Important Paperwork

3. Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Divorces

1. Residency in Japan

The Residency Management System
*Foreign nationals who will be in Japan mid to long term (more than three months)

1) Residence Cards
Residence Cards are issued when an individual is given permission (e.g. entry permission) related to their residency status. They contain information such as your name, date of birth, place of residence, nationality/region, residency status, and period of stay, as well as your photograph.
If your Residence Card is lost, stolen, or damaged beyond use, you must send an application to the Hiroshima Regional Immigration Bureau to have it reissued.

Note: If you lose your passport, first go to the police and get a Certificate of Lost Property (遺失届出証明書(遺失届) // Ishitsutodokede Shōmeisho). Take this certificate to your country’s embassy or consulate and ask for a new passport.

2) Necessary residency status paperwork
(To be filed at the Hiroshima Regional Immigration Bureau)
1. When your name, date of birth, gender, nationality/region (etc) changes, you must report the change within 14 days by submitting your passport, photograph, Residence Card, and documents that prove the change.

2. If you want to change your visa status, Designated Activities, or extend your period of stay, you must apply to do so. Take your passport, photograph, Residence Card, and necessary documents.

Hiroshima Regional Immigration Bureau
Address: 2-31 Kami-hatchobori, Naka-ku, Hiroshima
Tel: 082-221-4412

Special Permanent Residency
*The Special Permanent Residency system is different from the Residency Management System

1) Special Permanent Resident Certificates

Special Permanent Resident Certificates are issued to Special Permanent Residents.

They contain information such as your name, date of birth, place of residence, nationality/region, and the certificate’s expiration date, as well as your photograph.

Those under the age of 16 who still have an Alien Registration Certificate should convert their certificate to a Special Permanent Resident Certificate before their 16th birthday. If your Special Permanent Resident Certificate is lost, stolen, or damaged beyond use, you must apply at your local ward office to have it reissued.

2) Necessary paperwork for Special Permanent Residents (To be filed at ward or branch offices)

1. When your name, date of birth, gender, nationality/region changes, you must report the change within 14 days by submitting your passport (if you have one), photograph, Special Permanent Resident Certificate, and documents that prove the change.

2. When your Special Permanent Resident Certificate expires, you must apply for an extension by submitting your passport (if you have one), photograph, and Special Permanent Resident Certificate before the expiration date.

The Special Re-Entry Permit System

If a foreign resident whose passport and Residence Card are valid leaves Japan and plans to return within one year, they do not in principle need to apply for a Re-Entry Permit.

If a Special Permanent Resident whose passport and Special Permanent Resident Certificate are valid leaves Japan and plans to return within two years, they do not in principal need to apply for a Re-Entry Permit.

Inquiries

For more information about the Residency Management System and the System for Special Permanent Residents, please contact the Immigration Information Center.

Immigration Information Center

Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 8:30 am – 5:15 pm
Closed: Saturdays, Sundays, national holidays, and December 29 to January 3
Tel: 0570-013904 (From IP-phone, or overseas: (+81) (0)3-5796-7112)

2. Registering Your Address

Mid to long term residents and Special Permanent Residents must register as residents.

Initial resident registration (for mid to long term residents)

After finding a place to live, you need to notify the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office within 14 days. Remember to take your Residence Card with you.
If you haven’t received your Residence Card yet, take your passport instead.

Moving home (change of address)

If you leave Hiroshima City to move to another municipality, you must submit a Notification of Moving-Out (転出届//Tenshutsu Todoke) to the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office and receive a Moving-Out Certificate (転出証明書//Tenshutsu Shōmeisho). Be careful not to lose this certificate. After you move to your new home, you must submit a Notification of Moving-In (転入届//Tennyū Todoke) at the relevant office in your new municipality within 14 days of arrival. When submitting this notification, remember to bring the Residence Cards or Special Permanent Resident Certificates of all members of your household and the Moving-Out Certificate, as well as your Individual Number Card.

Individual Number Card (My Number Card) Holders

If you have an Individual Number Card, known as “My Number Card,” that allows the usage of electronic certificates, you can submit your Notification of Moving-Out online. For more information, please contact the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office (see page 44).

