Jūminhyō: Japan's Residence Record Explained
A jūminhyō (住民票) is the individual resident record Japan's city and ward offices keep for every legally registered resident, Japanese national and qualifying foreign resident alike. Landlords, banks, and employers routinely ask for a copy of it, so knowing which version to request, and how its fields differ for foreign residents, saves a second trip and a second fee.
Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) or your local city or ward office.
Overview
A jūminhyō is maintained within a municipality's Basic Resident Register (住民基本台帳), the master ledger of everyone legally residing in that municipality.1 The Basic Resident Register Act (住民基本台帳法, Act No. 81 of 1967) states its purpose as maintaining accurate resident-address records as the basis for resident registration, the election roll, and other resident-facing administrative processes.1
The city, ward, town, or village office (shiyakusho/kuyakusho) administers the register. Each municipality keeps its own Basic Resident Register for the people living within it, and issues certified copies on request.1
Since July 9, 2012, the same register covers both Japanese nationals and qualifying foreign residents on one legal footing.23
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 住民基本台帳 | Jūmin Kihon Daichō | Basic Resident Register, the municipality's master ledger of registered residents1 |
| 住民票 | Jūminhyō | The individual resident record within the register1 |
| 住民票の写し | Jūminhyō-no-utsushi | A certified copy of a jūminhyō entry, issued to a requester1 |
The 2012 Reform: From Alien Registration to a Unified System
Effective July 9, 2012, foreign residents were brought into the Basic Resident Register system and began receiving a jūminhyō on the same basis as Japanese nationals, following a law promulgated three years earlier, in 2009.23 The same date marked the start of Japan's "new residency management system": the Ministry of Justice took over continuous, unified tracking of mid- to long-term foreign residents, replacing the prior arrangement split between the Immigration Control Act and a separate Alien Registration Act (外国人登録法, Gaikokujin Tōroku Hō), which was abolished that day.3
The residence card (在留カード, zairyū kādo) replaced the old Alien Registration Certificate as the ID document mid- to long-term residents must carry. Special permanent residents instead receive a Special Permanent Resident Certificate (特別永住者証明書, Tokubetsu Eijūsha Shōmeisho).34
The reform covered mid- to long-term residents (a status of residence other than Temporary Visitor, Diplomat, or Official, with a period of stay over three months) and special permanent residents. Short-term visitors, diplomatic or official status holders, and anyone without a valid status of residence remained outside the system.32
A foreign national who lives in the same household as a Japanese national is now recorded on a single, shared jūminhyō rather than on separate documents, a direct consequence of folding foreign residents into the same register.5
The change replaced two separate record-keeping tracks with one:
Why the Pre-2012 Split Existed
Before July 9, 2012, Japanese nationals were governed solely by the Basic Resident Register Act, while foreign nationals were tracked under the separate Alien Registration Act through the alien registration master record (外国人登録原票, Gaikokujin Tōroku Genpyō) kept by municipalities but reported to immigration authorities, a structurally distinct paper trail from the jūminhyō system.3
This meant a foreign resident's presence was managed independently by immigration authorities and by the municipality, rather than through the single, continuously updated register Japanese nationals used. The 2012 reform's stated aim was to let the Ministry of Justice track mid- to long-term residents in a unified, continuous way instead.3
After abolition, the former alien registration master record certificate could no longer be issued. A jūminhyō, or for historical records a disclosure request to the Immigration Services Agency, took its place.3
What a Jūminhyō Records
Article 7 of the Basic Resident Register Act lists what every jūminhyō records: full name, date of birth, sex, household-head designation (or the head's name and the resident's relationship to the head), a reference to the household's koseki (Japan's family register), current address and the date it was set, a prior address if the person moved, My Number (個人番号, kojin bangō), voter-roll registration status, health and pension insurance enrollment details where applicable, child-allowance receipt status where applicable, and a separate jūminhyō code (住民票コード, jūminhyō kōdo).1
The jūminhyō code and My Number are distinct identifiers serving different systems. Both can appear on a jūminhyō, but they are not interchangeable.1
A full household copy lists every member of the same household and each member's relationship to the household head (世帯構成, setai kōsei, "household composition"). An individual copy lists only the requester, or, if requested, that one person's relationship to the head.6
Fields Specific to Foreign Residents
A foreign resident's jūminhyō adds fields a Japanese national's does not carry: nationality or region, and the date the person became a registered foreign resident, on top of the standard Article 7 items.4
For mid- to long-term residents, the added fields include status of residence, period of stay, the date the period of stay expires, and the residence card number.4 For special permanent residents, the record instead notes special-permanent-resident status and the Special Permanent Resident Certificate number, since special permanent residents are not on the status-of-residence system.4
Holders of temporary refuge permits, provisional stay permits, or transitional-resident status have their own set of recorded fields, matching that category's authorization basis.4
A jūminhyō records status of residence and period of stay for applicable foreign residents, but how a status of residence is determined is a separate topic. This record simply reflects it.
