RetireJapan

Hi all,
So I always see people talking about permanent residency for Japan, but I never really see people talking about getting Japanese citizenship.
Am I missing something? Is there something that actually makes it a bad idea? Or is it more difficult?
I plan to live in Japan permanently. Me and my wife are both British. Our plan is for me to get Japanese citizenship, and my wife to get spouse/PR visa. That way, should we ever change our minds or things go south, it won’t be as difficult for us to move back to the U.K.

My understanding is that you can start applying for Japanese citizenship after 5 consecutive years of living here, and I understand that you have to give up your current citizenship and subsequent passport.

So is there a catch that I’m not reading anywhere?
Is it more difficult than PR? Has anyone here done it?
Thanks in advance.

Its supposedly easier than PR in some respects but the reason it doesn't get talked about much is because alot of people from this site (and reddit) are from the US/UK/Australia and they like their original citizenships and want the option of going back. Naturalization is a pretty big step and you'd really have to be all-in on Japan to want to do it.

zeroshiki wrote: ↑Tue Aug 24, 2021 2:59 am Its supposedly easier than PR in some respects but the reason it doesn't get talked about much is because alot of people from this site (and reddit) are from the US/UK/Australia and they like their original citizenships and want the option of going back. Naturalization is a pretty big step and you'd really have to be all-in on Japan to want to do it.

Yeah I get that, and it is something my wife and I have spoke about at length for a few years.
With the way the U.K. is and the difference in my lifestyle there compared to japan, even with some financial instability here I am much happier mentally here than I ever was in the U.K. And as I said my wife will keep U.K. citizenship should things turn south, meaning it won’t be AS difficult to get back to the U.K. I appreciate it won’t be as easy as with a U.K. passport. But coming back as a native Brit, with a Brit spouse will probably help in that case.

KCLenny wrote: ↑Tue Aug 24, 2021 2:22 am Hi all,
So I always see people talking about permanent residency for Japan, but I never really see people talking about getting Japanese citizenship.
Am I missing something? Is there something that actually makes it a bad idea? Or is it more difficult?
I plan to live in Japan permanently. Me and my wife are both British. Our plan is for me to get Japanese citizenship, and my wife to get spouse/PR visa. That way, should we ever change our minds or things go south, it won’t be as difficult for us to move back to the U.K.

My understanding is that you can start applying for Japanese citizenship after 5 consecutive years of living here, and I understand that you have to give up your current citizenship and subsequent passport.

So is there a catch that I’m not reading anywhere?
Is it more difficult than PR? Has anyone here done it?
Thanks in advance.

UK expats seem to have access to a pretty sweet pension system from abroad. I assume you are paying into this and would want to check how giving up your British citizenship would affect this.

Established wrote: ↑Tue Aug 24, 2021 3:13 am

KCLenny wrote: ↑Tue Aug 24, 2021 2:22 am Hi all,
So I always see people talking about permanent residency for Japan, but I never really see people talking about getting Japanese citizenship.
Am I missing something? Is there something that actually makes it a bad idea? Or is it more difficult?
I plan to live in Japan permanently. Me and my wife are both British. Our plan is for me to get Japanese citizenship, and my wife to get spouse/PR visa. That way, should we ever change our minds or things go south, it won’t be as difficult for us to move back to the U.K.

My understanding is that you can start applying for Japanese citizenship after 5 consecutive years of living here, and I understand that you have to give up your current citizenship and subsequent passport.

So is there a catch that I’m not reading anywhere?
Is it more difficult than PR? Has anyone here done it?
Thanks in advance.

UK expats seem to have access to a pretty sweet pension system from abroad. I assume you are paying into this and would want to check how giving up your British citizenship would affect this.

Nationality doesn't impact UK state pension. As long as you contributed to National Insurance during your time in the UK, you can take it with you. Changing your nationality wouldn't impact that (or at least it shouldn't on paper)

Might be worth a call to the HMRC foreign pensions centre, but I seriously doubt any impact.

source: I am not a UK Citizen, but I have a UK state pension

Established wrote: ↑Tue Aug 24, 2021 3:13 am

KCLenny wrote: ↑Tue Aug 24, 2021 2:22 am Hi all,
So I always see people talking about permanent residency for Japan, but I never really see people talking about getting Japanese citizenship.
Am I missing something? Is there something that actually makes it a bad idea? Or is it more difficult?
I plan to live in Japan permanently. Me and my wife are both British. Our plan is for me to get Japanese citizenship, and my wife to get spouse/PR visa. That way, should we ever change our minds or things go south, it won’t be as difficult for us to move back to the U.K.

My understanding is that you can start applying for Japanese citizenship after 5 consecutive years of living here, and I understand that you have to give up your current citizenship and subsequent passport.

So is there a catch that I’m not reading anywhere?
Is it more difficult than PR? Has anyone here done it?
Thanks in advance.

UK expats seem to have access to a pretty sweet pension system from abroad. I assume you are paying into this and would want to check how giving up your British citizenship would affect this.

I am not currently paying in. I just turned 30 and have live in japan in total for 4 and a half years. So I think it total I might have only been paying into the U.K. pension system for about 10 years max, and a lot of that was only on part time wages. Would it be better to look into cashing that out if possible or just give that up if I intend to get Japanese citizenship?

Edit, seen newest post. I’ll give the foreign pension centre a call if possible and see what the situation is.

Edit, seen newest post. I’ll give the foreign pension centre a call if possible and see what the situation is.

Check out the various threads & blog posts on it. If you paid into UKSP for 3-4 years immediately before coming to Japan you could be entitled to pay a very low rate for a very good deal

I've been thinking seriously about naturalising for over a decade now (had all the paperwork ready to apply in 2011 and had my initial interview with the 法務局).

This website has a ton of stories and resources: https://www.turning-japanese.info/

The reasons I am considering it: Japan is my home now, I want to vote, I want all the niggling bits of paperwork and hassles to go away, I want to go through the citizens re-entry queue, I want an APEC card, I may want to get involved in politics, I want to say I'm a Japanese citizen, I want to be able to return to Japan during a pandemic or emergency.

The reasons I haven't done it yet: I have PR which gets my maybe 70% of the way there, I like to have options (UK passport), I don't want to deal with closing down accounts/changing names on everything I have overseas/uncertainty about UK pension.

I think there is a good chance I will naturalise at some point.

If you're not from a first world country, the calculus becomes much easier since a Japanese passport is actually an upgrade. There's alot to be said for keeping your parents' nationality and all that (the name change even if its just to katakana is one of the biggest things to trip me up) but if you're planning on staying in Japan long-term anyways, I don't see much of an argument against naturalization from a practicality standpoint.

zeroshiki wrote: ↑Tue Aug 24, 2021 3:44 am If you're not from a first world country, the calculus becomes much easier since a Japanese passport is actually an upgrade. There's alot to be said for keeping your parents' nationality and all that (the name change even if its just to katakana is one of the biggest things to trip me up) but if you're planning on staying in Japan long-term anyways, I don't see much of an argument against naturalization from a practicality standpoint.

Passing on citizenship to your children can give them more options. That is the main reason I will maintain my citizenship for the next two decades or so. (Assuming your SO is a Japanese national).