Marriage Between an American and a Japanese

Common procedures for marriages between foreigners and Japanese people (common to all nationalities)

In order to marry a foreigner and a Japanese person, to be recognized as a spouse visa applicant, the following three points must be met:

1) Both parties must fulfill the marriage requirements

2) Marriage procedures must be completed in the home countries of both parties

3) Under Japanese social standards, they must be living as a married couple

We will explain each point below.

Both parties must be eligible for marriage

Besides the requirement that both parties must be 18 years of age or older, the foreign party must be at the legal age for marriage in his/her home country.

In addition, marriage must not impede marriage in both countries (i.e., it must also be legal under the law of the home country), so the couples have to be careful.

If the two countries have different minimum marriage ages, each country will comply with the higher minimum marriage ages.

Applicants must also be single before getting married.

If one or both parties have been divorced or widowed in the past, additional documents regarding that situation may be required.

Marriage procedures must be completed both in Japan and in the home countries of the foreign party.

Both marriage procedures must be completed at a Japanese municipal office (ward office, city hall, town hall) and in the visa applicant’s home country.

There are two ways to do this:

◆Japan method
A method that the wedding ceremony and registration procedures are carried out in Japan, and then a marriage registration is submitted to a foreign embassy in Japan. In some cases, registration in an embassy is not required.

※Documents in a foreign language must be translated into Japanese.

※1 Birth certificate showing the parents’ names and birth dates, nationality certificate (or passport) showing nationality, and divorce certificate if he/she has a divorce history are required. However, the required documents may vary slightly depending on the country, so please see the next section for details.

◆Foreign method

A method that the wedding ceremony and registration procedures are carried out abroad, and then a marriage registration is submitted: submit a marriage registration at the Japanese embassy, ​​or return to Japan and submit a marriage registration at the ward office.

Marriage registration procedures vary depending on the country, so please see the next section for details.

Living together as a married couple under Japanese convention.

Living together as a married couple under Japanese convention. When applying for a spouse visa, the couple is not only considered to have a marital relationship based on the marriage procedure on paper but is also considered to be “actually living together in Japan as a married couple.”

The key points to consider are whether the couple “lives together” and “whether there is a financial reliance (dependence).”

For detailed information on the procedures and required documents for a spouse visa for a Japanese, please see this article from us.

 Points to note when marrying an American and a Japanese

Eligibility

The United States of America is a “United States,” and each of the 50 states has the authority to enact its own laws.

The legal age for marriage in the many of United States is 18 years old same as in Japan, but some states have different ages.

On the other hand, in Japan, both parties must be more than 18 years old. Also, for a marriage to be valid in both Japan and the United States, if the legal age for marriage is different, a higher age must be followed.

 In the United States, most states require a church wedding as a prerequisite for a marriage to be valid.

Unlike many other countries, the legal age and the requirements for marriage vary depending on which states and counties the Americans live in the U.S., so please check with your local government in the United States.

Japan method (method of completing marriage procedures in Japan first) Procedures and necessary documents   Recommended

Since marriage procedures vary in each state in the United States, the documents submitted against registration in the United States may not be sufficient for the marriage procedures in Japan (possibility).

In addition, the US government will not issue marriage certificates to couples who get married outside of the US.

Therefore, if you are asked to issue a marriage certificate in the US, you will need to submit a Japanese Marriage Notification Acceptance Certificate or a Japanese family register.

Unlike in other countries, if you complete the marriage procedures in Japan, there is no special reporting procedure in the US.

Therefore, especially if you plan to live together in Japan, we recommend the Japanese method of submitting a marriage notification in Japan first.

① Obtaining a Certificate of Eligibility to Marry (Certificate of Single Status) for  U.S. Citizens

Under Japanese law, all foreigners who marry in Japan are required to first obtain a Certificate of Eligibility to Marry, which swears that they are legally free to marry. This can be obtained at any U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

Reservations are required to obtain this document. Click here to make a reservation.

*1 The Japanese spouse does not need to accompany to the embassy or consulate.

*2 If the American party is currently serving in the U.S. military, he/she will need to contact your base’s legal department and/or chain of command for proper procedures.

*3 This affidavit is valid for three months after it is signed and sealed at the embassy or consulate.

For more information, please visit the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Japan website.

② Notify your marriage at a Japanese municipal office

③ There is no need to report your marriage to the United States.

