Getting married in Japan - 2 Americans

Hello all,

I've seen this thread before on the website, and I still have a few questions. According to both the American and Japanese embassies, it's entirely possible for two Americans to get legally married in Japan. My fiance and I are traveling to Japan for our honeymoon this December. Due to cost, we are not having a wedding, but are heading straight over for a honeymoon. I am worried though that we might get there and find the way barred.

According to the embassy, we will need to have an affidavit of competency to marry from the consulate. Am I correct in assuming we need to do this in Japan? I'm assuming that the fact that the form has to be completed in English and Japanese shouldn't worry me because we'll be completing it there...

I see that we may need to have certified copies of our translated birth certificates, but I am clueless as to go about obtaining them.

I think this is all it takes to get legally married in Japan. The notarial documents, potentially the Japanese certified copies of birth certificates, then going to the municipal office to complete the procedure.

I understand that it is not always a guarantee that the office will acknowledge our ability to marry, and that many people are told they can't, but I know that eventually someone will know what we're trying to do.

I suppose my question is, am I accurate in the steps? I'd HATE having gave up a wedding in favor of this incredible experience, just to be told I do not have the necessary documents. Going to Japan has always been a dream of mine, and It would be sad to come back from our honeymoon not having gotten married! We've been waiting 11 years to do this, so I want it to go smoothly. We're going to be in Japan for 18 days, so I'll have enough time for paperwork and such, but once I'm there I can't exactly come home for paperwork.

These forums have been invaluable,and the responses always helpful and insightful. I'd appreciate any feedback from those knowledgeable of the procedure, especially those having experienced if firsthand.

Thanks so much everyone!! Much love!

According to both the American and Japanese embassies, it's entirely possible for two Americans to get legally married in Japan.

It is possible, but somewhat of a hassle, especially if you don't speak/read Japanese.

According to the embassy, we will need to have an affidavit of competency to marry from the consulate. Am I correct in assuming we need to do this in Japan?

You collect the affidavit at the embassy. I asked if you could use the same form and have it notarized in the US, but the embassy didn't know, so I'd probably just do it at the embassy to be sure.

You can download the forms from their site and make an appointment. Then you just show up at the appropriate time, hand in your paperwork, pay the $50 fee and you're good to go. Here's more info with links to the appropriate forms:

http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/acs/tacs-7114.html

I'm assuming that the fact that the form has to be completed in English and Japanese shouldn't worry me because we'll be completing it there...

No, it should worry you as the embassy will not help you fill out the forms. If you don't read/write Japanese then you will need to hire a translator to help you out.

I see that we may need to have certified copies of our translated birth certificates, but I am clueless as to go about obtaining them.

Get a copy of your birth certificate from the appropriate office in the US. Photocopies will not be accepted. Then you can either translate them yourself, or hire a professional translator to do so for you.

I think this is all it takes to get legally married in Japan. The notarial documents, potentially the Japanese certified copies of birth certificates, then going to the municipal office to complete the procedure.

You also need two witnesses, although you may be able to get some of the office staff to stand in for you. Also there were some tax forms and employer forms, but I don't think those will apply to you as tourists.

The main problem is that it will be difficult, if not impossible, to get this done if you don't speak/read/write any Japanese, or know anyone in Japan who can help you. You may want to consider hiring a translator.

I'd HATE having gave up a wedding in favor of this incredible experience, just to be told I do not have the necessary documents.

Not to be a mood killer, but I wouldn't call it an incredible experience. Its more like a visit to the dmv or post office. You visit a nondescript public building, hand in some forms, sign a paper, and you're unceremoniously finished.

If its the idea of doing it in Japan that does it for you then why not. But personally, I'd have a civil ceremony in the US to get all the legal stuff out of the way, and then have a small ceremony in Japan, perhaps at a small shrine. They're relatively inexpensive and there are companies out there who will help you arrange it. That'd be a far more memorable experience than the waiting in lines, communication difficulties, and bureaucracy that getting married in Japan entails.

About marriages in Japan for Americans: http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/acs/tacs-7114a.html

I agree with yllwsmrf. Unlike in the USA where a wedding is done in a church with a somewhat fancy religious ceremony, in Japan, as in many European countries, the only legal wedding is done in a municipal office.

At times a whole bunch of couples, with their witnesses and relatives, line up in a waiting room and each party goes in and out rather quickly, unless one party is famous and/ or wealthy and can arrange for a more relaxed ceremony.

Religious ceremonies are done afterwards if one wants to, but they aren't necessary.
In France, for example, the average couple will have a religious ceremony, if at all, the same day, with the same guests.

Upper class families, especially aristocratic ones, will wait a couple of weeks or onths and have the religious ceremony in a different place and with different guests..(obviously close relatives and friends attend both ceremonies)

I would suggest a wedding in the USA then a ceremony in a Shinto shrine in Japan. It is not official but will be a cherished moment.

