Updating the Name on a Residence Card

To update the name on a residence card after a legal name change, renew the home-country passport first and then file a change notice with the regional immigration bureau.¹² The bureau reissues the card against the new passport, never ahead of it.

Confirm current details with official sources

Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the Immigration Services Agency site.

Overview

This procedure applies to mid- to long-term residents whose legal name changed through marriage, divorce, gender transition, or a court order in their home country.¹² The sequence has two stages: the home-country stage (new passport plus legal proof) and the Japan stage (the bureau filing plus downstream updates).²

Readers whose name changed through marriage to a Japanese national should also see Married Names and Japan's Single-Surname Rule for the surname mechanics, and Spouse Visa Application After Marriage Registration if a status change runs in parallel.

The Passport-First Rule

The Immigration Services Agency reissues the residence card against the new passport, so passport renewal must come first.² The home-country legal document behind the change, such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order, evidences why the passport now shows a different name.²

Start the passport renewal as soon as the legal event is final. Embassy processing takes its own weeks, and the Japan-side filing cannot begin until the new booklet is in hand.²

Required Documents

Bring the prior residence card, the new passport, and the home-country legal document showing the name change.² A Japanese translation of any foreign-language legal document is expected at the counter.²

Document	Notes
Prior residence card	Surrendered at filing
New passport	Shows the new legal name; the anchor for reissue2
Home-country legal document	Marriage certificate, decree, or court order showing the change2
Japanese translation	Translator credit expected; credential practice varies by bureau2
在留カード記載事項変更届 form	The change-notice form, available at the bureau2

The 在留カード記載事項変更届 (zairyū kādo kisai jikō henkō todoke, "notification of change of stated matters on the residence card") is the filing itself, not a separate application for permission.²

Filing at the Regional Bureau

File at the 地方出入国在留管理局 (chihō shutsunyūkoku zairyū kanrikyoku, "regional immigration bureau") with jurisdiction over your address.¹² Notification is due within 14 days of the change, a statutory deadline that runs from the legal event rather than from the day the new passport arrives.³

The flow below shows the full sequence from legal event to downstream updates.

The 14-day clock does not wait for a slow embassy

The deadline runs from the change date, so a delayed passport does not pause it. File promptly once the new passport arrives rather than treating passport receipt as day one.³

Costs and Timelines

Reissue on a stated-matter change carries a standard replacement-range fee around 1,000 yen (as of 2026-09; confirm current figures with the regional bureau).² Reissue is commonly completed at the counter visit or shortly after, subject to caseload (as of 2026-09).²

After the New Card Arrives

The Immigration Services Agency does not propagate the change to any other system.⁴ Update the ward office (jūminhyō and My Number Card), each bank, the employer, and health insurance separately, carrying both the new card and the supporting legal document to each counter.⁴⁵

The full cross-system order is covered in Name Change in Japan: The Documentation Update Cascade. Start with the ward office and the main bank account, then work outward by daily-use priority.⁴

Good to know

Translations need a translator credit, not a certified office

Counters expect a Japanese translation carrying the translator's name, and credential requirements vary by bureau. Prepare the translation before the visit rather than negotiating its form at the counter.²

Keep the old passport until the cascade finishes

Banks and ward counters often ask to see the chain from the old name to the new one. Retire the old passport only after every downstream system shows the new name.⁴

See also

• Marriage to a Japanese National
• Spouse Visa Application After Marriage Registration
• The Four Divorce Paths
• How to Request Koseki and Juminhyo Copies

References

Footnotes

1. Immigration Services Agency. Procedures for mid- to long-term residents. https://www.isa.go.jp/en/ ↩ ↩² ↩³

2. Immigration Services Agency. 在留カードの記載事項の変更届出 (notification of change of stated matters). https://www.moj.go.jp/isa/applications/procedures/16-4.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷

3. Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, Art. 19-10 (notification of change of stated matters, 14-day period), via e-Gov law portal. https://elaws.e-gov.go.jp/ ↩ ↩²

4. Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. Foreign resident juminhyo update procedures. https://www.soumu.go.jp/main_sosiki/jichi_gyousei/c-gyousei/zairyu.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

5. Digital Agency / My Number Card portal. Card reissue on stated-matter change. https://www.kojinbango-card.go.jp/en/ ↩