CHAPTER I General Provisions

(Purpose) Article 1. The purpose of this Law is, by means of registration at a city, town or village of the residents, to publicly certify the matters relating to residences of the residents, to promote the convenience of their daily life, always to clarify population condition, and to serve to appropriate and simple disposition of administrative business of all kinds.

(Disposition of Registration Affairs) Article 2. The city, town or village shall dispose of the affairs concerning resident registration.

CHAPTER II Resident Card

(Preparation) Article 3. The resident cards shall be prepared with respect to persons having residence in the area of a city, town or village, with each household as unit.

(Matters to be Entered) Article 4. In the resident card, there shall be entered the following matters: (1) Full name; (2) The date of birth; (3) Sex; (4) In the case of the householder;statement to that effect, or in the case of other persons, their relation with the householder; (5) The indication of the family register. However, in the case of the person with no permanent domicile or whose permanent domicile is not clear, statement to that effect; (6) Place of residence; (7) The date when the place of residence was settled; (8) In case one has changed his residence from the area of a city, town or village to the area of another city, town or village, the former place residence.

(Source of Entry, etc.) Article 5. The entry, or deletion or alteration of the entry of a resident card shall be made in accordance with the notification of the party concerned, or ex officio in case no notification has been filed or no filing of the notification is required.

(Entry) Article 6. In case a household is established in the area of city, town or village, a resident card of the said household shall be prepared. 2 In case a person has entered a household after a resident card has been prepared with regard to the said household, entry regarding the person concerned shall be made in the said resident card. 3 When there has been a change in the locality of residence, the city, town or village of the new locality of residence shall, after having followed the procedure provided for in the preceding two paragraphs, give notification to that effect without delay to the city, town or village of the original locality of residence.

(Deletion) Article 7. In case the whole or a part of the persons belonging to one household has or have changed the locality of residence, or has or have died, or there are grounds for the striking out from a resident card, the whole or a part of the persons belonging to a household, the whole or the part of the resident card shall be deleted. 2 In case there has been a change in the locality of residence, the procedure provided for in the preceding paragraph shall be followed after the receipt of the notification mentioned in paragraph 3 of the preceding Article.

(Change of Entry) Article 8. In case a change has occurred in the matter entered in the resident card, or there exists an error or an omission, the entry shall be changed accordingly.

(Notification Based on the Notification, etc. concerning Family Registration) Article 9. When, in case the mayor of city, town or village of the locality other than the locality of residence has received a notification, an application or other document concerning family registration or has made entry ex officio in the family register, the city, town or village of locality of residence is required to make entry in the family register, or delete or change the entry, the mayor of city, town or village of the locality of reidence shall be notified to that effect without delay.

(Inspection, Copy, Abstract and Certification) Article 10. Any one may request the inspection of or the delivery of a copy or an abstract of a resident card. The same shall apply to the certification to the effect that there has been no change in the matter set forth in the copy or abstract or to the certification concerning the matter entered in a resident card. 2 Unless specially requested, a copy may be prepared leaving out the entry relating to the person struck off the resident card.

CHAPTER III Additional Cards to Family Register

(Preparation) Article 11. The additional card to a family register shall be prepared with respect to persons having permanent domicile in the area of a city, town or village with the relevant family registration as unit.

(Matters to be Entered) Article 12. In the additional card, there shall be entered, besides the indication of the family register concerned, the following matters: (1) Full name; (2) Place of residence; (3) The date when the place of residence was settled.

(Source of Entry, etc.) Article 13. The entry in the additional card, or deletion or change thereof shall be effected ex officio.

(Entry) Article 14. In case a new family register is established, the additional card to that family register shall be prepared. 2 In case a person is registered in a family register after an additional card to the family register has been prepared, entry with respect to the said person shall be made in the said additional card.

(Deletion) Article 15. In case the whole or a part of the persons entered in a family register is struck out from the said family register, the whole or a part of the additional card to the family register shall be deleted.

