Might be moving to Himeji or Kamigori of Hyogo Prefecture

Hello cariatan,

For a better visibility and interaction with members, i created a new topic with your question on the Japan forum.

All the best,
Christine
Expat.com

I don't understand. You're marrying a Japanese right? Can't you learn Japanese from your fiance?

Living expenses varies depending on where you live and by choice. It is quite common to only have 1 family member working in a family of 2-3 in Japan.
It shouldn't be a problem.

You should really discuss this with your fiance instead. Shouldn't he be knowledgeable in this already?

Hi Christine, thank you.

Hi Josephting,

Yes, i am marrying a Japanese. We speak in english all the time and i am learning Hiragana & Katakana and also some very very simple Kanji at the same time by typing on the phone.

We have discussed of some of the topics and yeah, and i found out that it is difficult for me to accept some of the Japanese extreme work culture. I am trying to convince myself that just have to accept whatever it is.

By the way, may i know where are you from please?

Regards

You should be able to check where I'm from by looking at my profile.
I was born in Malaysia, currently living alone in Tokyo for work.
Came here 2 months ago.

As with extreme work culture, it really depends on the company.
Jobs with a lot of overtime work is also present in Malaysia.
With simple Google search, there is already ranking of Japanese company with least overtime.

Thanks to globalization, people are starting to be aware of foreign cultures and slowly adapting them.
With luck and effort, it shouldn't be too hard to find a suitable job.

Hi Josephting,

Thanks for your prompt reply and also all the information.

May i know what brings you to work and live in Tokyo Japan?

Rgds

I've always wanted to come here as I personally like big city's lifestyle.
Tokyo is easily the largest city in the world.
A job opportunity came and I took it.
That was what brought me here.

Dear Josephting,

I see.
So you do speak good Japanese then.
How long will you be there?

I can barely converse in Japanese at a daily conversational level.
I can stay for at least 5 years for now (visa).
Might leave within 5 years, might stay longer than that.
I don't know yet.

I see.

So far how you like it?
I thought that you will need to speak Japanese well to be able to work in Japan.
Maybe is because in big city like Tokyo or Kyoto is different.

I probably have elementary school level of Japanese in general as there are a lot of words I still don't know yet.
As with reading and writing (typing), it will be of much higher level.

Depending on your lifestyle, you would probably need more speaking than writing and listening than reading and so on.

Tokyo is really nice and convenient.
I can go almost anywhere only by foot and public transport.
Yes, Japanese proficiency is mostly required but I'm not that proficient in speaking yet since I didn't have enough practice of speaking before coming to Japan.

It is true that more people will be able to speak English in larger cities.

According to Japanese immigration specialist, you need 4M JPY annual income for a couple when applying for a permanent residence visa. This can be used as a guideline for you.

Sometimes your financial situation can become an issue. For example, recent cases have required a minimum annual income threshold of 3,300,000 yen for a single person, 4,000,000 yen for a couple and 4,500,000 yen for a couple with a child.

http://www.tokyoimmigration.jp/eng/eijyu.html

Hi Josephting,

Is good to hear that you can get a job offer without speaking good Japanese and that you enjoy being in Japan.
Thanks again for the information.

Regards