Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau
On Monday, October 11th, I had to go to the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau in Minato-ku near JR Shinagawa Station for the first time in seven years. Hopefully, I won’t have to return until 2028. Bus platform No. 8 outside the station hosts buses dedicated to shuttling foreigners to the Bureau. The entire process is tedious but not difficult if you have all your documents ready. Most of the foreigners I saw at Immigration were Asian - Koreans and Chinese. No surprise. But there is always a smattering of Africans, South Americans, and European and North American Caucasians. I imagine everyone of them has their own unique story, but I try not to think about it.
Like many foreigners, I typically complain ferociously about having to tend to administrative things involving Immigration and official documents. First, I had to wrap my mind around the concept of the chore. But once I reached the Immigration Bureau, I was in and out in 45-minutes. Easy peasy Japanesey. Just getting there is the biggest hurdle.
When I arrived at Shinagawa Station, the bus platform was predictably jammed with hundreds of foreigners trying to get there early. It was a really discouraging sight to start with. By the time I was finished and returned to the Station, the bus platform was empty, as you can see from this picture.