Which Japanese procedures need a translation of English documents, and what the translator must provide

Sources checked: 27 October 2026

When you submit an English document to a Japanese government office or your employer, you usually attach a Japanese translation. What's required of the translator differs by procedure: some only ask for a translation to be attached, some ask for the translator to be identified, and some also want the translator's signature or address.

Does the translator need a qualification?

None of the procedures on this page, except for driving licence translations, has a rule requiring the translator to be qualified. The Ministry of Justice's family register guidance and the Legal Affairs Bureau's naturalisation guidance both allow applicants to translate their own documents.

What the translation must state does differ by procedure, though. If it's missing something the office asks for (the translator's name, address, signature or the date of translation), you may have to redo it.

The rules, by procedure

Procedure	Submitted to	What's required of the translation	Basis
Residence status applications (Dependent, spouse and others)	Immigration Services Agency	A translation attached. No rule on the translator	Immigration Control Act Enforcement Regulations, Article 66
Tax deductions for relatives living abroad (year-end adjustment, tax return)	Employer, tax office	A Japanese translation. No rule on the translator	Income Tax Act Enforcement Regulations; National Tax Agency guidance
Family register (戸籍) filings: marriage, birth and others	Municipal office, or Japanese embassy or consulate	A translation identifying the translator. Some municipalities also want the translator's signature or address	Family Register Act Enforcement Regulations, Article 63
Relationship to the head of household on the residence record (住民票)	Municipal office	A translation identifying the translator. Some municipalities also want the translator's name and the date, and a full translation	Basic Resident Registration Act Enforcement Regulations, Article 49
Permanent residence	Immigration Services Agency	A translation attached. No rule on the translator. A statement of reasons written in another language also needs a translation	Immigration Control Act Enforcement Regulations, Article 66; Immigration Services Agency guidance
Nationality notifications and applications	Legal Affairs Bureau, municipal office and others	A translation identifying the translator	Nationality Act Enforcement Regulations, Article 5
Naturalisation (帰化)	Legal Affairs Bureau	An A4 translation stating the translator's address, name and date of translation. Partial translations not accepted. The Tokyo bureau asks for names and places of birth in the translation to be written in katakana, hiragana or kanji, not the alphabet	Legal Affairs Bureau guidance (Tokyo, Gifu)
Health insurance dependants living abroad (被扶養者)	Japan Pension Service (through the employer)	A Japanese translation signed by the translator	Japan Pension Service guidance
Overseas medical expenses (海外療養費)	Japan Health Insurance Association (協会けんぽ)	The translator's signature, address and phone number	協会けんぽ guidance
Converting a foreign driving licence	Driving licence centre and others	The licence translation must be made by the foreign authority that issued it, that country's consulate, or a body set by law	Road Traffic Act Enforcement Regulations, Article 18

The nationality rule applies to foreign-language documents attached to a notification or application. For a licence conversion, neither the applicant nor an ordinary translator can make the translation of the licence itself.

Check before you arrange a translation

What the translation must state: the translator's name, address, phone number, signature, date of translation and so on. Some offices also set the paper size or how names and places are written (in katakana, for example)
How much to translate: the whole document, or only part (naturalisation and some municipalities require a full translation)
The original: whether an original or a copy is needed, and whether it must be recently issued
Whether submitted documents are returned

Requirements can differ between offices even for the same kind of procedure. Check the latest guidance from the office you'll submit to.

Questions

Can I translate the documents myself?

For family register filings (Ministry of Justice guidance) and naturalisation (Legal Affairs Bureau guidance), yes. Residence status applications and tax deductions have no rule on the translator. Driving licence translations must come from the bodies set by law.

Do I need a certificate of translation?

None of the procedures on this page requires a document called a certificate of translation. What they require is the translation itself and, depending on the procedure, details of the translator.

Does the translation need a notary or an apostille?

The guidance for the domestic procedures on this page doesn't ask for translations to be certified by a notary. Documents for foreign authorities are a different matter, so ask the office you're submitting to.

This page is general information. The documents required and the format of translations differ by country and office, and can change. Check the current guidance of the office you are submitting to before you file.