2. 2. If you move within Hiroshima City, you must submit a Notification of Change of Address (転居届//Tenkyo Todoke) to the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office within 14 days. When submitting this notification, remember to bring the Residence Cards or Special Permanent Resident Certificates of all members of your household, as well as your Individual Number Card (for card holders only).

**Resident Record (住民票//Jūmin Hyō)**

Once you are registered as a resident, you will be able to receive a copy of your Resident Record (fee-based). If you would like to have a copy of your Resident Record, please apply at the Citizens Affairs Division of any local ward office or any branch office in Hiroshima City.

If you have an Individual Number Card that allows the usage of electronic certificates, you can obtain a copy of your Resident Record at convenience stores. It will cost 100 yen less than if obtaining it at the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office .

Individual Number (My Number)

Those with a Resident Record also have a 12-digit Individual Number, known as “My Number”. Once you register as a resident, you will be sent an Individual Number Notification which contains your Individual Number.
Ask the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office for more information about making an Individual Number Card, a hard plastic card that shows your Individual Number and photograph.

**Child Allowances (児童手当//Jidō Teate)**

Child Allowances are paid to parents and guardians who are raising children up to the 3rd year of junior high school (until March 31 after the child’s 15th birthday). Additionally, those raising children up to high school (until March 31 after the child’s 18th birthday) are also eligible for receiving child allowances from October 2024. If you are entitled to child allowances but are not receiving them or you have recently moved to Hiroshima City, please complete the necessary procedures and paperwork to receive this allowance. For further information, contact the Welfare Division of your local ward office.

3. Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Divorces

It may be necessary to notify your home country if a child is born, if someone you are related to dies, or if you get married or divorced. Contact your home country’s embassy, consulate, or other permanent mission in Japan.
Please also notify your local ward office or branch office, as well as the Hiroshima Regional Immigration Bureau.

Births

Note: Even if a child is born in Japan, if both the mother and father are foreign nationals, the child will not be granted Japanese citizenship. Contact your home country’s embassy or consulate to notify them of the child’s birth.

Notification of Birth (出生届//Shusshō Todoke)
● When to submit: Within two weeks of the birth, including the birth date
● Who needs to submit: Everyone
● Where to submit: Local ward office Citizens Affairs Division or branch office in the ward where the child lives or was born

Acquiring residency status paperwork
● When to submit: Within 30 days of the birth
● Who needs to submit: Mid to long term residents
● Where to submit: Hiroshima Regional Immigration Bureau

Permission related to Special Permanent Residency
● When to submit: Within 60 days of the birth
● Who needs to submit: Special Permanent Residents
● Where to submit: Local ward office Citizens Affairs Division or branch office

Birth Report (出生連絡票//Shusshō Renraku Hyō)
● When to submit: As quickly as possible
● Who needs to submit: Everyone
● Where to submit: Local ward office Mutual Community Support Division or branch office

Application for Child Allowance (児童手当//Jidō Teate)
● When to submit: Within 15 days from the day following the birth
● Who needs to submit: For further details, contact the office listed to the right
● Where to submit: Local ward office Mutual Community Support Division or branch office (except for Ninoshima Branch Office)

Application for medical subsidies for children
● When to submit: For further details, contact the office listed to the right
● Who needs to submit: High-income earners are not eligible for medical subsidies for children
● Where to submit: Local ward office Welfare Division or branch office

Enrollment in National Health Insurance
● When to submit: Within 14 days of the birth
● Who needs to submit: Those with National Health Insurance
● Where to submit: Local ward office National Insurance and Pension Division or branch office

Deaths

Notification of Death (死亡届//Shibō Todoke)
● When to submit: Within seven days of finding out about a death
● Who needs to submit: Everyone
● Where to submit: Local ward office Citizens Affairs Division or branch office, or that of the ward in which the death occurred

Notification of Death for National Health Insurance Purposes
● When to submit: Within 14 days of the death
● Who needs to submit: If the deceased was enrolled in National Health Insurance
● Where to submit: Local ward office National Insurance and Pension Division or branch office

Changes in Long-Term Care Insurance (介護保険//Kaigo Hoken)
● When to submit: Within 14 days of the death
● Who needs to submit: If the deceased was insured for long-term care
● Where to submit: Local ward office Welfare Division or branch office

