A residence card will be issued to foreign nationals (mid- to a long-term residents) with a period of stay of over three months who have been granted residence-related permissions, such as landing permission, permission for change of resident status or permission for extension of the period of stay. The Card will not be issued for those with a Temporary Visitor’s visa or a period of stay of less than three months.
If you enter Japan via Narita, Haneda, Chubu, Kansai, Shinchitose, Hiroshima or Fukuoka International Airports, your residence card will be issued upon completion of the landing permission procedure. For those arriving at other airports, a seal of landing permission will be stamped in your passport with the statement “Residence Card will be issued at a later date”. After you have completed the residence registration procedure at your city/ward office, your residence card will be sent to the registered address by the Immigration Bureau (It takes about 1-2 weeks).
All or part of the information printed on the residence card will be recorded in an IC chip embedded for the purpose of preventing the card from being forged or altered.
The residence card must be carried all the times during your stay in Japan, so please make sure that you have it on your person when going outside.
Reference
Immigration Services Agency of Japan Website
Immigration Procedures
http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/index.html#sec_03
What is a residence card?
http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/tetuduki/zairyukanri/whatzairyu.html