I know this thread is a bit old, but you might want to have a look:

http://www.japan-guide.com/forum/quereadisplay.html?1+24492

Why do you think this will be an incredible experience? You'll be in a gray office building with perplexed staff who most likely won't be able to help you very much unless you have a Japanese-speaking translator. This will probably lead to frustration on both sides, and I can't think of a less romantic way to spend a honeymoon than dealing with Japanese beauracracy! Have a civil ceremony in your home country, which won't cost much, then have a lovely Japanese ceremony here. In Japan the civil process is completely seperate from the ceremony and most people have the ceremony/party months after they officially register their marriage. When you think about it, registering in your home country then having the party later in Japan is pretty much the Japanese style of wedding. :)

Hahaha!

Thanks everyone for the information. I do not mean the bureaucratic hassle of going to the courthouse will be fantastic! I mean that instead of dropping tons of money on a wedding, especially since neither one of us have living parents, and we both have very little family, we get to treat ourselves to the wonderful experience of traveling Japan.
Who would be excited to go to a municipal office?! :D
Plus, we are excited at the prospect of getting it done quick and dirty. The formal Americanized weddings never really appealed to us. Neither of us care much about the symbolism of the wedding. We just want it official.
I think it's the whole prospect of eloping abroad that we are struck by. And if we come back unmarried, it wasn't much of an elopement, or really a honeymoon, no?

It will be much cheaper, faster, easier and less hassle, if you get married in Las Vegas on the way to Japan for honeymoon. Otherwise you will be wasting a lot of valuable time & money in Japan.

Thanks for the input. Unfortunately we will be flying straight from Atlanta to Haneda, nonstop. Vegas is out of the question.

I know it seems strange, but we fully intend on spending an entire day of our trip doing nothing but sitting in a municipal office just waiting around to sign some paperwork. And we're totally OK with that. :) We're fine with the extra hassle, little payout, and extra cost. Eloping is really our main goal here.

Thanks for the input everyone!

Advice from someone who has been there, done that, save yourself a big headache and get married by a Justice of the Peace in Atlanta before coming to Japan.

Hmmm.. You guys are making me definitely question my plans. You would know better... Would you please let me know just what aspects of it are not worth the trouble?

I'll hire a translator if I need too, but that seems like it's the least of my problems.

Thanks so much

It would help if you could explain what you are expecting of a Japanese wedding.

I married in Japan my Japanese wife, and, frankly, it was just a matter of dropping a bunch of documents at the City Hall - very boring, no speech, no ceremony, just a person rubber stamping a couple of papers and moving onto the next person at the window - not unlike going to the post office to send a package. Prior to that I had to hunt lots of papers and had to get them certified (as the Dutch embassy required this, it might be different for you). A lot of hassle and no incredible experience what so ever.

Half a year later, we had a Shinto ceremony and I did enjoy that tremendously, this was the incredible experience I had been looking for. If this is what you are after, then there is no problem as you don't need any paperwork for this, just marry back home, book a time and type of ceremony at the shrine of your choice. No doubt there will be even companies in Japan that can arrange this for you.

I got married in japan, I'm American and my husband is Japanese, and just getting all the paperwork together (and he translated it for me) took a couple weeks. You have to have an appointment at the Embassy to get the competency to marry, and also, the other forms, (like your birth certificate) you can translate yourself but you will end up spending a lot of money to pay someone to translate everything to Japanese. The actual wedding paper takes like 5 minutes (not including waiting time). It is really just to register married couples within the county they live, it is not a ceremony or anything. The other kind of downer I see is that you have to take that wedding paper to the embassy and then translate it back to English, so all the trouble (and money you will have to pay) seems kind of unnecessary. It was the Shinto ceremony at the shrine that made it memorable for me. :)


BTW, to RedFrog, the legal wedding in America is exactly the same kind of thing as Japan, you go to the town office and fill out the forms, and you are married. Then the ceremony (church or otherwise) is a separate event, but you have to make the paper at town office or you are not legally married (and the paper from the town office is what makes you married, not the church ceremony, not all of us go to church). :)

So go to City Hall and get married and then hop off to Japan for a wonderful honeymoon. Whatever you do just remember the most important thing is that you are getting married, it does not matter where the paper comes from. Congratulations!

The formal Americanized weddings never really appealed to us. Neither of us care much about the symbolism of the wedding. We just want it official.

You are aware of the civil ceremony in the US right? Its essentially the same thing as the ceremony in Japan, just in your own language.

But if elopement to Japan is your ultimate goal then I'd say go for it. It will be a hassle, and probably quite a bit more expensive than getting the legal stuff done in the US first, but it will be an experience.

I'll hire a translator if I need too, but that seems like it's the least of my problems.

If you don't read/write Japanese you WILL need to hire a translator. Other than that the whole process isn't that hard. Just prepare enough extra time for unforeseen difficulties. 2-3 days to be safe.

married in Japan, thanks for the clarification about US weddings..
When one watch US movies, sitcoms and also see, from TV and from travelling regularly to the US, that religion is so much front and center in the life of average Americans, in contrast to other countries where religion is hardly discussed, one does get a distorted view I guess...

RedFrog, actually that is true, even a lot of Americans don't know that you have to go to City Hall until they actually do the wedding and find out that the private ceremony can be anything they want. :)

I found this here:
www.kyoto-weddings.com
Cheaper than in Japan.

where did you think Atheists got married? surly not a church!