As mentioned earlier, if you submit your marriage registration in Japan ②, there is no need to submit your marriage registration again in the United States. Marriage in both countries will be legally established by completing the procedures in Japan,

Therefore, the marriage registration acceptance certificate and family register are the documents that prove marriage in both Japan and the United States.

America method (method of marriage procedures in the United States first) Procedures and required documents

In many states, having a wedding ceremony is a prerequisite for a marriage.

As mentioned above, the U.S. government does not authenticate or issue certificates for marriages outside the U.S., so in order to carry out marriage procedures in the U.S., you must travel to the U.S., and have the wedding ceremony.

You must follow these procedures step by step.

Let’s take a look at the order of the procedure.

① The Japanese party obtains a certificate of eligibility for marriage at the Japanese Legal Affairs Bureau

* If a woman has changed her family register within 100 days from the application date, a copy of her family register before the change is also required. In addition, if the applicant is a minor, a letter of consent from both parents is required.

* The name, sex, date of birth, and nationality of the partner are to be conveyed on the Certificate of Eligibility to Marry, based on the information provided on the certificate application form submitted by the customer. The name of the spouse is generally written in katakana, but if the spouse’s country uses kanji, it can be written in kanji. If the person has Chinese nationality, please check whether the kanji of the name is simplified (simplified kanji used in China), and if so, use the corresponding Japanese characters.

* Applications must be made by himself/herself; applications and receipts cannot be made by proxy.

* The certificate may be received from the day after the application date.

② Obtaining a US fiancé (K-1) visa

Normally, Japanese people are exempt from the tourist visa application process in the US, so many people may think about traveling to the US on a tourist visa.

However, the US consulate recommends using a fiancé visa instead of a tourist visa if your purpose is to get married in the US.

The reason is 1) to avoid false declarations, and 2) because the fiancé (K-1) visa can be used to apply for a green card if you intend to stay in the US in the future.

The fiancé visa allows you to stay in the US for 90 days to get married, so you need to make a plan to have enough time to complete all the procedures.

For more information about this visa, please visit the websites of the US Embassy and Consulates in Japan. You may also want to consult with a US visa expert.

③ Obtaining a marriage license in the United States

You will need to travel to the United States and apply for a marriage license at the county clerk’s office in the area where you live in America.

Each location in the United States may have different requirements for this application, but generally, you will need the following:

④ Wedding ceremony and receive a marriage certificate

Once you receive your marriage license, you are eligible to hold a wedding ceremony. You can hold your wedding ceremony in a church or a courthouse in the county where you applied for your marriage license.

You will have your wedding ceremony held by a priest, pastor, etc. certificated officiant at the church, and make the marriage oath. After the oath, you will have the officiant sign on the marriage license. So, don’t forget to bring your marriage license with you to your wedding ceremony so that the officiant (a judge, pastor, or other person with authority) can fill in the document. The signatures from you, your spouse, and other witnesses (the required number varies by state) will be collected. Then the celebrant will submit the completed document to the county clerk’s office.

Your marriage certificate will be mailed to your US address within a few weeks.

⑤ Make the notification of your marriage in Japan

Once you receive your marriage certificate, you will need to make the notification to a municipal office in Japan within 3 months.

While it is also possible for you to make the notification through a Japanese Embassy or Consulate in the US, the procedure may take 1 and a half months. Therefore, especially if you plan to live in Japan together thereafter, we recommend going to Japan and making the notification there.

Summary

This time we briefly explained the process and required documents for a marriage between an American and a Japanese.

As we explained, instead of getting married in the US first and then making the notification in Japan, it would be simply to register the marriage in Japan.

Therefore, we generally recommend the method of completing the procedure in Japan first.

Once these procedures are completed and you have met the various visa requirements, you can apply for a “Spouse of a Japanese” Visa and then you can live together in Japan.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions about spouse visa applications or international marriages, we very much appreciate to support.

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We are Yanagi group, which have offices in Osaka (Abeno and Tennoji), and our affiliated offices in Tokyo (Shibuya and Ebisu) are also available for an on-site consultation. We have handled many applications for permanent residence permits, naturalization permits, work visas, college student visas, management visas, etc., as well as visa renewal procedures related to the status of residence with the Immigration Bureau (Immigration Bureau) as a one-stop service. Our experienced administrative scriveners are also available to help you with any problems you may have. We also have staff members who can speak each of the native languages and can assist you in obtaining a visa.

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