Zairyu-card (residence card)

The zairyu card is the official residence card issued to foreign nationals living in Japan on a status of over three months. It states your visa type, period of stay, and whether you may work, with the work permission printed on the back. It is the document landlords and guarantee companies scrutinize most, and a single overlooked detail, like submitting only the front when the back shows the work permit, routinely stalls or sinks a rental application. For property purchases it underpins your ability to register a juminhyo and a jitsuin and is part of the identity check at settlement. A short-stay tourist will not have one, which is why buying on a tourist visa relies on alternative identity documents.