Well-grounded and balanced discussion. I agree that it makes living in a place much easier if one speaks the commonly spoken language of that area, especially if one can acquire the social aspects of language interactions.
I think that if you live long(er) time in any country you should learn the language. But yes, I know sufficient foreigners who after 10-20 years don’t speak the language. I met them both in Spain and now in Japan. Probably it sounds like after 10-20 years you should speak it, but I guess that the longer you manage to function without the language the harder it actually gets to learn it. Thus I always did learn the language first thing before moving to a new country. The only language I haven’t mastered is Dutch , simply because too many Dutch speak so excellent English or German, that even if I tried speaking in Dutch the reply would come in English/German. In Japan my observation is that the guys (it’s mostly guys) that don’t speak Japanese even after 10-20 years, are married to a Japanese woman who takes care of their Japanese language needs. And they just settle into it and never get around learning the language.
I agree pretty much with all of this. Of course it's literally true that you don't have to speak Japanese to retire here, and many people don't, but you get so much more out of living in any foreign country if you can function comfortably in the language.
If you can learn Japanese, then Fantastic! It's not really an option for some of us. I lived in Hong Kong for fifteen years and beat my head against the wall with Cantonese. I forgot the language faster than I could ever remember it. That said, I could totally retire in Hong Kong ( I still have my Permanent Residence). I could also retire in Japan without having to know Japanese (which I am certain I cannot learn).
It must be said that it is a great thing that Japanese speak Japanese and little else. It creates a rather marvelous linguistic moat to fend off the rest of the world.
I totally agree with you. To retired in Japan you do not need Japanese if you speaking English, but having ability to speak the language will give you more opportunities to live and have fun.
Being able to read in Japanese opened up the culture a lot for me. It also enabled me to understand what was going on when it came to official notices, tax and all other things that otherwise I'd have to rely on someone for (usually my wife). So if you're in Japan for the long term I definitely think it's a good thing. I will also say that the most jaded and unhappy people I've met in Japan are usually the ones who have been here for a long time and can't speak Japanese. Thanks for the video.
I think it should be expressed that PR is not exactly permission to live in Japan permanently but the government recognizing that you have been living permanently in Japan up to this point.
What practical difference would making that distinction serve? A permanent resident who maintains their residence in Japan and does not commit a serious crime would be able to live here indefinitely without needing to fulfill any other conditions.
What does that mean? With PR you can live in Japan indefinitely without needing a job or having any other restrictions. It's about the future not the past.
Two things: The average Japanese person is still very intimidated when dealing with foreigners. Most have very little confidence in their own English ability and would prefer not to even try speaking it to avoid inadvertantly offending the other and/or embarrasing themselves in the process. The other is location: You can get by pretty well in the large cities without speaking Japanese, but if you're in rural Japan, it's definitely a lot harder without some basic level of Japanese.
I'm living in America, but want to retire in Japan.. so I think the hardest part is just forcing myself to study and making it a part of daily life so when we do finally move, I'll be able to keep progressing at a reasonable business level of conversation
I am bothered by the fact that if you happen to live in Japan while a natural disaster occurs (i.e., earthquake) would you be able to follow emergency instructions from the TV/Radio or from first responders? That would be my major concern with not knowing Japanese...
I was in Sendai for 3-11, and the radio broadcasts were completely useless. I didn't even know about the tsunami until we left Sendai a couple of days later. No TV as the power was off. I think Japan is getting much better at providing information in different languages, so I'm not sure how much of a problem it would be. Best to do your homework in advance though, get disaster info and figure out what you need to do in a disaster rather than trying to figure it out after the worst happens.
I have lived in Japan 14 years now and am ashamed to say outside of transactional type interactions, do not speak much Japanese. Can get by but accept will never have an opinion since I cannot communicate this. The other side is that I live in ignorance which has its pluses. My plan is to retire Japan, so I do feel the pressure, agree your sentiment is much more preferable to speak Japanese than not. At my stage, I'm not entirely sure the value written Japanese. Appreciate the video, thank you.
