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Out of wedlock birth requires before birth acknowledgement of paternity for citizenship
If a child is born out of wedlock to a non-Japanese mother and a Japanese father, the child does not acquire citizenship unless the father legally acknowledges him or her before birth. The only way for such a child to acquire Japanese citizenship
after birth is for the parents to marry.
Solutions We Want To See
- If a Japanese father acknowledges paternity at any time before his child reaches adulthood at 20 years, he or she should be granted Japanese citizenship.
Essays
Media Articles
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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)
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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.
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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)
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'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)
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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)
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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.
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Court overturns ruling that recognized boy's Japanese nationality;
March 1, 2006
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.
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