Residence card
In Japanese: 在留カード (zairyu kado)
Definition
A residence card (zairyu kado) is issued to mid- to long-term residents staying in Japan for more than three months and shows their status and period of stay.
In more detail
It is issued to mid- to long-term residents on new landing permission, change of status, extension of stay and similar. They must receive the card and carry it.
From 14 June 2026 a “Specified Residence Card” with My Number card functions was introduced, and cards issued from that date show a photo for holders aged 1 and over.
Schools use students’ residence cards to check their status and the date their period of stay ends.
In Classio
In Classio’s international-student screens, residence card expiry dates are tracked: students within 90 days of expiry show as expiring soon, and those who applied for renewal before expiry as renewal pending.
See also
Related terms
- Residence status
Residence status is the legal status that lets a foreign national stay and act in Japan; there are types such as "Student", each with a period of stay.
- Extension of period of stay
Extending the period of stay (zairyu kikan koshin) means applying, before your period of stay ends, to stay longer for the same activity.
Help articles that mention “Residence card”
- Register international students' residence cards and passports, and manage expiry and renewalsRegistering residence cards and passports, statuses by expiry date (valid, expiring, expired, renewal applied), recording a renewal application, removing mistakes, and expiry reminders.
- Create cases for international students, log actions and resolve themCreating a case for residence, document or attendance follow-up, when cases are created automatically, changing status, logging actions, resolving, and how dropout risk is judged.
- Create letters to international students, enrolment lists and reportsCreating period-of-stay, attendance and withdrawal letters (Japanese and English), the status report, expiry and monthly enrolment lists, the attendance report, and bulk document requests.
Sources
- Immigration Services Agency: What is a Residence Card? — Who receives one, and the Specified Residence Card from 14 June 2026
- Immigration Services Agency: Carrying a passport or residence card (Immigration Act Article 23) — Receiving and carrying the residence card
Sources checked: October 24, 2026