You're not alone mate. I came to Japan following my family. My job is regional and though I cover Japan my office colleagues are highly fluent in English.... As such I'm with you that I'm mainly transactional Japanese and struggle to have a deep opinion based discussion. I will study more when I'm done with work but for now I just chip away a little bit each day with basic books and a couple of apps.
Oh, for myself I don't think the benefits of getting better at reading and writing are worth the immense amount of time it would take to do that. Getting comfortable speaking and listening probably takes about 10-20% of the time it would take to get comfortable reading and writing 😅
Are there Senior Home options in Japan tailored for foreigners (i.e. English speaking staff, western food options)? It may seem far in the future but I'm guessing many foreigners like me, who have made Japan their permanent home, will likely face the eventual reality of not being able to live on their own. I'm sure most standard Japanese senior living options are fine but wondering if there are foreigner friendly options.
very good question and i've not seen much on this subject. I have seen one video about long term care facilities in thailand that cater to english speaking foreigners here on youtube. you can try searching youtube for "long term healthcare elderly japan". There are quite a few videos on this so maybe someone talks about foreigner care
I also would love to know this. Even though I manage in Japanese, I'm worried about forgetting it as I get older. I'd also love to have an option for more Western foods on the menu, since I'm not a big fan of most Japanese food. Maybe I should just look into hiring a Phillipine housekeeper like the folks in Hong Kong do, ha ha!
What is the normal amount of time (barring a Japanese spouse) to live in Japan to achieve PR? I am thinking about retiring here, but I have only been in the country for a year, and I want to retire in three or four years. What options do I have?
There is a high skill fast track to PR, but you need a high salary and advanced degrees generally. Otherwise 10 years residence or 5?3? years of marriage to a Japanese citizen. You can naturalize after five years I believe though, if you are willing to give up your current nationality 😁
@@RetireJapan_OG I have a PhD and a fairly high salary in my current job. I guess I would have to get my PR while still employed. However, my total time working here would only be about 4 years if I retire when I want to.
Normally 10 years but change to Highly Skilled Professional I and do that for a year and then you will be eligible (so ~2 years in total, depends on how long it takes them to approve the PR application).
@@rsmith02 I checked a website explaining how to get PR and it says that you need a 3 year visa before you can apply. My visas have only been one year since I am technically working under yearly contracts.
IMO, you don't 'need' to have skills in Japanese if you plan to retire in Japan. BUT it DOES make it like ALOT easier if you have some >0 ability. Retired 4 yrs now. Personal experience being in Japan 2-3 x per year with my Japanese spouse. She worries little about me, if she is not around to 'rescue' me, because I have enough Japanese skills to get around. And by the way, don't ever discount your N1 level. I know what that test looks like, it's brutal. You are part of the 0.01%ers.
You just listed all the things you can do in Japanese (even passing as a Japanese person on the phone for a while) then said you`re not billiungal, haha, so what does it take to self-identifty as bilingual?
Personally I didn't go to school here so am missing a lot of vocabulary and context. I'd also like my reading and writing to be a lot better before is think of calling myself bilingual. I have been bilingual (Spanish-English when I was growing up there) before so my Japanese, while okay, doesn't seem to be on the same level.
If you are referring to me I don't think that will be the case, at least not any more than being left alone as an elderly man anywhere. At least I have family here, which is not the case with any other country. I am hoping my children/grandchildren/great-grandchildren will at least keep an eye on me 😉
Well-grounded and balanced discussion. I agree that it makes living in a place much easier if one speaks the commonly spoken language of that area, especially if one can acquire the social aspects of language interactions.
I think that if you live long(er) time in any country you should learn the language. But yes, I know sufficient foreigners who after 10-20 years don’t speak the language. I met them both in Spain and now in Japan. Probably it sounds like after 10-20 years you should speak it, but I guess that the longer you manage to function without the language the harder it actually gets to learn it. Thus I always did learn the language first thing before moving to a new country. The only language I haven’t mastered is Dutch , simply because too many Dutch speak so excellent English or German, that even if I tried speaking in Dutch the reply would come in English/German.
In Japan my observation is that the guys (it’s mostly guys) that don’t speak Japanese even after 10-20 years, are married to a Japanese woman who takes care of their Japanese language needs. And they just settle into it and never get around learning the language.