Late-stage Elderly Medical Care (後期高齢者医療制度//Kōki Kōreisha Iryō Seido)
● When to submit: Within 14 days of the death
● Who needs to submit: If the deceased was enrolled in Late-stage Elderly Medical Care
● Where to submit: Local ward office Welfare Division or branch office

Marriages

Notification of Marriage (婚姻届//Konin Todoke)
● When to submit: No submission deadline for Notification of Marriage (you will be legally recognized as husband and wife once you submit your Notification of Marriage)
● Where to submit: Local ward office Citizens Affairs Division
Note: paperwork and procedures may differ depending on your nationality

Changes in National Health Insurance
● When to submit: Within 14 days of the marriage
● Who needs to submit: Those enrolled in National Health Insurance
● Where to submit: Local ward office National Insurance and Pension Division or branch office

Changes in Long-Term Care Insurance (介護保険//Kaigo Hoken)
● When to submit: Within 14 days of the marriage
● Where to submit: Local ward office Welfare Division or branch office

Divorces

Notification of Divorce (離婚届//Rikon Todoke)
● When to submit: No submission deadline for divorce by mutual agreement (Divorce proceedings are complete once you submit your Notification of Divorce)
● Who needs to submit: Within 10 days of divorce in all other cases
● Where to submit: Local ward office Citizens Affairs Division
Note: paperwork and procedures may differ depending on your nationality

Changes in National Health Insurance
● When to submit: Within 14 days of the divorce
● Who needs to submit: Those enrolled in National Health Insurance
● Where to submit: Local ward office National Insurance and Pension Division or branch office

Changes in Long Term Care Insurance (介護保険//Kaigo Hoken)
● When to submit: Within 14 days of any changes to the name or address of insured persons
● Where to submit: Local Ward office Welfare Division or branch office

**Registration of personal seals (印鑑//Inkan)**

In Japan, seals engraved with your name (hanko or inkan) are used in the same way as signatures. Officially registered seals are called jitsuin (実印). The use of a registered seal along with its certificate of registration is legal confirmation of the intentions of its user.
To register a seal, take your seal and your Residence Card or Special Permanent Resident Certificate to the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office.
Some seals cannot be registered. Contact the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office for details.

The Hiroshima City Partnership Oath System

The City of Hiroshima has implemented the Hiroshima City Partnership Oath System, which recognizes sexual minority couples who submitted a Written Oath and jointly proclaimed (pledged) that they acknowledge each other as their life partners.

Unlike a marriage certificate, the Partnership Certificate/Card does not possess any legal effect. Despite this, couples will still be able to access a range of municipal services through their Partnership Certificates/Cards. For more information, please contact the Human Rights Education Division (Tel: 082-504-2165).　
Website: https://www.city.hiroshima.lg.jp/site/yasashii/199977.html

4. Leaving Japan

If you are returning to your home country or moving out of Japan, you will need to take care of the following matters before leaving.

Moving Out

1. Housing

Municipal housing
If you are a municipal housing tenant and have decided to move out of your current residence, please contact the Architecture Division of your local ward office (see page 44) for information on moving-out procedures.

Apartments and condominiums (residences other than municipal housing)
If you have decided to move out of your current residence, contact your real estate agent by the due date stipulated in the contract for information on moving-out procedures.

2. Garbage disposal

Do not put out a large amount of garbage at once for collection. You may instead bring your garbage to a disposal facility designated by the City of Hiroshima or request collection by a disposal company approved by the City.

Please note that there are designated disposal facilities for each type of garbage should you opt to bring them directly to a disposal facility. For more information, please visit the City’s website. You are not allowed to bring plastic bottles, recyclable plastic, and hazardous waste in for disposal. Please contact a disposal company licensed by the City of Hiroshima for collection.
https://www.city.hiroshima.lg.jp/site/faq/13427.html

If you have minimal garbage to dispose of, refer to the Household Waste Disposal Guidelines and put them out on the designated collection day for your area. Collection of Large Waste requires an appointment, so be sure to make preparations as early as possible.

3. Water supply

Please contact the Hiroshima City Waterworks Bureau Newly Moved Customer Advice Center (Tel: 082-511-5959) at least 3 to 4 days prior to the day you wish to turn off the water supply.

