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Seal Registration at the Ward Office

Seal registration is the ward-office procedure that turns an ordinary hanko into a legally certifiable seal. The counter visit is short, but the certificate it unlocks matters for life's biggest transactions.1

Confirm current details with official sources

Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the ward or city office where you reside, since eligible-seal rules and fees are set locally.

Overview​

印鑑登録 (inkan tōroku, "seal registration") records your personal seal's imprint in the municipal register so that later impressions can be certified as genuinely yours.12 Registration is a ward-office counter procedure: you bring the seal and ID, the clerk stamps the imprint into the record, and you leave with a registration card. Certificates drawn against that record do the real work afterward.13

This article stays on the counter side: what the clerk does, what you leave with, and how certificates flow. Choosing, ordering, and caring for the seal itself belongs to the companion article on the seal-registration procedure from the hanko-owner perspective.

What the Counter Registers​

The clerk stamps your seal's impression into the registration record and issues the 印鑑登録カード (inkan tōroku kādo, "seal-registration card").13 From that moment the physical seal counts as your 実印 (jitsuin, "registered seal"). The card, not the seal, is what later certificate requests key off.1

The 印鑑登録証明書 (inkan tōroku shōmeisho, "seal-registration certificate") proves that a given impression matches the registered imprint.1 Counterparties check the certificate, usually alongside the freshly stamped document. The jitsuin-plus-certificate combination is required for real-estate purchases, car purchases, business incorporation, and some notarial steps; everyday life runs on the unregistered 認印 (mitome-in, "everyday seal") or a signature.4

Eligible Seals and ID​

The seal must fit within a square measuring 8mm to 25mm per side; nickname seals and frameless seals are refused at Yokohama's counter, and other cities apply equivalent dimension rules.1 The impression should show your registered name as it appears on your residence card or resident record; variant characters may need confirmation with the counter.5

Bring the seal plus a residence card or Special Permanent Resident Certificate. Shinjuku requires the applicant to appear in person for registration.2 Registrants must be 15 or older; adults under guardianship complete the procedure with a legal representative present.5

Check the seal against the name rule before queuing

A seal carved with a nickname, an initial, or characters that do not match the resident record will be refused at the counter. Confirm the characters with the office or the carver first, not after a morning in line.15

The Counter Steps​

Present the seal and photo ID at the Family Registry or Citizen Affairs counter and fill in the registration form. The clerk verifies identity, stamps the imprint into the registration record, and issues the registration card, usually the same day where ID is complete.12 Proxy filings and cases without photo ID take longer and may require a mailed inquiry to confirm identity.3

Registration fees are set per municipality and change on a local schedule. Higashihiroshima charges 300 yen (as of 2025-09-12; confirm current figures with your local office).3 Kasama charges 300 yen for a new registration and 500 yen for re-registration (as of 2026-09).6 Some cities register free of charge, so the fee line in the table below is illustrative rather than standard (as of 2026-09).4

ItemExample feeAs ofNotes
New registration300 yen2025-09-123Higashihiroshima; some cities free
Re-registration500 yen2026-096Kasama, after loss or damage

Certificates After Registration​

Request certificates with the registration card; the seal itself stays home. No card means no certificate at the counter, so treat the card as carefully as the seal.13 Branch offices and service corners generally issue certificates the same way the main counter does.

Certificate fees are municipal and dated. Yokohama charges 300 yen per certificate (as of 2025-03-01; confirm current figures with your local office).1 Higashihiroshima charges 330 yen at the counter, with konbini issuance at 200 yen through a three-year window starting April 2025 (as of 2025-09-12).3 Kasama charges 300 yen per certificate at the counter, the kiosk, and the vending machine alike (as of 2026-09).6

My Number Card holders can also print seal certificates at konbini kiosks in participating municipalities.3 The kiosk keys off the card and the registration record, so the seal-registration card itself is still the prerequisite; konbini printing is a pickup channel, not a substitute registration.

When a Signature Works Instead​

Some ward offices offer signature registration for foreign residents who prefer not to keep a hanko. Availability is local and the mechanics differ by office, so ask your counter whether the alternative exists before ordering a seal you do not want. The hanko-owner companion article covers the choice between seal and signature in full once published.

Good to know​

Registration lapses when you move out​

Filing a move-out notification cancels the seal registration automatically, including moves abroad.23 Re-register at the new municipality and retire the old card. Residents who move back to the same address re-register from scratch; nothing resumes on its own.2

Bring the registration card, not the seal, for certificates​

Counter, branch-office, and kiosk issuance all key off the registration card plus your presence.13 Carrying the jitsuin around town risks the one object whose loss forces a 500-yen-class re-registration; leave it secured at home.6

Daily life rarely needs the jitsuin​

Parcel receipts, bank forms, and employment paperwork take a mitome-in or a signature.4 Do not register under time pressure for a routine form. Reserve the counter visit for when a purchase, incorporation, or notarial step actually demands the certificate-backed seal.

See also​

References​

Footnotes​

  1. City of Yokohama. "Seal registration" (English; updated 2025-03-01). https://www.city.yokohama.lg.jp/lang/residents/en/notifications/default20200.html ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  2. Shinjuku City (Foreign Language). "Personal Seal Registration Procedures and Certificate" (English). https://www.foreign.city.shinjuku.lg.jp/en/kurashi/inkantoroku ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  3. Higashihiroshima City. "Personal Seal Registration" (English; updated 2025-09-12). https://www.city.higashihiroshima.lg.jp/en/3/33833.html ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10

  4. i-socia Advisors (gyoseishoshi office). "Inkan Registration" (professional guide). https://eng.daikou-office.com/reference/inkan-registration ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  5. Ota City. "Registration of personal seal" (English PDF). https://www.city.ota.tokyo.jp/seikatsu/koseki_j/gaikoku/shomesho/gaikokujininkantou.files/gaikokusekiinnkanneng.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  6. Kasama City. "Seal Registration" (English PDF). https://www.city.kasama.lg.jp/data/doc/1559017259_doc_1_0.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4