I agree pretty much with all of this. Of course it's literally true that you don't have to speak Japanese to retire here, and many people don't, but you get so much more out of living in any foreign country if you can function comfortably in the language.
I have so little natural interest in learning Japanese, and yet I fully believe anyone that lives in Japan should learn it. I really struggle!
i'm waiting for a wearable AI translator but in the meantime google translate will have to do
If you can learn Japanese, then Fantastic! It's not really an option for some of us. I lived in Hong Kong for fifteen years and beat my head against the wall with Cantonese. I forgot the language faster than I could ever remember it. That said, I could totally retire in Hong Kong ( I still have my Permanent Residence). I could also retire in Japan without having to know Japanese (which I am certain I cannot learn).
You may be pleasantly surprised. I found Japanese MUCH easier than Mandarin, and my impression is that Mandarin is easier than Cantonese 😀
It must be said that it is a great thing that Japanese speak Japanese and little else. It creates a rather marvelous linguistic moat to fend off the rest of the world.
That is a great point, and I kind of agree with you slightly 😅
Totally agree. That’s why my Japanese is much better than my Dutch, although Dutch is such an easy language to learn.
You are definitely bilingual, don’t cut yourself short!
Thanks for your videos!
You are too kind. Thanks for watching!
I totally agree with you. To retired in Japan you do not need Japanese if you speaking English, but having ability to speak the language will give you more opportunities to live and have fun.
Being able to read in Japanese opened up the culture a lot for me. It also enabled me to understand what was going on when it came to official notices, tax and all other things that otherwise I'd have to rely on someone for (usually my wife). So if you're in Japan for the long term I definitely think it's a good thing. I will also say that the most jaded and unhappy people I've met in Japan are usually the ones who have been here for a long time and can't speak Japanese. Thanks for the video.
Thanks for watching 😀
I think it should be expressed that PR is not exactly permission to live in Japan permanently but the government recognizing that you have been living permanently in Japan up to this point.
What practical difference would making that distinction serve? A permanent resident who maintains their residence in Japan and does not commit a serious crime would be able to live here indefinitely without needing to fulfill any other conditions.
@@RetireJapan_OGit’s just the way it feels to me!
What does that mean? With PR you can live in Japan indefinitely without needing a job or having any other restrictions. It's about the future not the past.
Two things: The average Japanese person is still very intimidated when dealing with foreigners. Most have very little confidence in their own English ability and would prefer not to even try speaking it to avoid inadvertantly offending the other and/or embarrasing themselves in the process. The other is location: You can get by pretty well in the large cities without speaking Japanese, but if you're in rural Japan, it's definitely a lot harder without some basic level of Japanese.
I think Ben did this deliberately to test our Japanese. The Thumbnail screen for this video states I'm sorry I don't eat Japanese.
It's an old joke in the non-Japanese community 😀
I'm living in America, but want to retire in Japan.. so I think the hardest part is just forcing myself to study and making it a part of daily life so when we do finally move, I'll be able to keep progressing at a reasonable business level of conversation
I am bothered by the fact that if you happen to live in Japan while a natural disaster occurs (i.e., earthquake) would you be able to follow emergency instructions from the TV/Radio or from first responders? That would be my major concern with not knowing Japanese...
I was in Sendai for 3-11, and the radio broadcasts were completely useless. I didn't even know about the tsunami until we left Sendai a couple of days later. No TV as the power was off.
I think Japan is getting much better at providing information in different languages, so I'm not sure how much of a problem it would be. Best to do your homework in advance though, get disaster info and figure out what you need to do in a disaster rather than trying to figure it out after the worst happens.
I have lived in Japan 14 years now and am ashamed to say outside of transactional type interactions, do not speak much Japanese. Can get by but accept will never have an opinion since I cannot communicate this. The other side is that I live in ignorance which has its pluses. My plan is to retire Japan, so I do feel the pressure, agree your sentiment is much more preferable to speak Japanese than not. At my stage, I'm not entirely sure the value written Japanese. Appreciate the video, thank you.