You can also apply via the Waterworks Bureau’s website (see pages 3 and 4 for information on water, electricity, and gas).
https://www.water.city.hiroshima.lg.jp/soshiki/5/401.html

Notification of Moving-Out

Before moving, be sure to submit a Notification of Moving-Out to the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office . You may also refer to pages 10 and 11 for information on moving out. Remember to bring along your Residence Card (or Special Permanent Resident Certificate) and Individual Number Card (if you have one) when submitting your notification.

Child Rearing

1. Child allowances

If you are receiving child allowances, please contact the Welfare Division of your local ward office or branch office before you move.

2. Nursery schools

If your child is attending nursery school, please submit a Notification of Withdrawal (退園届//Taien Todoke) to the school before moving. You may obtain a copy of the notification from the school or the Welfare Division of your local ward office.

3. Child rearing allowances

If you are receiving child rearing allowances, please bring your Child Rearing Allowance Certificate (児童扶養手当証書//Jidō Fuyō Teate) to the Welfare Division of your local ward office before you move.

4. Medical subsidies for children

If you are receiving medical subsidies for children, please return your Children’s Medical Subsidy Recipient Certificate (こども医療費受給者証//Kodomo Iryōhi Jukyūshashō) to the Welfare Division of your local ward office or branch office before you move.

5. Medical expense subsidies for single-parent households

If you are receiving medical expense subsidies for single-parent households, please return your Single-Parent Household Medical Expense Subsidy Recipient Certificate (ひとり親家庭等医療費受給者証//Hitorioyakatei nado Jukyūshashō) to the Welfare Division of your local ward office or branch office before you move.

Insurance and Pension

1. Health insurance

If you are enrolled in National Health Insurance, you will need to go through the withdrawal procedures at the National Insurance and Pension Division of your local ward office or branch office. Please remember to bring along your health insurance card and your Individual Number Card (for verification purposes).

If you are covered by your workplace’s health insurance, consult your employer for any necessary paperwork and procedures. See page 14 for more information on health insurance.

2. Long-Term Care Insurance

If you are 40 years of age or older and have been issued a Long-Term Care Insurance Card, you need to return the card to the Welfare Division of your local ward office (see page 45) or branch office before you move.

If you have been certified by the City of Hiroshima as requiring long-term care and support, and have been issued a Long-Term Care Payment Rate Certificate (介護保険負担割合証//Kaigohoken Futanwariaishō), Long-Term Care Ceiling-Amount Eligibility Certificate (介護保険負担限度額認定証//Kaigohoken Futangendogaku Ninteishō), or other relevant documents, please return them to the Welfare Division of your local ward office or branch office before you move.

3. Pension

If you are enrolled in National Pension, you will need to go through the withdrawal procedures at the National Insurance and Pension Division of your local ward office or branch office. If you are enrolled in Employee Pension, please consult your employer for any necessary paperwork and procedures.

Tax

1. Income Tax (to be paid to the national government)

If you are required to file an income tax return, you need to file and pay it before leaving Japan. For more information, please contact your tax office.

2. Residents Tax (to be paid to prefectural and municipal governments)

You must designate a tax agent who will pay your taxes on your behalf. For more information, please contact the Municipal Resident Tax Section of your local ward’s municipal tax office or tax room.

3. Fixed Assets Tax and City Planning Tax

You must designate a tax agent who will pay your taxes on your behalf. If you own land or buildings in Hiroshima City, please consult the municipal tax office (Land Tax Section/Building Tax Section) or tax room where your fixed assets are located.

Other Important Matters

1. Personal Seal Registration Certificate

Submit your Personal Seal Registration Certificate (印鑑登録証//Inkan Tōrokushō) to the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office.

2. Residence Card

Return your Residence Card at the airport or port when leaving Japan.

3. Bank account

Remember to close your bank account before leaving Japan. For more information, please contact your bank.

4. Mobile subscription

If you have a mobile subscription in Japan, be sure to terminate it before leaving the country. For more information, please contact your mobile service provider.

5. Internet subscription

If you have an internet subscription in Japan, be sure to terminate it before leaving the country. For more information, please contact your internet service provider.

📝 Registration of personal seals (印鑑//Inkan)

To register a seal, take your seal and your Residence Card or Special Permanent Resident Certificate to the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office. Some seals cannot be registered. Contact the Citizens Affairs Division of your local ward office or branch office for details.