It sounds like this isn’t some unique situation, but part of some established program in that country. In which case my advice is to ask whoever runs that program in that country what kind of proof they’d find acceptable. (No point in creating a huge document file only to be told that it isn’t something they’re willing to use). And follow their suggestions if at all possible.
Something like this happened to me. One fine day when I’d been living for ten years straight in Jakarta, Indonesia, I got a nasty letter from a collection agency on behalf of the Maryland State tax department. It seems that some lazy person in the finance office of a Maryland-based company (for which I had consulted at their Jakarta office over the course of several years), had entered a code on my W-9 saying I was a Maryland resident, whereas in fact I had not even set foot in the state for decades.
I didn’t even know the State of Maryland was after me for income tax until years later, since no communications from Maryland ever found me in Indonesia. Calling the collection agency to explain was tons of fun, as you can imagine - I think collections agencies hire the sourest, nastiest people in the world, and then tell them to stop being so nice, everyone in the universe is a deadbeat who deserves to be treated with contempt.
However, I was grudgingly given a fax number so that I could submit proof that I didn’t owe Maryland any income tax because I’d been living in Jakarta for the entire period they wanted to tax me for. For once, the barriers that Indonesia places before foreigners who want to live there worked in my favor. In my passport, like clockwork every six months, were residency permits showing that Indonesian immigration had granted me the right to live in Indonesia for a limited period. I carefully photocopied and annotated every single stamp and sent it all off. It took hours but it was pretty convincing - you’d have to be insane to apply for all those residency permits if you didn’t actually use them.
That’s the last I ever heard of it. It’s possible I’m considered some kind of tax evader by the State of Maryland, but since I have no plans to ever live or work there,my credit rating is very high so apparently unaffected by this snafu, and I could dredge up the paperwork again if I had to, I don’t worry about it.
Did you have a job where you went to an office in Japan, or otherwise were obviously physically present there? If so, employment records plus testimony or an affidavit for the necessity of physical presence part. Affidavits from co-workers who can say they worked with you in Japan from (date) to (date) and saw you on a daily (or whatever) basis.
Your own testimony or affidavit is also (probably – it would be here) evidence. You might do that and then attach as exhibits some of the corroborating documents, if that is permitted there.
Passport stamps should go a long way. Unless you have dual nationality, you shouldn’t have to prove absence of a second, third or fourth passport.
If they don’t take your word for it about where you’ve been living for the past 10 years, why would they take your word for it about whether you have more than one citizenship? And, if they don’t take your word for that, how are you going to prove it? Proving a negative like this is very difficult.
The last time I got my 外国人登録証 renewed (before it became the 在留カード), I noticed that the local ward office had a file of all my previous cards going back to when I first arrived in Japan.
Now the registrations are handled by the Immigration Centers rather than the local offices, but they’d probably have the same information on file.
No; desperate would be Texas. Just ask General Phil (Sheridan).
I would go medical records and employer with sworn statements from a variety of individuals at each. Almost anything else quickly attainable I could probably manage to have forged if I really needed to.
By always moving to competitors when changing jobs I think I’ve burned those bridges down. It’s a small world. I would like to keep my current employer out of my private life.
I will check that out but because I moved a bit there are many ward offices that I will have to follow up with.
Yes, it isn’t a unique situation, but they cannot explain what evidence is acceptable because the evidence is coming from every single country in the world. Instead they ask you for evidence that would support the claim that X Y Z. They can’t ask you to submit an “X-112 form”, because some places don’t have one or even an equivalent.
There are dozens of people that I work and socialize with who could swear under penalty of perjury that they’ve seen me regularly at work, that they’ve been to my home, that they’ve had me in their home, that they’ve come over to water my plants and feed my cat when I’m out of town, etc. for the last 10 years.
Sure. Do they all speak fluent Japanese?
Well, if he’d been living in Japan for the past 10 years, presumably many or most people in that group would not only speak Japanese, but actually be Japanese.
And, if you want to rely on a witness who doesn’t speak the lanaguage of the court, there are mechanisms for this. Like sworn translations.
‘What’ ain’t no country I ever heard of, do they speak English in ‘What’?
I am the “he”.
Translations are awesome. They also cost time and money. Also, do I want to introduce testimony from someone who might have to then fly over there and need an interpreter while there?
I lived in Thailand twice, the second time for 22-1/2 years. We owned our homes for most of that time, and while they were always in the wife’s name, my presence had to be chronicled with the local authorities. I could obtain my 90-day reporting records from Thai Immigration, which details my address. Lots of bills to me at my local address. Employment records – the schools and newspapers I worked at, and the translation company. If you’ve lived in a country for 10 years, there’s going to be some sort of records detailing your presence.
I’ve lived here for about 24 years. I have permanent resident status, which means I don’t have to report to anyone ever. I bought our current residence in my name 3 years ago. Our pervious place was in my wife’s name although we still have it I am not listed anywhere on that loan.
Sorry. Missed that. My bad.
Can I clarify something? You’re trying to prove that you have lived in Japan for many years, but are you trying to prove that (a) in a Japanese court/to the satisfaction of a Japanese official, or (b) to a court/official in some country that isn’t Japan? I had assumed the latter, but your question about whether your witnesses speak Japanese implies that you are trying to produce proof in a Japanese forum.
Trying to prove to an Australian court that I’ve lived in Japan for the last 10 years. That part about “They all speak fluent Japanese right?” was to show to a poster who suggested that he could summon up any number of workmates to prove he worked with them, that it ain’t that simple. Can he imagine in my position it would be the same as him asking his colleagues to sign an affidavit written in Japanese. One or two of my old workmates read good enough English to sign an English affidavit. Or I could get them translated. It’s just more work and greater impositions on people. Doable though, so thanks for the suggestions everyone.
And, can I ask, what’s the context?
Your own testimony - orally, in court, or in an affidavit presented to the court - that you have lived in Japan for the past X years is evidence, and in general it’s considered pretty good evidence. You, after all, are in a better position than anyone else to know where you have been living. Given this evidence, and if there is no evidence tending to contradict it, in most circumstances a court will conclude that the sum of the evidence shows that, on the balance of probabilities, you were living in Japan.
If there’s any evidence presented that you weren’t living in Japan, or if the circumstances are such as to cast doubt on the credibility of the evidence that you might give, then you might want to have your evidence corroborated with secondary evidence, of which employment-related evidence is probably the strongest. A bank book showing regular deposits and withdrawals in your bank account doesn’t show who actually made the deposits and withdrawals; utility bills show who paid the outgoings on a property, but not who lived there; but employment records like payslips (depending on the nature of the job) and/or the testimony of co-workers are pretty strong evidence. There may be dozens of people who can give evidence about this but you don’t need to pay the costs for all of them to do so; one or two witnesses who testify that they were your manager or co-worker would usually be plenty.
Thank you! I don’t really want to disclose anymore than I have already. I think I have a handle on it now.