International marriages have been increasing in Japan.
(Mainichi Japan) January 24, 2011
Japanese singer Ayumi Hamasaki recently married a man of Austrian nationality. The Mainichi answers questions readers may have about international marriages and nationality.
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Question: What is Japan's position on nationality when it comes to international marriages?
Answer: The Japanese Nationality Law states that "a Japanese national shall lose Japanese nationality when he or she acquires a foreign nationality by his or her own choice." As a result, unless the Japanese national takes steps to obtain the nationality of their spouse, the person retains Japanese nationality. However, in countries such as Iran, when a couple marry, the wife is required to obtain the same nationality as the husband.
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Q: In international marriages, which country's laws should the couple abide by?
A: When it comes to conditions for marriage, such as age, they abide by their own country's laws. In Japan, that means the Civil Code, which stipulates the age at which people can marry and bans practices such as bigamy. Legal worker Yukio Enomoto, an expert on international marriages, says that when the couple gets married overseas, they submit to the procedures determined by that country, then, within three months of their marriage, they are required to submit a marriage certificate to a Japanese diplomatic office in that country or to the Japanese person's legal domicile. If they don't do this, their marriage will not be recognized in Japan.
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Q: Do marriage procedures differ from country to country?
A: In Japan a "report of marriage" is submitted to local authorities, but procedures differ from country to country as marriage is often closely connected with culture and religion. Some countries conduct ceremonial marriages in which vows must be made at a government office, and some conduct religious marriages at churches or temples. One 39-year-old Japanese woman who recently married a man from New York said that at the government office in New York, she vowed to remain with her husband for life. Another 37-year-old Japanese woman who married a man from Bangladesh said she was required to convert to Islam.
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Q: How many people in Japan are in international marriages?
A: According to a demographic survey conducted in 2009, there were 34,393 marriages in which one of the couple was a foreigner -- accounting for roughly 5 percent of all marriages in Japan. Thirty years ago the figure was around 1 percent, and international marriages have gradually been increasing since then. In marriages where the husband is Japanese, the wife is often from China or the Philippines, and when the wife is Japanese, South or North Korea, the United States, and China are the top countries for the husband's nationality.
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Q: What nationality do these couples' children take?
A: In Japan, if one of the parents is Japanese, the children become Japanese nationals. In the United States, children born in the United States acquire U.S. citizenship, and if a Japanese women in an international marriage gives birth in the United States, her child obtains U.S. citizenship. However, if a notice of retention of citizenship is filed when registering the birth in Japan, the child does not lose his or her Japanese nationality. In such circumstances, the child acquires dual nationality, and he or she must choose which nationality to take by the age of 22. (Answers by Mikako Shimogiri, Lifestyle News Department)
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