Immigration Services Agency of Japan Tightens Ryugaku Visa Rules, Requires Stronger Financial Proof

(JAPAN) — Japan’s Immigration Services Agency of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tightened rules for the Ryugaku visa, imposing tougher financial checks, new language standards and closer monitoring of student work under an official notification dated April 10, 2026.

The changes raise the threshold for applicants seeking student status at Japanese language schools and other institutions. They also widen the amount of documentation schools and sponsors must provide, with closer scrutiny of money flows, tax records and employment history before a student can secure a Certificate of Eligibility, or COE.

Japanese authorities now require applicants to show liquid assets of approximately ¥1,500,000 to ¥2,000,000 for the first year, roughly $13,500 – $14,000 USD. Officials also require proof of where the money came from, including 3–6 months of transaction history, income tax returns, or ITR, and employment certificates, rather than relying on a bank balance certificate alone.

That financial review goes beyond the balance in an account. Bank certificates by themselves no longer satisfy the check, and funds cannot appear to have been temporarily borrowed to support an application. Applications that include undocumented cash or missing tax declarations risk rejection on suspicion that the money came from the informal economy.

The language rules will tighten again in October 2026. Students enrolling in Japanese language schools who do not hold university degrees must submit formal test results such as JLPT N5 or NAT-Test, or complete a formal interview conducted by the Japanese institution.

Students who have already graduated from a foreign university are exempt from those specific language testing steps. The change replaces a looser practice under which a certificate showing 150 hours of study was often accepted.

Schools also face a larger compliance role. Language schools must verify every three months where students are working and ensure they do not exceed the 28-hour-per-week ceiling for part-time employment.

If students refuse to follow those rules, schools must report them directly to the ISA. The requirement links schools more closely to immigration enforcement and puts routine work checks into the visa compliance process.

Japan’s new approach arrives as the United States moves in a parallel but separate direction on student immigration. On May 11, 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security submitted a final rule to the Office of Management and Budget that would end Duration of Status, known as D/S, for F, J and I visa holders and replace it with fixed periods of stay.

“The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is seeking to finalize a regulation that would subject international students, exchange visitors, and representatives of foreign information media to fixed periods of stay, eliminating the longstanding policy of admitting these individuals into the country for the duration of their status.”

The U.S. shift adds a second point of pressure for international students comparing study destinations. Japan is tightening source-of-funds checks while the United States is moving toward fixed-duration admissions, with a proposed maximum of 4 years for admission in the summary provided.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services also issued guidance on May 5, 2026 requiring students seeking extensions to provide biometrics and face stricter source-of-funds reviews. That places funding documentation under closer review on both sides of the Pacific, though the two systems operate under different visa structures and different stay rules.

In Japan, the stay period remains linked to the COE. In the United States, the DHS proposal would replace the longstanding D/S model with a fixed-period admission system for F-1 and related categories. Japan caps student work at 28 hours per week and now requires 3-month audits by schools; the U.S. summary points to stricter CPT and OPT compliance monitoring.

The practical effect in Japan starts long before an applicant reaches a consulate. Students now need a clean, traceable financial record built over time, with the summary stating that applicants should plan finances 6–12 months in advance so account activity, tax filings and sponsor income records line up under inspection.

That longer paper trail also affects processing time. COE issuance, described as the most critical document in the visa process, is now taking 1–3 months as officers review the added documentation burden tied to funding and sponsor records.

Another administrative change is scheduled for June 14, 2026, when Japan will merge the Residence Card and My Number Card into a Specified Residence Card. The integration is designed to streamline tracking of compliance with tax and work laws, adding another layer to how immigration and related records connect inside Japan’s student visa system.

That combination of funding scrutiny, language screening and work monitoring marks a broader tightening for the Ryugaku route. A prospective student who once could rely on a school certificate and a bank balance now faces a more documentary system, where the origin of funds, the academic background of the applicant and the student’s ongoing work activity all receive formal checks.

The official frameworks behind those changes are set out by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The related U.S. rulemaking review appears on the DHS/OIRA rulemaking portal, where the fixed-period admission proposal for F, J and I categories entered final rule review on May 11, 2026.