How much does it cost to naturalize?

Believe it or not: ¥0.

Compare this to the ¥8,000 you need to apply for 在留の資格 {zairyū no shikaku} ([alien] residency status) of 永住者 {eijūsha} (permanent resident) and the additional ¥3,000/¥6,000 you'll probably need for a 再入国許可 {sainyūkoku kyoka} ([Japan] re-entry permit) depending on if you ever have to travel outside of Japan once of more times more every three years.

Of course, this is the do-it-yourself price. You may find that you have to hire legal help to prepare the paperwork, or pay for Japanese translations if you're unable or unwilling to do the work yourself.

And it doesn't count the cost of obtaining some of the paperwork, which is not free. In Japan right now, the service fee for getting the following documents is usually as follows:
  • 登録原票記載事項証明書 {tōroku genpyō kisai jikō shōmeisho} (certificate of registered alien matters)： ¥300
  • 戸籍謄本 {koseki tōhon} (complete copy of family register)： ¥450
  • 住民票 {jūminhyō} (resident registration card)： ¥300
Documents from overseas will very by country to country, but in the U.S., getting proof of citizenship from the embassy/consulate costs $30, and how much you are charged for getting copy of birth and marriage certificates varies from state to state. In the U.S., even the paperwork for renouncing costs money; starting November 9th, 2015, it will set you back $2,350.

Popular posts from this blog

Types of Japanese Passports

Image
The vast majority of people that naturalize will probably apply for a "red" Japanese passport after their 戸籍 { koseki } (family register) is created — which takes about a couple weeks followed by a few weeks for the passport to be issued. It is not necessary to apply for a passport. Just like the United States, the vast majority of the populace never actually travels outside of their country for their lifetime. However, realisticly speaking, it's very likely that a naturalized person would have a Japanese passport as they most likely have family ties overseas. Language The passport is in two languages: English and Japanese. Very old passports, similar to my U.S. passport, also had French, the language of diplomacy. My oh my, how the French empire's influence has faded. My last U.S. passport added Spanish. My oh my, how South, Central, and Latin America's influence has increased! ☺ On current Japanese passports, the message from the Minister of Foreig...
Read more →

How much did it actually cost to naturalize?

Image
Pennies, compared to most other developed countries In 2010, an article was published here about how much it costs to apply for naturalization. It was true then, and it's still true now in 2022: The application itself is free . ¥0, nada, zilch. Compare that to the US ($725) , UK (£1,330) , Germany (€255) . However, there are many things throughout the process that can cost money: getting your civil documents both in Japan and your home country, tax documents, driving record, etc. You will also to make personal appearances to your local Legal Affairs Bureau. Here I will talk about how much it cost me personally, including the cost of gathering all documents, photocopying, travel, etc. List of Expenses Below is the list of my naturalization-related expenses. All told, it cost me about ¥18,500 to make a successful application. It is worth repeating: There is no application fee . Everything in the list above are expenses related to getting documents I need to submit with my naturaliza...
Read more →

All about Japanese personal inkan/hanko/chops/seals

Image
"signing" a payment slip at a bank In Japan (and other Asian countries), it is traditional practice to use an 印鑑 { inkan } ( aka 印章 { inshō } ) — colloquially called a 判子 { hanko } in Japanese or "chop" in British English — instead of a signature for acknowledging / signing / accepting documents. Pedantically speaking, a 判子 hanko is the actual stamping object, and an 印鑑 inkan is the ink impression that is made, but many native Japanese use the two words interchangeably. In the 21st century, Japanese recommend having three types of seals: one for casual informal acceptance: 認印 { mitomein } one for your bank accounts: 銀行印 { ginkō-in } the "real" registered one: ( 実印 { jitsuin } ) While it's perfectly possible to use just one seal for all of these functions, most people use at least two or three for the same reason that people should use different passwords for different services on the internet: in the case of a compromised s...
Read more →