Birth Registrations (Shussei Todoke)

2024/7/9
Birthright citizenship allows a person born in the U.S. to acquire U.S. citizenship automatically.
 
  • To reserve Japanese citizenship for a child, the Japanese father or mother must sign next to “will reserve Japanese citizenship (日本国籍を留保する)” on the Birth Report Form. The Birth Registration must be submitted within 3 months of the child’s birthdate (E.g., If born on March 10th, must be submitted by June 9th.) We cannot accept Birth Registrations after the 3 month deadline.
     
  • A child who reserves Japanese citizenship will be a dual citizen and will need to declare a nationality by age 20.
     
  • If one of the parents is a foreign citizen, the newborn’s Japanese last name will be the same as the Japanese parent’s last name (stated on the Family Registry). If the child’s last name on the U.S. Birth Certificate shows a different last name, it will not affect the Japanese Birth Registration. Please write the last name as it appears on the Japanese parent’s Family Registry.
     
  • If you obtained U.S. citizenship by naturalization, you have lost Japanese nationality. If the Japanese parent naturalized before the birth of the child, they cannot submit the Birth Registration.
 

Required Documents

 
1. Two Birth Report Forms
- SampleOpen a new window (For a child with both Japanese parents)
- SampleOpen a new window (For a child with one parent with foreign citizenship)
- Report forms cannot be downloaded. Please request it by mailOpen a new window.
2. Two Birth Certificates**
- County-issued Birth Certificate 
     ** 1 original and 1 copy is acceptable. 
3. One Translation Form of the Birth CertificateOpen a new window
- Anyone can fill this out in Japanese.
4. Parent’s Japanese passport AND proof of legal status in the U.S.
- Green card, visa, etc.
- U.S. Passport or Birth Certificate for dual citizens born in the U.S.
- Dual citizens born outside of the U.S. will need their birth certificate known as the Consular Report of Birth Abroad.
5. One Contact Information Sheet
- Include your address, e-mail, and phone number. Please be sure that this phone number has voicemail and that the voicemail box is not full.
 

 

Important Information

  1. If the parents were married before the birth of their child, their Marriage Registration must be submitted before or at the same time as the Birth Registration.
     
  2. The Birth Certificate must indicate the birth time, birthplace, and mother’s full name. The ABSTRACT version of the county-issued Birth Certificate will omit some of the information listed and therefore is NOT an acceptable Birth Certificate for submission.
     
  3. There are a set of Kanji characters (Jimmeiyo Kanji) that can be used for a person’s name. The interpunct（・）commonly used in foreign words cannot be used. Please write clearly with the correct form of the Kanji character.
     
  4. If the U.S. name on the Birth Certificate is different from the Japanese name being submitted on the Birth Report Form, please explain in 「その他」（E.g.,「英文出征証明に出生児の名が、リサ花子 [First Name, Middle Name] とあるが、日本名は花子と届出する。」)
     
  5. If one of the parents is a foreign citizen, please indicate when and which municipal office you submitted the Marriage Registration (on the contact information sheet). On the Birth Report Form, please write the foreign spouse’s name in the order of last name, then given name, as indicated on the Family Registry.
     
  6. A Family Registry (Koseki Tohon or Koseki Shohon) is not required; however, you will need to write your Registered Domicile (Honseki-chi) correctly so please check the information beforehand.
     
  7. Do not abbreviate the Registered Domicile (Honseki-chi) to 「1－2」. Instead, write exactly as it shows on the Family Registry, such as「1丁目2番地」.
     
  8. Both signature spaces (next to reserving nationality and at the end) must be written in Japanese by either the father or mother. A foreign parent may sign (their usual signature) on the form if needed. If a spouse signs the name of the other spouse, the form will not be accepted, and you will need to resubmit your documents.
     
  9. It is no longer required to use a seal (inkan) or imprint your thumbprint. In the signature space provided, write your own name in Japanese. In the left margin, write your own name in Japanese vertically (see sample). Do not initial/sign each error.
     
  10. If you make errors, do not use white-out. Please correct the error by drawing two horizontal lines through it.
     
  11. Please send all required documents by mail. The U.S. postal system may have mail delivery issues and there have been cases where they lost mail. We recommend you use Certified Mail or a Tracking Number to monitor your mail. You may contact us a few days after delivery to confirm that we received your documents. We will only contact you if there are any issues with your submission.

 

Link

"What! A parent and a child traveling abroad can be kidnapping?"Open a new window

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