In an international marriage, both people should follow the marriage laws and fulfill the requirements of
their respective countries. Foreign nationals should contact the embassy or consulate of their country in
Japan concerning marriage procedures and requirements in their homeland. For information about necessary
documents and marriage procedures in Japan, contact the municipal government office where you plan to register
your marriage.
Marriage Between a Japanese and a Foreign National
If you are a foreign national marrying a Japanese citizen in Japan, you will need to submit your marriage
notification and other necessary documents such as certificate of legal capacity to marry, to the municipal government office where one of the spouses
resides or to the municipal government office in the Japanese citizen’s registered place of origin
(honsekichi). When you submit the marriage notification, you will receive a certificate of acceptance of
marriage notification, which you will use to register your marriage with your country.
Marriage Between Foreign Nationals
If you decide to marry under the Japanese legal system, you will need to submit your marriage notification
and other necessary documents to the municipal government office where one of the spouses resides. When you
submit the notification of marriage, you will receive a certificate of acceptance of the marriage
notification, which you will use to register your marriage with your respective countries.
Certificate of Legal Capacity to Marry
Foreign nationals must submit this certificate to their local municipal office. You can obtain the certificate from your country’s embassy or consulate. If the certificate is written in a foreign language, you will need to attach a Japanese translation with the name of the translator on the certificate.
Divorce
Foreign nationals who live in and get divorced in Japan must submit a divorce notification to the municipal
government office as well as to their own country. You can receive a certificate of acceptance of the divorce
notification if you need one. For more details, please contact the municipal government office that will issue
the notification and the embassy or consulate of your country in Japan.
If one of the spouses is a Japanese citizen residing in Japan, the divorce is performed according to
Japanese law. If both parties agree to the divorce, they should follow the procedures for an uncontested
divorce (kyōgi rikon). If they disagree on matters related to their divorce, they should follow the
procedures for an arbitrated divorce (chōtei rikon) or an adjudicated divorce (saiban rikon), both of which
are conducted by the family court. Some countries, however, do not recognize uncontested divorce. In that
case, the divorce cannot be registered with the municipal government office in Japan and therefore it will
be necessary to file for divorce in the country of that spouse as well.
Divorce Between Foreign Nationals
If the spouses have different nationalities and they reside in Japan, the divorce follows Japanese law.
Some countries, however, do not recognize uncontested divorce (kyōgi rikon). In addition, the procedures for
filing for divorce in other countries may differ from the procedures in Japan.
Various documents must be submitted when applying for notification of a marriage or of a divorce. In
particular, foreign nationals whose status of residence is spouse or dependent and who are divorced from a
Japanese national must notify their regional immigration office within 14 days of the divorce. If they remain
in Japan without notifying the immigration office within a certain period and applying for a change in their
status of residence, their status of residence may be rescinded and they may be denied residence in Japan. For
more details, please contact the regional immigration office or an Immigration Information Center (http://www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/info/).
