This article is written by a Japanese local.
It is a common daily occurrence for foreign employees working in Japan to be subjected to “police questioning” (Shokumu Shitsumon) by police officers while commuting or going out on their days off. However, there is a never-ending stream of cases where what should end as a simple identity check escalates into a severe compliance violation that engulfs the employing company.
The biggest trigger for this is the suspicion of a “forged residence card.” In recent years, residence card forgery techniques have become extremely sophisticated. Despite the company believing they hired a talent with a legitimate work visa (status of residence), forgeries are being discovered during street checks by the police, leading to situations where the employee is immediately arrested and detained.
This article comprehensively explains the legal mechanisms of residence card checks originating from police questioning, the harsh reality of the “crime of promoting illegal employment” that bares its fangs at companies, and the objective legal defense processes that must be strictly implemented from the hiring stage.
1. Why Foreign Employees Become Targets of Police Questioning
Under Japanese law, strict rules are imposed on foreign nationals staying mid-to-long term, and police officers possess strong authority to prevent illegal stays and illegal employment before they happen.
The Obligations of “Constant Possession” and “Presentation” of Residence Cards
According to the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act (Immigration Control Act), foreign nationals must carry their residence cards at all times. Furthermore, when requested to present it by a police officer or immigration inspector, they have a legal obligation to comply. If an individual goes out leaving the card at home, thinking “I’m just going to the nearby convenience store,” and gets questioned by the police, that act alone constitutes a “violation of the obligation to carry,” potentially resulting in a fine of up to 200,000 yen.
Refusal to Present Constitutes a Crime
For Japanese nationals, presenting ID during police questioning is voluntary, but for foreign nationals, presenting a residence card is an obligation under the Immigration Control Act. If presentation is refused, they are subject to severe criminal penalties of imprisonment with work for up to 1 year or a fine of up to 100,000 yen. Companies must thoroughly instruct their foreign employees to “carry the residence card at all times without exception, and present it promptly when requested by a police officer.”
2. The Mechanism of “Forgery” Discovery During Questioning and Strict Penalties
At the scene of police questioning, officers strictly check whether the presented residence card is genuine using their proprietary know-how and inquiry systems.
On-Site “Inquiries” and the Possession/Exercise of Forged Cards
If forgery is suspected due to unnatural holograms, missing watermarks, or database inquiries of the card number, it directly leads to voluntary accompaniment to the station or arrest on the spot. Under the Immigration Control Act, penalties for forged residence cards are set extremely high. This can also lead to fatal consequences such as the revocation of the status of residence and forced deportation.
- Possession of a Forged Card: Merely possessing a forged card with the intent to exercise it is punishable by imprisonment for up to 5 years or a fine of up to 500,000 yen.
- Exercise (Use) of a Forged Card: Presenting or using a forged card as an identification document is a very serious crime punishable by imprisonment from 1 year up to 10 years.
3. The Terror of the “Crime of Promoting Illegal Employment” Baring its Fangs at Companies
If your company’s employee is arrested with a forged residence card due to police questioning, the damage is not limited to the foreign individual alone. The investigative scalpel will also mercilessly strike the employing company.
Negligence Liability: “I Didn’t Know” is No Excuse
If a company ends up employing an illegal stayer holding a forged card, the company will be charged with the “crime of promoting illegal employment.” This carries a heavy penalty of imprisonment for up to 3 years or a fine of up to 3 million yen (or both).
The most terrifying aspect is that this crime absolutely does not tolerate the excuse “I didn’t know it was a forgery.” If negligence (fault) on the part of the company is recognized, such as “neglecting to verify the residence card” or “failing to take appropriate measures to detect a forgery,” the company becomes subject to punishment. This directly leads to situations that shake the management foundation, such as the public disclosure of the company name due to compliance violations and the suspension of future acceptance of foreign human resources.
4. The “Legal Defense Approach” Corporations Must Build
To prevent corporate collapse chaining from police questioning, “objective evidence building” that does not rely on subjective judgment is essential as a border control measure at the time of hiring.
① Strict Verification by Visual Inspection and Touch
First, you must always take the original card directly in your hand and verify the following points. Verifying via a copy is out of the question.
- Whether the hologram letters “MOJ” (Ministry of Justice) change from pink to green when the card is tilted up, down, left, and right.
- Whether watermark letters appear on the back of the card when strong light is applied in a dark place.
- Whether the facial photograph has been unnaturally pasted over.
② Electronic Reading of the IC Chip (Mandatory)
Modern forgery techniques have reached a level where they cannot be detected by visual inspection alone. Install the “Residence Card Reading Application” provided free of charge by the Immigration Services Agency on a smartphone, and always read the IC chip during the hiring interview. By verifying that the information displayed on the screen perfectly matches the information printed on the card surface, you can drastically eliminate forgery risks.
③ Residence Card Number Invalidity Information Inquiry
Enter the residence card number and expiration date on the Immigration Services Agency’s website to check in real-time online whether the card has expired or been invalidated.
5. Initial Response if an Employee is Detained During Police Questioning
In the unlikely event that a foreign employee of your company is detained by the police due to “suspicions regarding the residence card” triggered by police questioning, or if contact is lost, the company must immediately take the following actions.
Instead of waiting for a call from the police, prepare the residence card data and reading records (evidence) copied and stored at the time of hiring, and move to verify the facts. If the company cannot prove here that there were no deficiencies in its verification process, it will be suspected of promoting illegal employment.
If the situation is complex or if you are unsure how to handle the police and Immigration, never try to handle it solely internally. Consult immediately with qualified professionals, such as lawyers or administrative scriveners well-versed in immigration law. Objective fact-checking and appropriate approaches to administrative agencies by qualified professionals will minimize the damage to the company.
6. Conclusion: Neglecting Verification Threatens Corporate Survival
Police questioning directed at foreign employees is like a pop quiz for a company, testing whether its “compliance system at the time of hiring is genuine.”
Subjective judgments such as “they look like a serious person, so it must be real” are entirely useless in legal practice. Building an objective verification system to detect forged residence cards, retaining records, and routinely educating employees about the importance of the obligation to carry their cards—this organized series of management processes is the only orthodox method to protect globally expanding companies from unforeseen legal troubles.