You're not alone mate. I came to Japan following my family. My job is regional and though I cover Japan my office colleagues are highly fluent in English.... As such I'm with you that I'm mainly transactional Japanese and struggle to have a deep opinion based discussion. I will study more when I'm done with work but for now I just chip away a little bit each day with basic books and a couple of apps.
Oh, for myself I don't think the benefits of getting better at reading and writing are worth the immense amount of time it would take to do that.
Getting comfortable speaking and listening probably takes about 10-20% of the time it would take to get comfortable reading and writing
😅
Are there Senior Home options in Japan tailored for foreigners (i.e. English speaking staff, western food options)? It may seem far in the future but I'm guessing many foreigners like me, who have made Japan their permanent home, will likely face the eventual reality of not being able to live on their own. I'm sure most standard Japanese senior living options are fine but wondering if there are foreigner friendly options.
very good question and i've not seen much on this subject. I have seen one video about long term care facilities in thailand that cater to english speaking foreigners here on youtube. you can try searching youtube for "long term healthcare elderly japan". There are quite a few videos on this so maybe someone talks about foreigner care
I also would love to know this. Even though I manage in Japanese, I'm worried about forgetting it as I get older. I'd also love to have an option for more Western foods on the menu, since I'm not a big fan of most Japanese food. Maybe I should just look into hiring a Phillipine housekeeper like the folks in Hong Kong do, ha ha!
What is the normal amount of time (barring a Japanese spouse) to live in Japan to achieve PR? I am thinking about retiring here, but I have only been in the country for a year, and I want to retire in three or four years. What options do I have?
There is a high skill fast track to PR, but you need a high salary and advanced degrees generally.
Otherwise 10 years residence or 5?3? years of marriage to a Japanese citizen.
You can naturalize after five years I believe though, if you are willing to give up your current nationality
😁
@@RetireJapan_OG I have a PhD and a fairly high salary in my current job. I guess I would have to get my PR while still employed. However, my total time working here would only be about 4 years if I retire when I want to.
@@cbauch Definitely worth looking at the highly skilled professional route to PR then: dsg.or.jp/column/permanent/4171/
Normally 10 years but change to Highly Skilled Professional I and do that for a year and then you will be eligible (so ~2 years in total, depends on how long it takes them to approve the PR application).
@@rsmith02 I checked a website explaining how to get PR and it says that you need a 3 year visa before you can apply. My visas have only been one year since I am technically working under yearly contracts.
IMO, you don't 'need' to have skills in Japanese if you plan to retire in Japan. BUT it DOES make it like ALOT easier if you have some >0 ability. Retired 4 yrs now. Personal experience being in Japan 2-3 x per year with my Japanese spouse. She worries little about me, if she is not around to 'rescue' me, because I have enough Japanese skills to get around. And by the way, don't ever discount your N1 level. I know what that test looks like, it's brutal. You are part of the 0.01%ers.
You just listed all the things you can do in Japanese (even passing as a Japanese person on the phone for a while) then said you`re not billiungal, haha, so what does it take to self-identifty as bilingual?
Personally I didn't go to school here so am missing a lot of vocabulary and context.
I'd also like my reading and writing to be a lot better before is think of calling myself bilingual.
I have been bilingual (Spanish-English when I was growing up there) before so my Japanese, while okay, doesn't seem to be on the same level.
Immigration would give you a visa out of the kindness of their heart.........man that is funny.
I have heard of people getting long-term resident visas in this kind of situation, but it is certainly not guaranteed.
言葉の通じない国で暮らすのは月の上で孤独に暮らすのとどこが違う？
自分の産まれた国で暮らすのが人間として幸せだろう。
僕はそう思わないですね。いろんな国に住んでいましたが、新しい環境で生活すると面白いです。
自分の生まれた国より、違い国のほうが合う時もあります。
でも住んでいる国の言語を覚えない思考がちょっとわからない
😅
you'll be screwed if your wife dies and you're left alone as an elderly man
If you are referring to me I don't think that will be the case, at least not any more than being left alone as an elderly man anywhere. At least I have family here, which is not the case with any other country.
I am hoping my children/grandchildren/great-grandchildren will at least keep an eye on me 😉