Application for naturalization means that a foreigner living in Japan obtains Japanese nationality and becomes a Japanese citizen.

Unlike permanent residence, naturalization involves losing the nationality of your home country, so there are advantages and disadvantages to becoming a Japanese citizen. You need to consider the disadvantages carefully.

Unlike a normal visa application, the procedure for naturalization is different from a normal visa application. The person must go to the application and no one else can do it for him/her.

For this reason, when you ask us to apply for naturalization, you will need to bring the documents we have prepared to the Legal Affairs Bureau to apply. （A staff member from our office will accompany you when you apply and assist you with your application.）

Basic Conditions for Application for Naturalization

1. Must have a continuous residence in Japan for at least 5 years.
2. Must be 20 years of age or older and deemed competent under the laws of their home country
3. Good behavior.
4. A person can make a living from the assets or skills of his or her spouse or other relatives who make a living crisis
5. Not having a nationality or should lose that nationality through the acquisition of Japanese nationality.
6. Destroying the Japanese Constitution or the government established under it by violence on or after the date of enforcement of the Japanese Constitution. Form a political party or other organization that plans or advocates, or that plans or advocates the same, and or have never been a member
7. Be able to read and write Japanese (approximately 3rd grade elementary school age)

Cases where the requirements for naturalization are relaxed [simplified naturalization].

A. Relaxation of housing requirements

Those who meet any of the following 1 to 3 categories can apply for naturalization if they meet the requirements for ability, conduct, livelihood, loss of livelihood, and ideology, etc., even if they have not had a residence in Japan for more than five years.

1. Children of a Japanese national (excluding adopted children) who have a continuous residence in Japan for 3 years or more.
2. You must have been born in Japan, have lived in Japan for at least 3 years, and your parents (excluding your adoptive parents) were born in Japan.
3. Those who have lived in Japan for more than 10 years.
   *The difference between an address and a place of residence is the place where you live, but normally, the place where you have registered as a resident is called the “address”, and the place where you are not registered is called the “place of residence”.

B. Relaxation of housing and capacity requirements

Those who fall under any of the following 4 or 5 categories may apply for naturalization even if they have not lived in Japan for more than five years in a row.

4. a foreigner who is the spouse (husband or wife) of a Japanese who has lived in Japan for three years or more and still have a residence in Japan.
5. A foreigner who is the spouse (husband or wife) of a Japanese national who has been married for 3 years and continues to be married for 1 year Those who have a residence in Japan for more than one year.

C. Relaxation of housing and capacity requirements and livelihood requirements

Those who fall under any of the following 6 to 9 categories can be naturalized if they meet the background check requirements, loss requirements, or ideological relationship It is possible to apply for a permit.

6. Children of Japanese nationals (excluding adopted children) who have a domicile in Japan
7. the adopted child of a Japanese national who has resided in Japan for at least one year and who was a minor in his or her home country at the time of the adoption
8. former Japanese citizens (excluding those who lost their Japanese nationality after naturalization) who have a domicile in Japan.
9. a person born in Japan, stateless from the time of birth, and continuously residing in Japan for three years or more.

How to Apply for Naturalization

1. Please make an appointment for an interview by phone, inquiry form or email.

2. In principle, interviews are held in our office, but we can also conduct them at your home or elsewhere.

3. We will proceed with the collection and preparation of documents. (It will take about a month from the interview in 2).

4. Our office will contact you as soon as the documents for your application for naturalization are ready.

5. The Legal Affairs Bureau will send a notice of the interview directly to you (usually in two to three months).

6. You will be notified of the permit

7. Go to the legal affairs bureau and ask for a letter of permission and identification to explain the situation.

8. You must return your alien registration card and submit your naturalization report to the city office of your residence within a specified period

9. The procedure for losing the nationality of the home country is carried out