Application for Japanese passports of minors

Consulate-General of Japan in Perth

Application for Japanese passports of minors ( Notice for parents (PDF) )

1. Regarding the application for Japanese passports of minors, Japan issues passports by having a signature of a custodian as a legal representative to the application form.

However, if the other parent has expressed his/her disagreement on the issuance of the child's passport either to the Japanese Embassies, Consulates General or the prefectural passport offices in Japan beforehand, the passport will usually be issued after the verification of the consent of both parents. In this verification process, the Japanese Embassies and Consulates General, as well as the prefectural passport offices, check in principle with the parent who disagreed beforehand on the issuance of child's passport whether he/she is now willing to submit a "Letter of Consent for an Application of Passport", and the passport will be issued after the submission of the Letter.

One needs to come to the Japanese Embassy, Consulate-General or prefectural passport office in Japan to express disagreement in writing with other supporting documents such as "Koseki Tohon" (family registry) that demonstrates your parental authority. For details on necessary documents, please ask the Japanese Embassy, Consulate-General or prefectural passport office to which you plan to submit the documents.

2. In some countries, taking a child abroad without consent of his/her spouse who has parental authority may be accounted to criminal liability. In fact, there are cases in which parent taking a child was arrested of child abduction when he/she reentered the country, or that parent was placed on the international wanted list of International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO). To prevent Japanese citizens from such disadvantages, the Japanese Embassies and the Consulates General, which are located in such countries that stipulate in domestic law the taking of a child as a crime, are checking verbally to confirm the existence of agreement of both parents on the application for child's passport, even if there is no declaration of disagreement from one parent.