Thai woman arrested in Japan after overstaying for nearly 4 years

Japanese police arrested a Thai woman after stopping a car in Shizuoka Prefecture and discovering that she had overstayed her permitted stay by almost four years, according to local media reports.

The 42 year old woman was stopped by police in a car in Ito City at around 4.30am yesterday, September 24. Officers checked her immigration status and discovered that her permission to remain in Japan had expired on October 30, 2022.

Police arrested her on suspicion of violating Japan’s Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act. By the time officers stopped the car, she had remained in Japan for nearly four years beyond her permitted stay.

Japanese police said the woman lived in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, and worked part-time. The report did not specify whether she was driving the car when officers stopped it.

The woman reportedly admitted to the allegation.

The case highlights the importance of checking immigration conditions and permitted periods of stay, particularly for Thai nationals travelling to Japan or living in the country.

Thai travellers were reminded to comply with visa and immigration requirements to avoid legal problems and potential consequences for future travel.

Meanwhile, the Thai government pledged to tackle the increasing number of Thai nationals overstaying their 15-day visas in Japan, following a sharp rise in such incidents over recent years.