The Jūminhyō-no-Utsushi: The Copy You Actually Request
The jūminhyō itself is the register entry the municipality keeps on file. What a resident actually requests and receives is a jūminhyō-no-utsushi (住民票の写し), a certified copy of that entry.1
Any resident may request a copy of their own jūminhyō, or that of someone in their household, from the mayor or ward head of the municipality holding the register. A request by anyone else requires a stated legitimate reason.1 This article keeps request mechanics brief; the full step-by-step procedure across each request channel is a separate topic.
By default, a municipality may leave the election-roll, health-insurance, long-term-care-insurance, and pension items off an issued copy unless the requester specifically asks for them. This is a statutory default, separate from the item certificate described below.1
A related but separate document is the jūminhyō kisai jikō shōmeisho (住民票記載事項証明書), a "resident record item certificate" that several municipalities offer as a slimmer alternative to the full copy. It certifies only the specific items a requester selects, with name and address as the only mandatory fields.67
Fees for a standard jūminhyō-no-utsushi are set by each municipality's own fee ordinance, not by national law, so amounts vary by city (as of 2026-07; confirm current figures with your local city or ward office). The table below shows the standard-copy fee at four municipalities checked for this article.
| Municipality | Window fee | Mail fee | Konbini fee | As of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shibuya City (Tokyo) | ¥300 | ¥200 | ¥10 | 2026-07 | 8 |
| Yokohama City | ¥300 | n/a | ¥250 (city multi-function terminal) | 2026-07 | 9 |
| Mitaka City (Tokyo) | ¥300 | ¥400 | ¥200 | 2026-07 | 10 |
| Koto City (Tokyo) | ¥300 | n/a | ¥200 | 2026-07 | 6 |
Do not generalize a single municipality's fee to a national figure; each is set independently.
The Partial Jūminhyō: Choosing What to Include
Beyond the statutory default omissions above, the jūminhyō kisai jikō shōmeisho lets a requester choose exactly which optional items to include: household-head designation and relationship to head, registered domicile (honseki), nationality or status-of-residence fields for foreign residents, and My Number, on top of the mandatory name and address.67
Kodaira City charges ¥250 for a jūminhyō kisai jikō shōmeisho (as of 2026-07), compared with the ¥300 typical for a full jūminhyō-no-utsushi among the municipalities above. Item-certificate fees are set independently, like the full-copy fee.7
Which version a submission target actually needs, a bank, an employer, or a government office, determines which fields must be included. A certificate that omits a field the recipient needs, for example a full copy without My Number when a bank specifically requires it, cannot simply be topped up afterward; the requester typically needs a fresh request.67
My Number inclusion carries an extra restriction at the municipalities checked: a copy that includes My Number can be issued over the counter only to the resident or a same-household member with ID, never to a proxy in person, and it cannot be issued at a konbini kiosk regardless of whether standard copies can (as of 2026-07).1112 When a proxy requests a My-Number-included copy, the municipality mails it to the resident's own registered address instead.1112
This proxy and My-Number handling was checked at two Tokyo wards (Koto, Nerima) with matching rules. It reads as common administrative practice rather than a one-off, but it has not been independently confirmed against a national circular, so treat it as municipality-sourced rather than a guaranteed nationwide rule.
