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)
1. 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.
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.
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.
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.
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). 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)
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
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 Hiroshima City Partnership Oath System, which allows sexual minority couples to submit a Written Oath and jointly proclaim that they acknowledge each other as their life partners, came into effect starting January 2021.
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
