Application for Naturalization
Naturalization is the process, defined by The Nationality Law of Japan, where a foreigner acquires Japanese nationality. The process is not a simple one, and will require the preparation of numerous complex documents. The documentation required varies depending on the individual situation – such as whether the applicant is a company employee or a manager. It is necessary to confirm that the prerequisites for naturalization are met, and then all of the supporting documentation must be prepared. The application is submitted to the legal affairs bureau for examination, and a determination is made by The Minister of Justice, accepting or rejecting the application.
The process takes about 1 year before there is a final decision. The applicant will need to collect numerous documents from government agencies in their home country and Japan in order to certify and prove eligibility for application. Many self-explanatory documents in Japanese will have to be prepared as well, to explain and justify the need to become a naturalized Japanese citizen. It is a challenging process.
Conditions to be eligible for naturalization
The Nationality Law of Japan lists the following as conditions to be met to be eligible for naturalization. It must be noted, however, that there are other factors, which we will explain later.
1. You must have lived in Japan continuously for at least 5 years.
2. You are at least 20 years old, or of legal age as defined by the laws of your home country.
3. You are “a good citizen” without any criminal record.
4. You or your spouse or relatives have sufficient assets or skills to independently sustain your life in Japan.
5. You agree to hold only Japanese citizenship and relinquish any former citizenship once Japanese citizenship is granted.
6. Having never attempted nor advocated to destroy the Japanese government established under the Constitution of Japan by violence, nor organized nor belonged to such political parties or any other organizations that attempted or advocated the same.
You must satisfy the above six requirements to acquire Japanese citizenship, and you have to be proficient in Japanese (listening, speaking, reading and writing).
Some of the above requirements are less strict for applicants born in Japan, or who have a Japanese parent or spouse. Please consult a Legal Affairs Bureau or an immigration lawyer for specific details on these requirements.
Even if you have seemingly satisfied the above conditions, there are many factors considered and examined in detail in addition to those mentioned above by the officers of legal affairs bureau as they consider whether to accept your application, or not. Thus, you are strongly recommended to consult with immigration lawyers and officers of legal affairs bureaus prior to actually beginning the process of acquiring the above documents. In many cases such a consultation would result in the recommendation that you drop your application due to some insufficiency in your eligibility. Many individuals never actually submit the application when their situation is reviewed by immigration lawyers, which is probably why some statistics show the extraordinarily high success rate of 90% of applications accepted. This success rate does not reflect individuals who are screened out before application is officially submitted. The challenge is to overcome any barriers to acceptance before the official application.
Documents to be prepared by you and/or an immigration lawyer
1) Application form
2) Explanatory document of why you need to naturalize (Must be hand-written in Japanese by the applicant)
3) Resume
4) Affidavit
5) Description of relatives
6) Description of how you sustain your life in Japan
7) Description of how you operate your business in Japan
8) Map of your residence
Documents to be procured from public agencies or others
9) Certificate of competence under the home country’s law
10) Working certificate
11) Diploma
12) Certificate of nationality (or in case CON is not available family registration, certificate of lost-nationality, birth certificate, or in case all they not available, passport)
13) Documents to certify your profile in your home country (birth certificate / marriage certificate / relative certificate in your home country, etc.)
14) Your family registration in Japan
16) Certificate of residence of your Japanese family
17) Certificate of alien registration
18) Certificate of tax payments (withholding slip and certificate of tax filing of last year etc.)
19) Commercial registration (in case of business owner or board director of company)
20) Certificates of assets (Certificates of bank deposit, securities, real-estate registration etc.)
21) Driver’s license
Others
22) Picture of face (2 pieces, 5cm x 5cm in size, taken within 6 months ago)
23) Snapshots of you & your family (a couple of items)
24) Others upon requirement by the Ministry of Justice
Last but not least, all of the above documents must be prepared in Japanese, with Japanese translation provided where the original is in a foreign language.
