Home   >   Babies and Pregnancy   >   Registering your baby’s birth in Japan

Registering your baby’s birth in Japan

By on October 9, 2014
The paperwork procedures after giving birth in Japan is necessary to legalize the baby’s residency status, claim government subsidy, apply for a passport and get a proper visa.

Registration
Your baby’s residency status should be registered as required by Japanese law. Regardless of the baby’s nationality, any person born in Japan has 14 days after birth to apply for registration at the ward office (kuyakusho) with jurisdiction over the “ku” or district where your family lives.   If you live in Minato-ku, the registration needs to be done at the Minato ward office.

A few days following the arrival of your child, a birth certificate issued by the hospital needs to be submitted to the city office together with both parents’ passports and resident cards (zairyu ) for validation. Non zairyu card holders such as diplomats and foreigners working for internationally accredited organizations need instead to submit an identification issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the ‘gaimusho card’. The Pregnancy certificate (ninshin todoke) that was issued to you when pregnancy was verified by the doctor, should also be presented to the ward office.

Claim subsidy
After the registration, the child’s name will then be entered in the National Health Insurance.
Marufuku, a medical aid for infants takes care of medical costs incurred by the family depending on your income level. Families who qualify for a subsidy may apply for ‘bunben hiyo haraimodoshi‘, a maternity subsidy ranging from 300,000 – 350,000 yen paid to applicant’s bank account.

Passport issuance
Once the registration has been processed by the ward office, an official birth certificate will be made available to you for 400 yen a copy. Take this to your embassy along with other requirements in order to be issued a travel document or passport.

Japanese Visa
When you receive your baby’s passport, take it to the Tokyo Immigration office along with other documents to apply for a dependent status for your baby. This takes anywhere between 1-2 months.

Only after doing all this can you really put your feet up and relax! (…for a while)

About TF Tribe