International marriage (Japan) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

This article is about marriage

Marriage

Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

between a Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese and a non-Japanese in accordance with the formalities provided by the law of Japan or of a foreign land.

Procedures and rules mentioned in this article are mainly those of Japan, but in some cases other requirements are imposed by the homeland

Homeland

A homeland is the concept of the place to which an ethnic group holds a long history and a deep cultural association with —the country in which a particular national identity began. As a common noun, it simply connotes the country of one's origin...

of the non-Japanese, or by the foreign land where the concerned couple marry.

In General

The legality of a marriage for each spouse is determined by the homeland law of the spouse.

Homeland law

According to an Act of Japan on general rules,

The homeland law of a person is the law of the country of citizenship of the person.
If a person has more than one citizenship
Multiple citizenship
Multiple citizenship is a status in which a person is concurrently regarded as a citizen under the laws of more than one state. Multiple citizenships exist because different countries use different, and not necessarily mutually exclusive, citizenship requirements...

, and if one of the citizenships is Japan, the homeland law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

is the law of Japan;
If a person has more than one citizenship
Multiple citizenship
Multiple citizenship is a status in which a person is concurrently regarded as a citizen under the laws of more than one state. Multiple citizenships exist because different countries use different, and not necessarily mutually exclusive, citizenship requirements...

, and none of them is Japanese, the homeland law of the person is the law of the country where the person habitually lives.
as to a concerned person with nationality
Nationality
Nationality is membership of a nation or sovereign state, usually determined by their citizenship, but sometimes by ethnicity or place of residence, or based on their sense of national identity....

of a nation in which laws are different according to locality (like the US), the homeland law is the local law under rules of the nation or, if the nation doesn't have such rules, the homeland law is the law of the local area which is most closely related to the person.

Required translation

Each paper, document mentioned in this article as required by Japan, if not written in Japanese

Japanese language

is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...

, needs to be accompanied with translation into Japanese; one of the concerned persons can themself be the translator; their name must accompany the translation.

Legal documents

When a Japanese and a non-Japanese are intending to marry

in accordance with Japanese rules, homeland certification is required regarding the concerned non-Japanese that they are permitted to marry (see the related section below);
in accordance with foreign law, certification by Japan may also be required.

Notification

If a couple including a Japanese citizen marry in Japan, the marriage is to be in accordance with Japanese law.

Thus Japan requires notification of the marriage.

Japan's diplomat

Diplomat

A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...

ic establishments abroad can not legally accept a notification of a marriage of this type.

Competence certification as to the concerned non-Japanese

Japan requires competence certification as to the concerned non-Japanese, as a paper in principle, to be submitted; if the homeland (state / nation) is one which doesn't issue this certification,

if he / she swears in the presence of the homeland's consul in Japan that he / she has legal competence under the homeland law to get married with a Japanese, the written oath signed by the consul might be the substitute for this certification paper;
if even the substitutes can not be submitted, a copy of the homeland law on marriage with its source clarified, and identity certification(s) issued by the homeland's official institution(s) such as a passport, are required instead.

Family register

The fact the Japanese got married with the non-Japanese is to be recorded in a family register with the concerned Japanese written at its head; if the Japanese is one not written at the head, a new family register for the concerned couple is to be created.

Family name

While a rule of Japan for the common surname (i.e. family name) is not applied to the couple, the concerned Japanese can change his / her surname to that of the concerned non-Japanese spouse by filing notification as such; this notification, if not within 6 months of the day the marriage got effective, needs an advance permission by a family court.

International marriage in accordance with the formality of a foreign land

This section is about marriage between a Japanese and a non-Japanese in accordance with the formality of a foreign land (state / nation).

Competence certification as to the concerned Japanese

If competence certification as to the concerned Japanese is required, the Japanese can request this certification as a paper

issued in Japanese of a ;
issued in Japanese of ;
issued in a foreign language of ;

this certification paper is called in Japanese.

Certification as to the marriage

By a delivery of an authorized copy of certification as to the marriage issued by the foreign land (state / nation), the marriage is regarded under law of Japan as one in accordance with the formality of the foreign land.

'

Notification to and the family register

Japan requires the authorized copy of certification as to the marriage

to be submitted to , or,
to be sent by post or submitted to ,

within 3 months of the day the marriage got effective; when the authorized copy of certification is legally accepted, the fact the Japanese got married with the non-Japanese is to be recorded in the family register of the concerned Japanese.'