# Notice and Release Letter



## Joseph Alexander

I am a UK citizen working in Japan on a 'Specialist in Humanities' visa.

I have some questions, if you could answer them for em I would be most grateful.

1) Is a Release Letter necessary in order to find another job and have my visa renewed under a new employer?

2) Can such a Release Letter be issued to me by my current employer in advance of my end of employment date?

3) My contract states that I need to give 2 months notice before leaving. Does the law which only requires 2 weeks notice supersede this?

My current employer says that because a start and finish date is stipulated in my contract, I would need to give more than 2 weeks notice.

4) If I require a Release Letter, how much notice do I have to give my current employer?

Thank-you very much for your time.


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## larabell

1) Required by whom? If your new job falls under the same status of residency, I don't believe Immigration needs to see anything from your former employer. You might not have to do anything at all, Immigration-wise. If the information on your resident's card changes, you would need to notify Immigration within a certain period of time but your employer is not listed on the card. I were in the same position, though, I'd stop by and let them know anyway just to be sure. There's also a certificate you can get from Immigration (used to be... this was before the system changed) that you could show your new employer to verify that your visa applies to the new job. And I've heard of employers asking for a Release Letter from one's prior employer. But my current employer didn't ask for either so it may depend more on your new employer's requirements.

2) Since the letter would list the end-of-employment date, you'd probably at least have to agree on a firm date for termination before they could even draft the letter. Once you've settled on a termination date, you should ask your current employer.

3) Well... if you only give 2 weeks notice, you won't be in trouble with the law but you would be in breach of contract. Whether that matters will entirely depend on how much trouble your current employer wants to cause you. But I would imagine the most they could do is sue you for damages. I doubt something like that would affect your visa status.

4) From what I've read, they can't refuse to issue the letter if you request one. I assume that includes the case where you quit and walk out with no notice. But, again, how smoothly that goes is going to depend on how much trouble your current employer wants to cause because you broke your contract.

My suggestion is that you talk to your current employer and try to agree on a termination date. If you're leaving anyway and the short notice isn't going to leave them holding the bag in some way, they may not mind you leaving on somewhat shorter notice than usual. In any event, talking to them first will grease the wheels, so to speak, even if you ultimately decide not to honor the terms of the contract.


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## Raffish_Chapish

I'm on the same visa as you and switched jobs here. Unless you are moving outside of the 'humanities etc' visa banding it's no problem.

So if you are moving to a similar job as you have now - it's fine. 

You just need to inform the immigration office within 60 days. The HR dept at your new company will be able to give you the form - it's v simple.


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