It doesn't take a newcomer to Japan long to figure out that for all of the country's technological prowess, tackling everyday tasks still carries the prospect of encountering shocking amounts of red tape. Is this the norm?
Recently, several friends new to Japan shared their encounters with some aspects of life they never could have anticipated. Specifically, these refer to documents they didn't know were needed – because some advisor in charge failed to properly advise.
These include copies of a family register from city hall, an updated bank account passbook, and/or copies of one's residency card, which includes visa status information, among other critical items.
The good news is after living here a few years, one begins to anticipate that business with the bank, city hall, Immigration or the tax office rarely concludes in one visit. Call it a miracle if it does.
Resignation to this reality makes Japan a little easier to swallow. Lessons: learn to make copies of everything because the one copy authorities ask for will most likely be the one somebody else said you didn't need. And learn to keep your schedule clear of all other appointments on the days you must appear in person at places like the driver's license center or Immigration.
Like black holes, those places gobble up hours at a time.
Also learn to bring extra reading material to fill the hours spent idly waiting, as well as an extra power cord and battery charger for your smartphone. Remember bottled water, and/or the can of coffee you didn't finish at breakfast. Bring a full photocopied set of the same document package you submitted last time 'just in case.'
Start mentally preparing yourself a few days ahead of time for the inevitable: filling out any given form more than once because you forgot to write your name in all capital letters, last name first, then first name, then middle name (if you have a middle name, that is).
The most important thing though is that, year by year, you become less and less emotional when 'red tape incidents' occur and you come to understand more Japanese. In the end, one learns to resign one's self to that ubiquitous sense of 'shou ga nai' (in Japanese, literally 'it can't be helped').
The red tape carousel is par for the course when living in Japan. Getting worked up about it is not worth the emotional energy!
Jennifer Gracey is President of Gracey Consultants. She has nearly 20 years of experience in Japan working with Japanese and the Japan-based international community, in addition to the broader Asia region.
