Paperwork
- Opinionated Night Owl
- Aug 21, 2019
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 1, 2019
Hello and welcome to my blog!
Before one can enjoy their exchange studies in foreign country, they have to tackle a ton of paperwork for a long period of time and I wasn't an exception either. This post is only about the very last documents and paperwork I needed to finish in my home country before I can leave the country. Namely, applying and acquiring the student visa. In order to apply for it in Finland, I had to apply to Japan's immigration bureau for the Certificate of Eligibility, which is required for the visa. The web application for the CoE required 23 pages of information, half of what I wasn't even quite sure about. And after that, waiting. 56 days to be exact.
I was a nervous wreck, waiting for that one piece of paper! Everyone else I knew, who had applied, had gotten theirs so much earlier. And the estimated arrival was told to be maximum of 50 days.
When the piece of paper finally arrived, it was by pure chance I got it. I had a tracking code for international post service but apparently Finland's Posti doesn't like to associate themselves with it and decided to use their own codes! Not fun at all I tell you! Thank the heavens I lived this summer at my hometown, a small countryside town where there is only one small post office inside the only local grocery store. And I knew the workers there personally (my elementary school classmates) and I could ask them if they have gotten any mail from Japan. That is how I found my small package, by asking! I suppose it would have found it's way to me eventually by just waiting, but it would have taken a lot longer, and I had a deadline! I had to deliver the paper, among other things like a photograph, filled application and my passport to the Embassy of Japan in Helsinki, so that the visa application could finally be where it was supposed to. This all, barely 2 weeks before my scheduled flight to Japan. Not nerve-wrecking at all.
In addition to the CoE, I also received the final letter of acceptance for JASSO (Japan's Student Services Organisation) Student Exchange Support Program Scholarship. This definitely made my day! It was worth it to fill-in all those papers after all!
After this paperwork I still had to deal with the apartment hotel reservations in Osaka, because I decided it would be good idea to arrive earlier than required, so that I could do some sightseeing in peace before school starts. I accidentally reserved it one night short and had to beg for an extension *facepalm* I know I'm an idiot. Luckily, the reception people were kind and understanding and I got my extra night! (Ofc I had to pay for it.)
Also, I finally got my last vaccination shots and even remembered to grab my international vaccination card with me. I have no fear of needles but I do feel highly uncomfortable with rude nurses. Like, I know you people are busy but seriously you can greet me without glaring and then be gentle with the freaking needle.
The countdown is: exactly 1 week, in other words, 7 days.
Excitement levels: Still mild.
Panic levels: Also still mild.
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