Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:05PM JST
TOKYO —
Interac’s newest ALT, Carlos Shaw, is “Gaijin #1” with the introduction of the new foreign resident management system in
Japan. Shaw, 37, arrived at Tokyo International Airport Haneda early Monday morning on the Delta Air Lines service from Los Angeles.
Shaw, from Memphis, Tennessee, received the first new residence card from immigration officials shortly after arrival. Upon landing and presenting his passport, having the usual photo taken as well as fingerprints, the immigration officer presented him with his new residence card from beneath the counter.
“It was very simple. Actually, I had no idea I was like the first person. They simply scanned or downloaded the photo from my electronic passport and out of the machine came a card,” said Shaw. “It was a very smooth and fast process and it didn’t take any longer to go through immigration.
“It was not until I came out of the arrivals door and was greeted by the Japanese media that I realized that something was strange. It was from them that I discovered this was a new system and I was No. 1.”
32 Comments
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Zen student at Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:13PM JST
And this is news because.......? (stifled yawn)
Moderator: Because he is the first foreigner in Japan to receive the new card.
otaku2012 at Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:13PM JST
Congrats my friend! I will be joining you soon but I will shake the hand of every single officer who talks to me and give them a deep bow and tell them I love Japan and promise to work hard to earn my citizenship!
Dog at Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:21PM JST
otaku2012Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:13PM JST
Have you ever been to Japan because that is the strangest post ever?
Yubaru at Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:32PM JST
Something about Otaku's post is strangely disturbing to me.
TokyoGas at Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:35PM JST
They should have given him a free train pass for a month or something. That would have been nice.
Maria at Jul. 09, 2012 - 01:56PM JST
I see a great future in the TV CM business for our Carlos.
BurakuminDes at Jul. 09, 2012 - 02:17PM JST
Congrats to the Number one Gaijin in Japan. If I see you in a bar, I will defo buy you a beer, Carlos! Looking forward to getting my Gaijin Card Mk 2 later this year.
spudmanreincarnated at Jul. 09, 2012 - 02:17PM JST
You read it didn't you , so you must have had some interest in it.
Wakarimasen at Jul. 09, 2012 - 02:31PM JST
I want to be gaijin number 69
Suginamiguy at Jul. 09, 2012 - 02:46PM JST
I wonder if 007, 86 and 69 have been taken? If I can`t be James Bond, then Maxwell Smart or 99 would be fine.
Ms. Alexander at Jul. 09, 2012 - 03:02PM JST
So it's that easy? Only one trip? Don't even have to take a photo?
davestrousers at Jul. 09, 2012 - 03:23PM JST
You are not like the first person. You ARE the first person.
Maria at Jul. 09, 2012 - 03:49PM JST
It's all about punctuation.
Becomes:
I had no idea I was , like , the first person.
Stick a "dude" on the end and it's, like, done!
Blacklabel at Jul. 09, 2012 - 03:58PM JST
Good thing he was #1 cause the other article says the whole system broke on #14.
Herve Nmn L'Eisa at Jul. 09, 2012 - 04:22PM JST
Like the newly debuted model of anything, there will be bugs. Think I'll wait 'til.... I have to.
Badge213 at Jul. 09, 2012 - 04:22PM JST
Beginning at the 14th passenger at Narita Airport after 0830. This guy here came in on one of those super early morning flights from Haneda.
Lowly at Jul. 09, 2012 - 04:34PM JST
Weird headline
I thought it was going to be like an article about a new classification system for foreigners, and JETs were at the top, # 1.
SushiSake3 at Jul. 09, 2012 - 05:20PM JST
Maria, post of the day. :-)
No doubt our new friend Carlos will have his soul sucked out and be swallowed into the dark, cavernous depths of Japan Inc., while frantically sending postcards home to his loves ones telling of how he has been transformed into a life-less corporate wage slave utterly devoted to smoothing the corporate machinations of his employer, one of millions of corporate fish swimming in an island nation of four distinct seasons.
Sorry, I'm almost out of stereotypes. :-)
Thunderbird2 at Jul. 09, 2012 - 05:30PM JST
So is this just for residents, or will tourists get them?
Badge213 at Jul. 09, 2012 - 05:44PM JST
Residents of Japan.
Fadamor at Jul. 09, 2012 - 09:30PM JST
In my case, the headline was so awkward that I thought it was going to be about foreign ALTs being the largest group registered under the system. That would have made it more of a news item rather than a human interest item.
Ivan Coughanoffalot at Jul. 09, 2012 - 10:36PM JST
“It was a very smooth and fast process and it didn’t take any longer to go through immigration."
You'll note the past tense there. It was, very briefly, a smooth and fast process. Thirty minutes later it was the standard-issue SNAFU.
Fadamor at Jul. 09, 2012 - 10:43PM JST
He was speaking in the past tense because his experience with the process happened in the PAST with regards to when he was interviewed. He wasn't indicating that anything had changed with the process since then.
Aliasis at Jul. 09, 2012 - 10:49PM JST
Haha. :) Welcome to Japan, Carlos.
PS - sorry you had to ride Delta. worst American airline by far.
Newsman at Jul. 10, 2012 - 12:14AM JST
This guy hasn't realized it yet, but if he can learn to speak Japanese fluently, he's got all the notoriety he needs to be a TV star here.
YuriOtani at Jul. 10, 2012 - 02:26AM JST
Oh I wonder who got #2 or #6 laughs This is not the most weird story. Anyone remember the story of the minor quake in Tokyo. The lead was 6 cans of beer were destroyed when they fell off of a shelf at a convenience store. Oh how tragic! Hint the first part has to do with BBC TV.
Ah_so at Jul. 10, 2012 - 06:48AM JST
As YuriOtani states, being No. 6 is symbolically the best to have, but you may need to know some cult 1960s British TV to know why.
I would also quite like to be gaijin no. 666.
Ivan Coughanoffalot at Jul. 10, 2012 - 06:56AM JST
But nonetheless, change it most certainly did, if you read the other article on this triumph of the legendary Japanese efficiency.
hereforever at Jul. 10, 2012 - 08:40AM JST
Great way to avoid talking about the tax and nuclear problems in Japan. Media, wake up and get your priorities straight.
JA_Cruise at Jul. 10, 2012 - 11:12AM JST
I didn't realize they would hand them out at the airport immigration area... so I guess this means gaijins don't need to make an extra trip to the nearest immigration office?
ultradork at Jul. 10, 2012 - 12:52PM JST
Otaku2012 - this system and card have nothing to do with acquiring Japanese citizenship. It is simply an ID card for non-Japanese residents of Japan.
Badge213 at Jul. 10, 2012 - 04:48PM JST
For all new people coming to Japan (non tourists) they will get them issued at the airport. If you already have the older ARC card, then you'll need to get a new one at immigration by 2015. Though if your current ARC expires before 2015, you might as well go to the immigration office to get the new resident card.