Japanese Citizenship Issues

Citizenship is at the heart of many of the issues addressed on this web site.  It is a two way street, because, for example, the country of one parent may recognize dual citizenship and the country of another may note.  For information on how children acquire citizenship and on recognition of dual citizenship for countries besides Japan, see the country specific law pages.  Two common ways of recognizing citizenship are "jus sanguinis" (right of blood) and "jus soli" (right of the soil.)  Jus sanguinis means that if your parents are citizens, you acquire citizenship.  Jus soli means that you acquire citizenship if you are born within the country.  Japan is basically jus sanguinis, but with various restrictions depending on whether the mother or father is Japanese and whether the a child is born within wedlock or outside of wedlock.  So if your child was or will be born out of wedlock, and only one parent is Japanese, the rules on citizenship can be complicated and biased against the child of a non-Japanese mother. There are also restrictions on dual citizenship.  So read the appropriate essays carefully.

Until 1985, Japan ignored any other nationality that a Japanese citizen happened to be born with.  For example, ex-president of Peru, Alberto Fujimori, who fled to Japan in 2000 to escape criminal prosecution in Peru, was a bi-national before the new law.  Since he was born in 1938, he wasn't required to officially choose the Japanese nationality and renounce his Peruvian citizenship.  Japan "assumes" that he, and all those who were bi/pluri-nationals before 1985, did choose to be Japanese. The Japanese nationality law requires anyone born in 1985 or later to choose citizenship by their 22nd birthday.  Until then dual citizenship is allowed.  After that, many people take a "don't ask don't tell" position, which reportedly can work unless you try to get a government related job.  (It may also require the other country to cooperate on things like stamping both passports when you enter the other country of citizenship. For example, the United States requires citizens to use their US passport to enter the country, but reportedly will stamp the Japanese passport as well.  Note that the order in which you present your passports may matter, and presenting your Japanese passport first could cause you to be fingerprinted even though you are a citizen of the country you are entering.) You can find some information on how Japan treats citizenship in the Nationality Law (cached copy) and the Family Registration Law.

There appears to be a special visa category for descendants of Japanese emigrants (Nikkeijin) up to the third generation from countries like Brazil, the United States, Philippines and China. This category allows long-term residence and employment of any kind, although it does not confer citizenship without going thru the naturalization process.  Due to several high profile crimes by Nikkeijin in recent years (around 2007) Japanese politicians have said they would impose additional restrictions or perhaps background checks on applicants for this visa category.

Issues

• Out of wedlock birth requires before birth acknowledgement of paternity for citizenship
• The Nationality Law can cause children born overseas to lose Japanese citizenship
• The Nationality Law requires a dual citizen child to choose one nationality by age 22.

Essays

• An Overview of Japanese Citizenship and the Nationality Law
• Japan's perspective on dual nationality and the requirement to choose one - The simplest overview of the subject.
• How and why you might want to request that a Japanese parent's citizenship be revoked
• Birth Within Wedlock Inside Japan
• Birth Within Wedlock Outside of Japan
• Birth Out of Wedlock in Japan
• Birth Out of Wedlock Outside of Japan

Media Articles

• Ex-husband dragged through court system over paternity of post-divorce baby; Mainichi Daily News; January 18, 2007. Japanese fathers must go to court and give intimate details of life before divorce to prove they are not fathers of children born after a divorce. (cached copy)

• New divorcees push for DNA testing to be allowed to prove paternity of newborn children; Mainichi Shinbun, January 8, 2007.  Japanese mothers want DNA testing to be recognized as conclusive proof of the father even if child born within 300 days of divorce.

• Court recognizes 9 children born to unmarried Filipinas as Japanese; (EJ) March 30, 2006; Tokyo District Court tries again to grant citizenship to children born out of wedlock.

  • Foreign mothers fight for children's futures; Japan Times; July 19, 2005.  Article about the nine Filipino women fighting in court to have their children with Japanese fathers recognized as Japanese citizens. Discusses the discrimination, bullying and other problems of not being legally recognized as Japanese and being of mixed race in Japan. (cached copy)

  • 'Japanese' kids speak out over identity battle; Daily Yomiuri; October 2, 2005; Discusses a lawsuit demanding that the government recognize children whose Japanese father recognized paternity after birth rather than before birth, as is currently necessary to receive Japanese citizenship.  Discusses other problems these children have, such as inability to speak anything but Japanese preventing them from living elsewhere and bullying at school.  (cached copy)

  • Kids born, fathered here by Japanese sue state for recognition as citizens; Japan Times; April 13, 2005.   Described a lawsuit was filed against the government on behalf of nine children born in Japan to Japanese fathers and Filipino mothers who are seeking to be recognized as Japanese.  (cached copy)

  • 日本男性と比女性の子ら９人、国籍確認求め集団提訴; Asahi Shinbun; April 13, 2005.

• Court overturns ruling that recognized boy's Japanese nationality; March 1, 2006

  • Court Says Unconstitutional For Boy To Be Refused Japan Nationality; Kyodo News; April 13, 2005.  Tokyo District Court ruled it is unconstitutional for the government to refuse Japanese nationality to a child born out of wedlock and later recognized by his Japanese father. (cached copy)
  • 母が比人の非嫡出７歳児に日本国籍認める…東京地裁; Yomiuri Shinbun; April 13, 2005. (cached copy)
  • 国籍法の規定は違憲　母比国人の男児に日本籍; Kyodo News; April 13, 2005. (cached copy)
  • 国籍法規定は違憲　比女性と日本男性の子の国籍認める; Asahi Shinbun; April 13, 2005. (cached copy)

Resources

• For country specific information on how children acquire citizenship and on whether they recognizes dual citizenship, see the country specific law pages.  If your country is not listed, please research it and send us the information for others to use.