How long each part takes

The published period, the measured one, and the deadlines that bite.

Almost every difficulty in a spouse case is a timing problem rather than an eligibility one. A certificate obtained a fortnight too early proves nothing; an examination a month longer than planned for costs a lease; a validity window shorter than assumed costs the whole application. The timeline page lays the whole route out against a scale of days, with each problem marked at the point it arises.

Two different numbers for the same thing

The Agency publishes a standard period on the application page: one to three months for a certificate of eligibility. It also publishes, month by month and status by status, what it actually measured. For 日本人の配偶者等 (spouse or child of a japanese national) that was 111.5 days in both May and June 2026.

Both are true. The first is what the procedure is supposed to take; the second is what it took. Plan against the second.

The measured figure runs from receipt to notification and includes days spent waiting for documents the office asked for. It excludes refusals and withdrawals, so it is the average among cases that succeeded.

The deadlines that actually bite

- Three months — a certificate of eligibility created on or after 1 August 2022 is valid three months from the date of creation. The pandemic extension to six months is over, and much guidance has not caught up. Landing must happen inside it. - Fourteen days — to register an address at the municipal office after settling on one. A fine of up to 200,000 yen, and revocation is possible where it has not been done within ninety days of landing. - Fourteen days — to notify the Agency if the marriage ends by divorce or death. - Two months — the 特例期間 (grace period during examination), the grace period after a period of stay expires while an application is pending. It runs from the expiry on the card, not from the day of filing. - Six months — living apart without a justifiable reason may cost the status.

What to do about it

Work backwards from the date you need to be in Japan, not forwards from today. Four months for the examination, a month for the certificate to reach you and for the visa, and before all of that the two or three weeks the family register and the tax certificates take to catch up with the marriage.

Then leave the plan alone. The single most expensive mistake in this process is acting on the timeline — resigning, giving notice, booking a one-way flight — before the thing you are relying on has actually happened.