Declaration Registration (Kokuseki Sentaku Todoke)

• If a dual citizen wishes to keep their Japanese citizenship, this registration will need to be submitted.
• If you have multiple citizenships from birth, you will need to submit this registration by age 20.
 

One Citizenship for One Person

For those with multiple citizenships, you will need to declare a nationality by age 20 (or if you obtained multiple citizenships after 18, within 2 years). If you do not choose a nationality, you may possibly lose your Japanese citizenship.
 

Required Documents:

1.	Two Declaration Report Forms - Report forms cannot be downloaded. Please request it by mail.
2.	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.

 
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.
 

Deadline for Declaration Registration

Deadlines will depend on when you became a multiple citizen and is as follows:
 Effective April 1, 2022, the age to declare Japanese nationality has changed.

1.If you became a multiple citizen AFTER January 1st, 1985 (After enforcement of the amended Japanese Nationality Act) ・If you became a multiple citizen before age 18 = Submit by age 20. ・If you became a multiple citizen after age 18 = Submit within 2 years of becoming a multiple citizen. ・If you do not submit within the deadline, you may receive a demand from the Minister of Justice and possibly lose your Japanese citizenship.  You will need to declare a nationality even if you are past this deadline.

2.If you became a multiple citizen BEFORE January 1st, 1985 (Before enforcement of the amended Japanese Nationality Act) ・If you were under age 20 on January 1st, 1985 = Submit by age 22. ・If you do not submit within the deadline, on the date of your deadline you will be considered as having submitted your Declaration Registration.

  
For more information on Declaration Registration, please check the website by the Ministry of Foreign Justice.
 
※For more information on Declaring Nationality for multiple citizens, please contact the Consular Section at (213) 617-6700.