Before Leaving Japan
When returning to home country
There are many things you must do before leaving Japan when completing your studies at Niigata University and returning to your home country. Necessary procedures are listed below. Please read them carefully beforehand, and make your plan to return to your home country.
★ Checklist for Returning to Home Country ★
Procedures at Niigata University
□ Report and confirmation of departure date , etc.
Once you have decided your date of departure, please report and have the following items confirmed at the Student Affairs Office of your Faculty or Graduate School.
(As a receiving organization, Niigata University is responsible for managing its international students and must ensure that they return to their home countries after graduation, completion, withdrawal, etc.)
- Address after returning to your home country
- Contact information after returning to your home country
(Note: A telephone number and e-mail address where you can always be reached.) - Airline ticket or other documents showing your travel itinerary
□ Submit “Notification Form for Students and Researchers before Departure”
For the sake of Security Export Control (Japanese only), please submit “Notification Form for Students and Researchers before Departure” no later than 3 weeks prior to the date of your departure from the university by following the instruction of your Faculty or Graduate School.
□ Return your Student ID Card
Please return your Student ID Card to the Student Affairs Office of your Faculty/Graduate School.
Make sure to return your laboratory keys, library books, and other borrowed items from Niigata University to the appropriate place. In addition, please check with your Faculty/Graduate School if there are any required documents.
Procedures related to your life in Japan
<<Procedures for moving out from accommodation>>
□ Vacant your accommodation
Contact the real estate agent one to three months before moving out. Contact gas, water and power companies to make the final payment. Make sure your unit is clean. Return the keys.
*For details on moving out, please follow the guidance and instructions of the Co-op, real estate agency, etc., that manages your accommodation.
□ Take care of your own bulk waste (large items) properly
Disposal of unwanted items, especially bulk wastes, requires prior notice. Contact Niigata City Bulk Waste Reception Center by phone or online.
Niigata City Bulk Waste Policy
https://www.city.niigata.lg.jp/kurashi/gomi/gomishigen/gomidasi/niigata/discard.html(Japanese language only)
Niigata City Bulk Waste Reception Center
TEL 025-290-5353
Online Application System https://www.sodai.city.niigata.jp/ (Japanese language only)
□ Report cancelation of an apartment contract to International Office (If you have taken out “Comprehensive Renter’s Insurance for International Students.”)
If you have enrolled in “Comprehensive Renter’s Insurance for International Students” and asked Niigata University to be the guarantor for your apartment, please report cancelation of the apartment contract to Office of Student Mobikity.
<<Procedures at the ward office>>
□ Notice of moving out
Submit a notice of moving out at the ward office. It should be submitted about two weeks before leaving Japan. Take your Residence Card, Notification Card (Notification Card for My Number), and passport. Return your My Number Card if you have one and do not plan to come back to Japan.
□ Withdrawal from National Health Insurance
Complete the withdrawal procedure for National Health Insurance at the ward office and return the Health Insurance Card. Pay any outstanding amount. Take documentary evidence for date of leaving Japan, if any.
(Example: airline ticket confirming booking status)
<<Required by Immigration Services Agency>>
□ Notification of the Accepting Organization
When you complete your studies at Niigata University, prepare the Notification of the Accepting Organization (withdrawal) and submit to the Immigration Services Agency within 14 days from the end date of your academic period. You can submit the notification online through the Immigration Services Agency's e-Notification System using your computer or smartphone. For details, click HERE.
In addition to using the online notification service, you can also bring the form to the nearest regional immigration office or mail it to the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau.
Mailing address:
Yotsuya Tower 14F, 1-6-1 Yotsuya, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0004
Registration Department, Tokyo Regional Immigration Services Bureau
*Write “Notification Included” in red on the front of the envelope
*Include a copy of both sides of the Residence Card
When you fill in the “Notification of the Accepting Organization (withdrawal),” the “Date of left the organization” should be the end date of your enrollment period.
Example:
March 25: Graduation Ceremony
March 31: End date of your enrollment period
April 3: Your departure from Japan
For the example above, your “Date of left the organization” should be March 31, and you must submit the “Notification of the Accepting Organization (withdrawal)” within 14 days from the date. If you write a future date for the “Date of left the organization” and submit the document before the “Date of left the organization,” it will not be accepted. Refer to the example to fill out the document HERE .
Note that if you leave Japan before the end of your enrollment and return your residence card at the departure airport, as in the following example, you do not need to file the notification.
Example:
February 13: End of classes
February 15: Departure from Japan
You return the residence card upon departure from Japan.
February 28: End of your enrollment period at Niigata University
In addition, you cannot access the “Immigration Services Agency's e-Notification System” from overseas. If you need to submit the notification from overseas, please do so by international mail.
<<Others>>
□ Closing bank accounts
Confirm that all necessary payments have been made and close your bank account. Take your passbook, bank cards, seal (if used for opening the account), and personal ID (Residence Card, passport, etc.).
□ Cancellation of other contracts/ Return items
If you have contracts for mobile phones, smart phones and personal computers, you must cancel the contracts. Remember to make the final payment when you cancel the contracts. If you have rental items, make sure to return them.
□ If you own a bicycle
When returning to your home country, do not abandon or illegally dump your bicycle. Before you leave, be sure to complete one of the following procedures:
- Dispose of it: Take it to a waste disposal center (Shinden Waste Disposal Center: 3644-1 Kasagi, Nishi-ku, Niigata City), or contact the “Bulk Waste Reception Center” to have it picked up.
- Give it to a friend
- Sell it
Note: In all cases, you must complete the cancellation procedure of "Bouhan touroku” (anti-crime registration)" . If you own a bicycle, be sure to consult with the the Student Affairs Office of your Faculty or Graduate School before returning to your home country.
<<At the airport>>
□ Returning the Residence Card
Please make sure to return to the immigration officer at the airport of departure. Carry it with you. Do not place in checked baggage.
Notes on the status of residence of “Student”
・Notice on status of residence
When you complete your studies at Niigata University or withdraw from Niigata University, you cannot continue to stay in Japan with the status of residence of “Student.” It is illegal to do so. If you remain in Japan, you have to change the status of residence from “Student” to a different status.
*In principle, exchange students may not change their status of residence and stay in Japan: they must return to their home countries.
・“Designated Activities” for international students to continue job-hunting after graduation
If a full-time student with status of residence as “Student” is to continue employment seeking activities that have been on-going during his/her studies, application to change the status of residence from “Student” to “Designated activities” may be available. Contact the International Office for details before graduation.
*Non-degree-seeking students such as research students, credited auditors and special auditing students (including exchange students) are not eligible.