Common Uses for a Jūminhyō
A May 2025 Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications working-group survey catalogued which institutions and private-sector recipients ask for a jūminhyō-no-utsushi and what they check on it (as of 2025-05; confirm current figures with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications).13
- Pension claims (Japan Pension Service or mutual aid associations): required for Employees' Pension claims and similar procedures, though normally unnecessary once the pension registry already carries the claimant's My Number.13
- Tax filing (tax office or National Tax Agency): used for in-person final tax returns; filing through e-Tax can remove the need for the copy.13
- Real estate registration (Legal Affairs Bureau): used for registering real property; an online application using a My Number Card's signing certificate can remove the need for the copy.13
- Vehicle registration (regional transport bureau): used to register a car; an online application with a My Number Card signing certificate can remove the need for the copy.13
- Driver's license procedures (prefectural police): used when registered-address details tied to a license change.13
- Employer onboarding and payroll: commuting- and housing-allowance approval, dependent or spousal-allowance approval, social-insurance enrollment, and income-tax withholding changes commonly check name, address, birth date, and sex, and for dependent-related procedures also relationship to head.13
- Banking: mortgage applications (checked alongside My Number, relationship to head, household composition, and status of residence where relevant) and standard bank-account opening (checked alongside My Number).13
- Securities accounts: opening a brokerage account, checked alongside My Number.13
- Insurance: contracts and claims such as death benefits and annuity starts, checked alongside My Number.13
- Rental contracts: residential lease agreements, checked alongside relationship to head and, where a household moves in together, each member's information.13
An e-Tax return, or a real estate or vehicle registration filed online with a My Number Card signing certificate, can remove the need to obtain and pay for a jūminhyō-no-utsushi at all.13
Good to know
A Jūminhyō Is Not a Substitute for the Residence Card
Foreign residents aged 16 and over who are mid- to long-term residents must always carry their residence card. This is a separate legal obligation from anything a jūminhyō does.14
Failing to carry it can draw a fine of up to ¥200,000. Refusing to present it on request from an immigration officer or police officer can draw imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up to ¥200,000.14
Special permanent residents are not subject to this carrying obligation, even though they, too, are registered on the Basic Resident Register and hold a jūminhyō.14
The two documents serve different purposes. The jūminhyō is the municipality's record of address and household facts; the residence card is what satisfies the carry-and-present obligation under the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act. Having a jūminhyō does not remove the separate obligation to carry the residence card.141
Confirm Which Version a Requester Actually Needs Before Paying
Full jūminhyō-no-utsushi, the item-only jūminhyō kisai jikō shōmeisho, and a My-Number-included copy are not interchangeable for a given submission target. A requester pays the fee per copy issued, so requesting the wrong version means paying again for a second, correctly specified copy.67
A proxy cannot pick up a My-Number-included copy in person; the municipality can only mail it to the applicant's own registered address (as of 2026-07; confirm current figures with your local city or ward office). A requester who sends a proxy to the counter expecting a same-day My-Number copy will be turned away and have to wait for mail delivery instead.1112
Convenience-Store Issuance Is Not Universal
As of April 15, 2025, 1,378 of Japan's 1,741 municipalities, 79.1% by municipality count, participated in konbini issuance, including municipalities with participation scheduled to start shortly after that date. Participating municipalities' combined registered population represents 97.8% of Japan's total (as of 2025-04-15).13
Non-participation concentrates among smaller municipalities. Of the 363 municipalities not yet participating, most are towns and villages, and municipalities with a population under 5,000 are the least represented, with roughly two-thirds of that group not participating (as of 2025-04-15). Cited reasons include unclear cost-effectiveness, ongoing operating costs after an initial subsidized period, and low expected usage in very small populations.13