Guus Veldhuis wrote:

> Thanks, for some answers till now. I have a relation with a Japanese woman 
> now for nearly a year and we were not thinking about marriage at. I have a 
> job offered for a year and the owner of the company request at the 
> emigration office,  a work and staying permit.

This is pretty much normal.  If you have a unique skill that the 
Japanese company wishes to make use of, then they will present that as 
the reason for offering you the position.

> My girlfriend heard bad news about the new rules given to the emigration 
> office to limit foreigners, specially the one without degrees. I have no 
> degrees, just the job offer and I come from the Netherlands. My girlfriend 
> came up wih the idea of the marriage.

If you are not sure that this is the woman you want to marry, then you 
should first find out whether the people vetting your qualifications are 
sticklers for "degree" requirements.  They shouldn't be, but there are 
assholes in every country's governments.

Normally, the rules call for you to have a degree _or_ to be able to 
prove that you have the skills via your work record.  Obviously, your 
potential employer thinks you are capable of doing the job, so you 
should work with them to prepare a convincing application.  If the 
Immigration people reject the initial application, you normally will not 
be rejected in total, but for failing to meet one or two specific 
points.  They will tell you what is lacking and you can then go about 
solving that one problem.

You can play the marriage card at any time.  No sense jumping into 
something you don't want to do 100%.

> I hope everyone now understands what is going on. If someone has advice 
> please let me know,.

One other thing ... are you living in Japan now?  If so, what kind of 
visa to you have?

CL