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IS FEBRUARY - MARCH REALLY BUSY SEASON FOR IMMIGRATION?
It has been two months now since then, and they still have no update, even like follow-up update like submit other requirements etc. There's total no updates from Immigration. Is this normal? Because I am currently student, and I don't really have the motivation to attend classes anymore, also because I have quitted my part time job expecting I could start by April.
IS FEBRUARY - MARCH REALLY BUSY SEASON FOR IMMIGRATION?
February through March is actually a pretty standard crunch time for Immigration Services Agency in Tokyo. You've got all the university graduates converting from student to work visas, plus the April intake of new hires needing their statuses sorted. Two months with no word is longer than typical, but not unheard of when they're buried under applications from the big companies that all submit at the same time.
Your lawyer should be able to check the status through the online system or by calling the Shinagawa office directly. They can see if it's just sitting in a pile or if there's been any movement. I'd push them to do that rather than just waiting, because you're stuck in limbo and your employer is probably wondering when you can start.
In the meantime, don't quit your part-time job yet if you can help it. The immigration office can take up to three months during this period, and you'll need that income and your student status to stay valid while you wait. I've seen people get caught out by quitting everything and then the visa takes another six weeks.
Two months with no movement is a bit longer than usual even for this time of year. The Shinagawa office is definitely swamped with all the April start applicants, but the real bottleneck often happens after they assign your application to an examiner, which can take weeks on its own.
The bigger concern here is that your lawyer should have given you a receipt number or a reference ID when they submitted. With that number you can check the status online through the Immigration Services Agency portal yourself, it's in Japanese but straightforward. If they didn't give you one, that's a red flag worth pushing back on.
Don't let your student status lapse in the meantime. If your university reports you for non-attendance, immigration can deny your change of status even after the work visa is approved. I've seen that happen to a friend who stopped going to classes in March and had to start the whole process over from his home country.
Yeah, February to March is when immigration gets slammed in Tokyo. All the April hires and April university grads submit around the same time, so the Shinagawa office gets backed up. Two months without a peep is long but not impossible during that window.
Your lawyer can actually check the status online through the Immigration Services Agency portal. They should be able to see if your application is just queued or if there's been any review. Push them to do that instead of waiting blindly, because you need to know if there's a missing document issue.
Keep going to class and keep that part-time job if you can. Your current student visa is still your valid status until immigration approves the change. If you stop attending school and your university reports you, that could cause problems even after your work visa comes through. I've seen people get stuck that way.
Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.
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