Court rejects long-stay visa for gay U.S. man married to Japanese

The court can only go by the law I guess.

If the law results in this, it will be up to LDP/Komeito to change the law.

Simple solution: Go live in America.

I'm all for gay rights but if certain countries are unwilling to amend their laws then so be it. No one is forcing that gay couple to live in Japan. But of course the gay community will bash me for having an opinion.

When I got married only women could get spouse visas, men had to find some other reason to stay with their families.

kurisupisuToday  05:29 pm JST

They don’t really want to give visas to opposite sex married couples either…

I can tell you from my own first hand experience as well as those of my friends that the above statement is absolutely not true. Do you have any first hand experience to back up that statement?

This is exactly why marriage equality is a human right and must respected worldwide.

""The Immigration Services Agency of Japan said the long-term resident status based on marriage to a Japanese national is not granted to same-sex couples.""

And so until this rule or law is changed then I say they are out of luck.

As many posters say, it sounds like the problem here is the law, not immigration's decision making. It sounds like immigration were already bending the rules to issue the short term visa.

I do fully support gay marriage. It's the government's job to introduce it though, not immigration's.

I'm from the UK, married to a Japanese for twenty years with three kids, but incapable of getting a (hetero) UK spouse visa for her. The salary (me, self employed freelance), cash savings, and (probably) language test restrictions are too strict for her to qualify. The application and other fees are also huge, at least 100 times the cost in Japan.

Long term visas are meant for people who have lived here long term. Nothing to do with a long term relationship.

JTCToday 11:38 am JST

This same sex, LBQT (whatever) thing, should not merit special rules - it is not natural, and therefore should not have Laws made to accommodate it/them.

Upon what scientific evidence do you base this assertion? Because it has been well-established that same-sex attraction occurs in nature, among many species.

It seems to me that laws should not be based upon baseless, illogical, nonsensical assertions that have no backing in science and are nothing more than the prejudiced personal beliefs of bigots who can't mind their own business.

If people want to personally, do things with other like-minded, people, then that's their business, so long as it does not impact me, I really don't care about their private lives.

If you don't care, then why are you going out of your way to comment on it? If you didn't care, you would simply ignore it.

But, when you start forcing people to check if who they're dealing with has a private lifestyle that you may not be fully okay with, then that, is a problem - it's also an invasion upon their own privacy

Who is forcing you to check if someone has a same-sex partner? And in what way does knowing that someone is gay constitute an invasion of your privacy?

nakanoguy01Sep. 30 06:53 pm JST

Simple solution: Go live in America.

I'm all for gay rights but if certain countries are unwilling to amend their laws then so be it. No one is forcing that gay couple to live in Japan. But of course the gay community will bash me for having an opinion.

No, I'm going to disagree with you because your opinion is wrong-headed.

The solution to prejudice and discrimination isn't "then don't go there/do that". If LGBTQIA, or any other minorities who have historically faced exclusionary and discriminatory policies did that, they would not be able to go anywhere or do anything.

Would there even have been a civil rights movement at all, if black people had just decided to never live in the southern states? Would gay men and lesbian women the world over be able to marry their same-sex partners if they had said, "Oh, well...that's just how the law is in this country!"

These men were right to fight this discriminatory policy. And we all know that these lawsuits are what will eventually cause the law to change. Because even if individual lawsuits are lost, they still bring much-needed attention to the issue, and the people watching will see the injustice, and that will bring public sentiment around to supporting same-sex marriage. It already is - polls show that most Japanese people are in favor of changing the law.

It's going to happen. Japan will, eventually, legalize same-sex marriage. It may take a while, but cases like this one chip away at the law and pave the way for that change.

So ya may as well get on board now and show your support - or are you one of those people who say "I'm all for gay rights" or "I'm not racist" but whose actions then show the exact opposite?

The court has to follow the rule of law. That's the way it is.

Japan could improve its well-being and its rank in the Global Gender Gap Index if those decision-makers try to show more compassion and are more inclusive.

here is Japan and japanese law applies.USA is in another part of the world buddy.

Japan needs more men like that who stand up for their RIGHTS under the CONSTITUTION.

What rights are those?

Japanese law. If you want to live in Japan follow the laws it's is simple

I’m going to venture a guess here that Japanese judges and courts abide by a very textualist interpretation of law — that is to say, they focus on the plain meaning of the text of a legal document — which is a typical feature of conservative societies (an alternative is usually purposivism, which accounts for the intent of a law).

Perhaps indicting the totality of Japan in this ruling is missing the point — and that progress in Japanese society is exhibited in other parts than the judiciary.

And for the confused: yes, I personally support same-sex marriage in principle.

Their country..

Their laws..

Their rules..

This is Japan and the law and rules must be followed..

Well, go and live happily "married" in the US..

It is WHAT IT IS

Lol

More dark-ages rulings from the court!

The law doesn't say it can be done.

But did the law say it shouldn't be done? Then why deny it?

This same sex, LBQT (whatever) thing, should not merit special rules - it is not natural, and therefore should not have Laws made to accommodate it/them.

If people want to personally, do things with other like-minded, people, then that's their business, so long as it does not impact me, I really don't care about their private lives. But, when you start forcing people to check if who they're dealing with has a private lifestyle that you may not be fully okay with, then that, is a problem - it's also an invasion upon their own privacy.

My marriage is not recognise by the Japanese Government, 7 years continuously defacto of a sexually normal gender to a Japanese national which is recognised in most G7 and western countries. Why should High and his married partner of 6 years of sexually abnormal gender which is also recognised in most G7 and western countries be recognised ? If the Japanese Government allow High special treatment then a large number like myself should receive the same special treatment also.

The Immigration Services Agency of Japan said the long-term resident status based on marriage to a Japanese national is not granted to same-sex couples.

In 2019, a Taiwanese man became the first foreign same-sex partner of a Japanese citizen to be granted special resident status by the Justice Ministry,

(◎-◎；)

"The law is an ass" in Japan, too, but they still have some way to go to descend to the depths of the UK's notorious 'hostile environment" (for "Johnny Foreigner") introduced with malice aforethought by the Tories in 2012 that has meant exile or separation for thousands of Brits, and for some has resulted in the creation of a new kind of family arrangement: "skype families" (spouses and children of UK citizens unable to afford or obtain visas to live together as family in Britain).

It's almost as though Japan actively tries to remain 100 years behind the rest of the modern world that it pretends to be part of when it suits.

Or the twenty-first century

Agree.

It's the 21st century so laws shouldn't be followed anymore

Is anyone surprized? I for one am not.

They don’t really want to give visas to opposite sex married couples either…

The Immigration Services Agency of Japan said the long-term resident status based on marriage to a Japanese national is not granted to same-sex couples.

One of them has to change sex legally

The older partner of a Japanese gay couple can adopt the younger partner. This is regularly done

and makes marriage unnecessary.