Special residence permit and irregular foreign residents

APFS has accepted consultations from foreigners with problems, regardless of their residence status. As a result, many "irregular foreigners" (foreigners living in Japan without a residence status) have visited the office and provided support.

One way for irregular foreign residents to be regularized is through "special permission to stay." This means that the Minister of Justice grants a residence status to foreigners who are living in Japan without a residence status. APFS has consistently called for the special permission to stay to be implemented flexibly.

In the 1980s, the regularization of undocumented foreigners married to Japanese spouses was permitted. After that, the focus of the problem shifted to undocumented foreign families with foreign parents. From September 1, 1999, undocumented foreign families were united and held three "mass appearances for special residence permits." This action was supported by many media outlets, researchers, and foreign support groups, and as a result, 42 undocumented foreigners were granted residence permits.

Since then, the environment surrounding these people has become tougher, with the "policy to halve the number of illegal foreign residents" starting in 2003, but there are still about 110,000 illegal foreign residents in Japan. Desperate for a solution, many families of illegal foreign residents come to our office for advice. Why were they unable to stay legally? Also, what kind of people are they really?

Why were undocumented foreigners unable to stay in Japan legally?

Many of the fathers and mothers of irregular foreign families were "foreign workers" who came to Japan from Asian countries to work after the late 1980s. In Japan, at the height of its bubble economy, factories, construction sites, restaurants, etc. needed their labor, and they worked to support their families in their home countries. Since the 1990s, their stay in Japan has become longer, and after getting married and having children, they have become the "fathers and mothers" of children born in Japan, and have made Japan the foundation of their families. However, there is no residence status in Japan that can accept such people, so they have been forced to overstay their status. In addition, since Japan adopts the principle of jus sanguinis when acquiring citizenship, their children do not have residence status either.

Who are undocumented foreigners?

Both of these are different from the "illegal immigrants" and "criminals" that are reported in the media.

Fathers have supported the bottom of Japanese society by working in jobs that many people do not want to do, which are called the 3K (tough, dirty, and dangerous) jobs. Mothers, although they feel they have difficulty speaking Japanese, actively participate in PTA and neighborhood association events and live as members of the community.

All of the children were born in Japan, attend public schools, and live the same lives as the other Japanese children. All conversations between the children and their parents are conducted in Japanese, and they cannot speak the language of their parents' country. Now that the children are grown up, if the family is forcibly deported, what will happen to their children's education? They are requesting that the family remain in Japan so that their children can continue to receive a sufficient education.

APFS will continue to take action to allow undocumented foreigners to stay in Japan.
We appreciate your support and cooperation.