US citizen engaged to a Japanese national. What to do?

7 comments

1. Here’s what I did. Got married in 2012 in the US. My wife took the marriage certificate back to the city hall in hitachi and they did what they had to do with it. She handled that side of it.

   We live in the US but if your going back you’ll need a spousal visa. Plenty of info online about how to get one. Since we stayed in the US my wife has a green card. We didn’t get a lawyer or anything. Did the paperwork myself. It’s pretty straight forward as long as you have proof you’re in a lasting relationship. We had emails and images from the previous 5 years.

2. It’s actually really easy. If she is going back to japan. Just have her take your marriage certificates back to japan. (After you get married make sure you buy 5 or 6) Make sure she also has a certified copy of your birth cert. She can then add you to the family register. Once that is done she can get a copy of the family register and apply for a spouse visa. From the time she adds you to the family register you can be in japan in as little as 4 weeks.

3. You have to contact the embassy about it, but I’m fairly certain you can get a visa now

   https://www.mofa.go.jp/ca/fna/page22e_000921.html

   > The following are examples of cases where relationship equivalent to a relative or necessity to visit Japan is recognized.
   A foreign national who has relationship with a person residing in Japan equivalent to a relative as listed below;
   ***Betrothed***
   Common-law marriage

4. I actually just did this in April. I’m an American who is still here in Los Angeles and I married my wife who is currently in Osaka. We did everything while apart and were married in Japan. I am seeing her next week!

   [This post](https://www.reddit.com/r/movingtojapan/comments/mbpoc0/how_to_get_married_in_japan_without_being_in_japan/) by u/Napbastak was invaluable to me and I actually reached out to her with my own personal experience, which she added to her post.

   It’s a fairly simple, yet time consuming process that varies on your state:

   **Step 1: Affidavit**

   First thing you need is to fill out an affidavit, [which you can download from the US Embassy of Japan’s website](https://japan2.usembassy.gov/pdfs/wwwf7114.pdf), which you will then need to have notarized. Keep in mind, this form is typically for use of residents currently in Japan and it is assumes you will have it notarized at a US consulate in Japan.

   In my case, I had the form notarized by a local notary public in my neighborhood. The form you download has a line that states “Consul of the United States of America duly commissioned and qualified”. This is intended to be signed by the consulate. However, here in California, a notary public will have their own identification number and seal. I was very lucky with my notary public, as she was able to scan my form, erase that line, and replace it with her own seal recognized in the state of California.

   Now, here’s a step that isn’t explained on the US Embassy of Japan’s website (again, every guide you will find assumes you are already in Japan). That notarized form is ONLY recognized in the United States. You will need to have the notarized affidavit apostilled by your state secretary’s office. [An apostille](https://www.mofa.go.jp/ca/cs/page22e_000417.html) certifies that the form can legally be recognized in Japan. This is extremely important. So please research your state’s secretary’s office and specifically in regards to obtaining an apostille.

   I’m fortunate to live in a downtown area, so the office for me was just a few blocks away. However, my notary public also offered to mail my notarized affidavit for me to be apostilled. If you decide to do this yourself, you will need the following:

   – Your original notarized affidavit

   – A coversheet that states the country your documents will be used ([Here is the California document for reference](https://notary.cdn.sos.ca.gov/forms/apostille-request-form.pdf))

   – And a check for the apostille fee (Mine was $20)

   **Step 2: Kon-in Todoke**

   This step is primarily for the fiancé. My wife mailed me the **Kon-in Todoke** form she obtained from her local city hall and all I needed to do was sign my name. It’s important to know signatures are not recognized in Japan. You must hand write your name in normal print script. Now, the reason she mailed me the form as opposed to me printing it is due to the legal size difference in Japan. Legal forms are printed in a size known as A3 and as hard as I tried (I live in a Japanese neighborhood here in LA too), it was impossible for me to find a printer or company that had a printer with an A3 size.

   Once I signed my name on the form, I mailed it back to her along with my affidavit, apostille, copies of my Birth Certificate (My actual birth certificate. ***Not*** a Birth Certificate Extract) and passport. Please ask your fiancé to ask their local City Hall if copies of the birth certificate and passport are acceptable, because I’ve read stories of these rules varying between different wards in Japan. Some require the original and some said copies are fine.

   When my wife received my mail, she then completed the rest of the form herself. The Kon-in Todoke requires two witness signatures, so please discuss with your fiancé on who you would like these witnesses to be.

   At this point, your fiancé should have the following:

   – Notarized and apostilled affidavit

   – Copies or originals of your birth certificate and passport

   – Kon-in Todoke signed by the both of you and your two witnesses

   That’s it! Your fiancé will take these forms to their local city hall and about an hour later, you’re married! No need to provide any documents to the US in regards to your marriage. It’s already recognized based on the existence of your Japanese marriage document.

   Next, you will need to apply for a special circumstance visa to visit your spouse. I’ll have to come back to add the next step(s) later on. I’m a little busy with work, but I hope this helps!

5. If you’re engaged, you can go to Japan now — the rules changed relatively recently

6. I just went thru, again, getting my Japanese driver’s license and my resident card. There is a ton of paperwork, it seems, although the people at Yokohama Immigration were quite nice. This is the second time I went thru this. I became a permanent resident around 2000 to buy a house. I let the residency lapse so that I could get my SOFA designation. After I retired I had to do the same thing over. Advice: It’s much easier when you’re young and less crusty.

7. Thank all of you for replying and please don’t stop because I have 1000 questions… Well maybe only a couple now based on what you guys have said! I’m literally tearing up hearing this news.