Marriage In Japan

10/14/2016

Marriage in Japan is a legal and social institution at the center of the household.

A marriage is legally recognized once a couple has successfully submitted the required documents to the City Hall Registrar to change their status in their Family Registration Sheet "Koseki - 戸籍". No ceremony is required under Japanese law.

Getting Married In Japan As A Foreigner

As a foreign national living in Japan, if you wish to get married under Japanese law, you will need to register your marriage at a municipal office of the current or legal address of the Japanese spouse’s residence.

At the municipal office, you need to fill out a Marriage Registration "kon-in-todoke - 婚姻届". The registration form is available at your municipal office. The marriage registration must be signed with signatures and Hanko by two adult witnesses.

Along with the registration, a foreign national will need to submit A Certificate of Legal Capacity to Contract Marriage "kon-in-yoken-gubi-shomeisho - 婚姻要件具備証明書". This document is issued by your home country to certify that you meet the requirements to get married under the laws of your home country. The document can be obtained from your embassy.

If you are marrying a Japanese national abroad, he or she may need to submit a Certificate of Marriage Qualification "kon-in-yoken-gubi-shomeisho - 婚姻要件具備証明書".

This is available from their regional branch of the Legal Affairs Bureau "地方法務局". Further information is available on the Legal Affairs Bureau website.

General Requirements

The general requirements for marriage under Japanese law are:

Male must be 18 years of age or older and the female partner has to be 16 years of age or older.
A minor "person under 20 years of age", must obtain the consent of at least one parent to marry.
A person who already has a spouse cannot get married.
A woman cannot get married within 6 months of the day of dissolution or cancellation of the previous marriage, except the case in which she both gets pregnant before the day and gives birth to the child.
Persons in a lineal blood relationship or a collateral blood relationship within the third degree cannot get married, except between an adopted child and his/her collateral relatives by blood through adoption.
Lineal relatives by affinity may not marry.
An adoptive parent or a lineal ascendant of an adoptive parent may not marry with an adopted child, his / her spouse, his / her lineal descendant, or a spouse of his / her lineal descendant.

Wedding Ceremony In Japan