My wife went to MUFG to create a bank account for our Japanese/US dual national son. We thought the application would be Japanese nationality-related only.
The bank teller really wanted to clarify if our son was “Japanese only”, stating that it’s law for other nationalities, particularly US/dual, to require an ITIN.
Has anyone else faced this?
I was quite peeved but we will do what is required…
First time parent, by the way, so probably will face similar things like this if we choose to live here longer. The constant “he is” or “he isn’t” depending on the situation…
10 comments
I think the main issue may be he is a us citizen, making it a pain in the leg to do anything not only in Japan, also in europe etc
My son is dual french/japanese, had no issue at mufg at all
The teller is right. Your son should have received a SSN when you registered the birth with the US embassy.
As Americans, we are in bad shape outside of the US due to the IRS and FATCA reporting that foreign banks are required to follow if they service Americans.
We just opened a Yucho account for my daughter who is Canadian/Japanese.
No restrictions, you just need a residency certificate and inkan.
American abroad can expect extra trials and tribulations. Make sure to join a group like the ACA (American Citizens Abroad) and contact your congressperson and reps to lobby for change.
Did you register his birth with the US embassy already?
Well, you could try a different bank, and swear up and down that your son is only japanese…?
You should have gotten an SSN, and if not, get on it. It might take a few weeks or longer, but the kid will need it from now on.
Also, it’s the US, and only the US that’s creating the need for this–the FATCA stuff, homeland security and financial rules that the US imposes on whatever country it can.
With dual citizenship, he is both Japanese and American *at all times*. His citizenship doesn’t change based on the context. As Americans, we need to deal with FATCA.
MUFG is right. Any US citizen including dual JP/US must provide their SSN per Fatca. You can thank Obama for signing it into law.
If kid’s name isn’t foreign sounding, and makes an account by themselves in the future with Japanese documentation only, the bank might not ask for or overlook the need to get the US SSN.
Being a Japanese/US dual national does not excuse your children from requirements based on US only nationals.
Your dual national kids will have the exact same hurdles that you, and all other US nationals have, for as long as they hold US nationality.
Also if you’re thinking of not disclosing their US nationality to the bank/broker I would recommend against that. They will need to provide their Koseki and juminhyo to open the account, and when they notice that John Smith is their father, they will know that chances are high that the child is a dual national.
We got asked the same questions for my kids, but luckily my kids are Japanese/UK duals, so no issues, with US related issues.
Thanks everyone for the comments! This is all good to know.
I didn’t realize FACTA was so prominent even in dual nationality cases. Good to know moving forward.
I just went through this myself last week. They want your son’s SSN because of FATCA. What they should do is report it as all zeroes for right now if your son hasn’t received his SSN yet, and when he does receive his SSN you need to take that to the bank and finish that part of the registration.
Or, at least, that’s how Yuchou handles it. My local bank had to call Tokyo and ask them how to do the registration as my son is the first child with dual citizenship they’ve ever handled. Or with anything but Japanese citizenship, to be honest. It took over two hours, but it can be done.