[GoNative]

I came to live in Japan at the age of 33 and was already married to an Aussie girl. I've managed to stay here 7 years so far and have a pretty nice lifestyle. I did have to use the english teaching route to initially get a working visa but only did that for barely five weeks before moving onto something I actually enjoyed. So it's definitely possible and you don't have to marry a Japanese national to get to stay here. It's all about getting that initial working visa. Once you get that you're set.