Japan Spouse Visa COE Processing Time: About 3.5 Months on Average Nationwide, 6+ Months in Some Tokyo Cases

Note: This article is based on Japanese laws and materials published by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan (ISA) as of October 11, 2026.

An application for a Certificate of Eligibility (COE, 在留資格認定証明書) for a spouse visa (status of residence "Spouse or Child of Japanese National", 日本人の配偶者等) takes about 107 days, or about three and a half months, on average nationwide from acceptance of the application to issuance (COEs issued in July 2026). A COE application is the application filed to bring a spouse who lives abroad to Japan.

However, within the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau, in some of our office's applications the COE has taken six months or more to be issued (as of October 11, 2026). This article also explains what to do when your intended date of entry is fixed.

How many days does a spouse visa COE application take?

For the status of residence "Spouse or Child of Japanese National", the national average from acceptance of the application to issuance of the COE is about 107 days, or about three and a half months (COEs issued in July 2026). One year earlier, for COEs issued in July 2025, it was about 78 days, so the average has become about one month longer. The standard processing time stated by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan (ISA) is one to three months.

This average covers only the applications for which a COE was issued in that month. The days spent on applications still under examination are not included in the figure until the COE is issued.

The figure is a national average. The number of days for each regional immigration services bureau is not published (as of October 2026).

Source: Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Processing Time for Residence Examinations" (in Japanese; COEs issued in July 2026: 106.5 days; in July 2025: 78.1 days), "Application for Certificate of Eligibility" (in Japanese)

In Tokyo's jurisdiction, our applications have taken six months or more

For the two applications our office filed within the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau, issuance has taken about six months or longer (as of October 11, 2026).

For one, the COE was issued around August 2026, about six months after the application was filed. The other was filed in early April 2026 and is still under examination after more than six months. It is not on hold because of a request for additional documents; we are waiting for the result of the examination.

In early October 2026, we asked the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau by phone about the expected time for examination. The explanation was that the number of applications is large and that it may take about one year until issuance.

By contrast, for an application our office filed in 2026 within the jurisdiction of the Fukuoka Regional Immigration Services Bureau, the COE was issued in about three months.

The number of days also depends on the content of each application, so the speed of different bureaus cannot be compared from these cases alone. If you apply within the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau, it is safer to plan on the assumption that it will take longer than the national average.

You fall under Tokyo's jurisdiction if your representative lives in Tokyo or one of nine nearby prefectures

When a representative files the application, it is filed, in principle, with the regional immigration services bureau that has jurisdiction over the address of the relative who acts as the representative. The jurisdiction of the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau covers Tokyo and nine prefectures: Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Yamanashi, Nagano and Niigata.

Of these, Kanagawa Prefecture is under the jurisdiction of the bureau's Yokohama Branch (横浜支局). The two applications of our office described in the previous section were filed in prefectures other than Kanagawa.

If the Japanese spouse lives in Japan, that spouse acts as the representative. If both spouses live abroad, a relative living in Japan acts as the representative. Which relatives can act as a representative is explained in Applying for a Spouse Visa When Both Spouses Live Abroad.

Within this area there are branch offices (出張所) in places such as Saitama, Mito, Niigata and Nagano, and they accept COE applications. COE applications accepted at a branch office are also, as a general rule, examined by the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau.

Source: Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Application for Certificate of Eligibility" (in Japanese), "Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau" (in Japanese), Immigration and Residence Examination Guidelines (入国・在留審査要領), Part 9, Chapter 2, Sections 1 and 2

What applicants can do: file early and file a complete set of documents

Applicants cannot change the number of days the examination takes, but they can file earlier and avoid adding days through requests for additional documents.

First, file the application as soon as the documents are ready. The examination does not begin until the application is filed, so if you file one month later, the COE will be issued that much later. The ISA also advises applicants to submit the application documents with enough time to receive the COE before entering Japan.

Second, file a complete set of documents from the start. If the immigration office asks for additional documents, the days until those documents are submitted are added to the examination period.

A COE is valid for three months. Even if it is issued earlier than planned, you must enter Japan within three months from the date of issuance.

If you have a preferred date of entry, we can review with you whether your documents are complete and when to apply, through our consultation on COE applications for a Spouse or Child of Japanese National.

Source: Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Application for Certificate of Eligibility" (in Japanese), notes to "Processing Time for Residence Examinations" (in Japanese; July 2026), "Immigration and Residence Examination Q&A" (in Japanese), Q6

If the COE still will not arrive by your intended entry date

If the COE will not be issued in time for your intended date of entry, one option is to come to Japan first as a Temporary Visitor (短期滞在), leave Japan after the COE is issued, obtain a visa, and then re-enter. In principle, you cannot change from Temporary Visitor to a spouse visa while staying in Japan.

1. File the application for a Certificate of Eligibility first
2. While waiting for the examination, come to Japan as a Temporary Visitor (nationals of countries and regions that are not visa-exempt need a Temporary Visitor visa)
3. When the COE is issued, leave Japan within your period of stay as a Temporary Visitor
4. Present the COE at a Japanese embassy or consulate abroad and obtain a visa
5. Enter Japan as a "Spouse or Child of Japanese National" within three months from the date the COE was issued

Whether a Temporary Visitor visa is issued and whether landing is permitted are examined each time. This option is not guaranteed to be available.

The Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act provides that a change of status of residence from Temporary Visitor is not permitted unless it is based on "special unavoidable circumstances" (Article 20, paragraph 3). The fact that a COE is issued while you are in Japan does not by itself amount to such circumstances.

The visa needed to come as a Temporary Visitor and the rules during your stay are explained in Can You Change from Temporary Visitor to a Spouse Visa?.

Source: Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act (in Japanese), Article 20, paragraph 3; Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Immigration and Residence Examination Q&A" (in Japanese), Q5, Q6, Q7 and Q55

Can you check the progress of the examination while waiting?

Even if you ask the immigration office how far the examination has progressed, you will most likely not get an answer. The ISA states that it cannot answer inquiries about the progress of individual applications and asks applicants to refrain from calling to check. When the examination is finished, the immigration office notifies you by postcard, email or other means.

If you applied online, you can check the status of your application yourself in the "Application Status" (申請状態) column of the "Application List" (申請情報一覧) in the Online Residence Application System. If additional documents are required, "Waiting for additional submission" (追完待ち) is shown in the "Attached Documents" (添付資料) column.

Source: Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Checking the Progress of Residence Applications" (in Japanese), "Online Procedures for Residence Applications" (in Japanese)

Summary

A COE application for a spouse visa (Spouse or Child of Japanese National) takes about 107 days, or about three and a half months, on average nationwide until issuance (COEs issued in July 2026). Within the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau, in some of our office's applications the COE has taken six months or more to be issued (as of October 11, 2026).

If you apply within the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau, assume that it will take longer than the average, and file a complete set of documents as soon as they are ready. If your date of entry is fixed, it is also safer to decide, before applying, what you will do if the COE is not issued by that date.

References

• Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Processing Time for Residence Examinations" (in Japanese; COEs issued in July 2025 and July 2026)
• Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Application for Certificate of Eligibility" (in Japanese)
• Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau" (in Japanese)
• Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Checking the Progress of Residence Applications" (in Japanese)
• Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Online Procedures for Residence Applications" (in Japanese)
• Immigration Services Agency of Japan, "Immigration and Residence Examination Q&A" (in Japanese)
• Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act (in Japanese), Article 20, paragraph 3
• Immigration and Residence Examination Guidelines (入国・在留審査要領), Part 9, Chapter 2, Sections 1 and 2