entry permit lasts up to 5 years and costs ¥4,000 (single) or ¥7,000 (multiple) at the counter. A naturalized citizen is no longer under residence control, so these permits no longer apply.

Paperwork. PR holders still renew their residence card and report address changes. ISA says naturalized people are no longer subject to residence control under the Immigration Act.

Can either one be taken away?

PR can. ISA’s Q&A lists the current grounds: fraud, not reporting a new address within 90 days of moving out, or giving a false address. PR holders can also be deported, for example after a prison sentence of over 1 year or a drug conviction.

From April 1, 2027, new grounds apply: breaking Immigration Act duties, intentionally not paying taxes or social insurance, and certain serious crimes with a prison sentence. ISA says it will usually switch the person to long-term resident (定住者) rather than remove them, and that illness or job loss is not meant to trigger this.

A naturalized citizen is outside these immigration rules. Japanese nationality can still be lost in the ways the Nationality Act sets out, such as voluntarily taking another nationality.

How do you decide?

Questions to ask yourself
  1. You, and your home country's embassy Can you give up your current nationality? If not, or if losing it would cost you property, inheritance or family rights at home, PR is the realistic option.
  2. You Do you meet the residence time? About 10 years for both, with shorter routes for spouses of Japanese nationals.
  3. You, city office, pension office Are your taxes and insurance clean? Both reviews look back over several years. Late payments count against you.
  4. You Do you want to vote or stop renewing cards? Only citizenship gives the vote and removes residence-card renewals and re-entry permits.
  5. You Check your Japanese level Naturalization already requires daily-life Japanese. PR adds a B1 factor from April 2027.

Nothing in the rules we read stops a permanent resident from applying to naturalize later.

For the full details of each route, read the permanent residency requirements and the Japanese naturalization process.

More guides: spouse visa in Japan, visa renewal in Japan.

Questions people ask

Is it better to get permanent residency or citizenship in Japan?

The key question is your current nationality. PR keeps it, but leaves you under immigration rules that can cancel your status. Citizenship removes immigration control and gives you the vote, but Japan requires you to lose your other nationality in principle.

Can permanent residents vote in Japan?

No. The Public Offices Election Act gives the right to vote in national and local elections to Japanese nationals aged 18 and over. Permanent residents can't vote or stand for office.

Can I have dual citizenship if I naturalize in Japan?

In principle, no. The Nationality Act requires you to be stateless or to lose your current nationality when you naturalize. A narrow exception exists if your country does not let you give it up.

Which is faster, permanent residency or naturalization?

ISA's standard period for PR is 4 to 6 months after you apply. The Ministry of Justice sets no period for naturalization; administrative scriveners report about 1 year. Both now expect about 10 years in Japan in principle.

Can Japanese permanent residency be revoked?

Yes. PR can already be canceled for fraud or not reporting a new address within 90 days, and from April 1, 2027 also for intentionally not paying taxes or social insurance. A naturalized citizen is no longer under these immigration rules.

Sources

  1. 永住許可制度の適正化Q＆A, Immigration Services Agency of Japan (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  2. 永住許可申請 (Permanent residency application), Immigration Services Agency of Japan (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  3. 永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和8年2月24日改訂）, Immigration Services Agency of Japan (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  4. 永住許可に関するガイドライン（令和8年10月1日改定）, Immigration Services Agency of Japan (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  5. 再入国許可申請 (Re-entry permit), Immigration Services Agency of Japan (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  6. 国籍法 (Nationality Act), e-Gov (Digital Agency) (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  7. 国籍Q&A, Ministry of Justice (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  8. 帰化許可申請 (Application for naturalization), Ministry of Justice (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  9. Minister of Justice press conference, March 27, 2026, Ministry of Justice (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  10. 公職選挙法 (Public Offices Election Act), e-Gov (Digital Agency) (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  11. 出入国管理及び難民認定法, e-Gov (Digital Agency) (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  12. 「帰化」審査を4月から厳格化 居住10年以上、納税確認も, Kyodo News via Yahoo! News Japan (accessed Oct 20, 2026)
  13. 帰化申請の期間はどのくらい？, Daiichi Sogo Gyoseishoshi Office (accessed Oct 20, 2026)

Spotted something out of date or wrong? Email hello@japanhow.com and we will check it against the source. See our corrections policy.

Photo: Toshiyuki IMAI / CC BY-SA 2.0

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