(Notification Based on the Entry, etc. in a Resident Card) Article 16. When, in case the city, town or village of the locality of residence has made the entry of resident card or change of the entry, the city, town or village of permanent domicile is required to change the entry in the additional card, notification to that effect shall be made to the city, town or village in which the permanent domicile is located without delay. 2 In case the matters notified in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph differ from those entered in the family register, the city, town or village in which the permanent domicile of the person concerned is located, shall notify the city, town or village where the locality of residence is located without delay to that effect.

(Notification in case of a Change of a Permanent Domicile) Article 17. In case the permanent domicile of a person comes from the jurisdiction of a city, town or village to that of another, the mayor of the city, town or village where the old permanent domicile of the person concerned is located shall notify the matters to be entered in the additional card to the city, town or village where the new permanent domicile is located.

(Application Mutatis Mutandis of the Provisions Regarding Resident Card) Article 18. The provisions of Article 8 and Article 10 shall apply mutatis mutandis to additional cards.

CHAPTER IV Notification

(Notifier) Article 19. The notification shall be made by the householder. 2 In case the householder is unable to make notification, the person who manages the household affairs in his place shall make the notification. 3 In case the person responsible for notification pursuant of the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs is unable to make notification the person concerned shall effect the notification.

(Place of Making Notification) Article 20. The notification shall be effected at the locality of residence of the person concerned.

(Matters to be Entered in the Notification) Article 21. In the written notification, there shall be entered the full name of the person concerned and the date of notification, and the notifier or his proxy shall sign it and affix his seal thereto.

(Moving-in-Notification) Article 22. In case a new place of residence is settled by a person in a area of a city, town or village, a moving-in-notification shall be effected within fourteen days of the date when the place of residence is settled. The same shall not apply, however, in the case of a birth. 2 In the written notification there shall be entered the matters provided for in Article 4.

(Notification of Moving) Article 23. In case a person has changed the place of residence within the area of a city, town or village, the notification of moving shall be made within fourteen days of the day when the new residence is settled. 2 In the notification, there shall be entered, in addition to the indication of the new place of residence, the indication of the former place of residence and the day when the new place of residence is settled.

(Notification of Change) Article 24. In case a change has occurred in the matters entered in a resident card, excepting the cases mentioned in the preceding two Articles, the notification of the change shall be made within fourteen days of the occurrence. However, the same shall not apply, in cases where the deletion of a resident card or the change in the entry thereof has to be made on the basis of the entry in the family register made in accordance with the notification, application or other document received concerning family register, or ex officio, or in cases where a change has taken place in an administrative division of land, name of place, or a lot number. 2 In the written notification, there shall be entered the matters which have changed and the date of the change.

(Notification of Emigration) Article 25. In case a person leaves his place of residence for purposes of emigration, the notification of emigration shall be effected in advance. 2 In the written notification, there shall be entered the place of emigration.

CHAPTER V Miscellaneous Provisions

(Exceptions to Special City, etc.) Article 26. In the application of this Law, the jurisdictional area of a ward of a special city or a city specified in Article 155 paragraph 2 of the Local Autonomy Law (Law No.67 of 1947) shall be regarded as the jurisdictional area of a city, and the affairs concerning the resident registration in such area shall be handled by the chief of the ward.

(Exemption from Application of this Law) Article 27. This Law shall not apply to the persons to be registered under the Aliens Registration Ordinance (Imperial Ordinance No.207 of 1947) and other persons to be provided for by Cabinet Order.

(Recommendation or Advice) Article 28. The Attorney-General may give a city, town or village a necessary recommendation or advice concerning the handling of resident registration business.

(Report) Article 29. When it is deemed necessary with reference to the business under their charge, and administrative agency of the State and a prefectural governor may request, respectively, a prefectural governor or a city, town or village, and a city, town or village, to submit a report concerning matters entered in a resident card.

(Examination into Facts) Article 30. The official concerned of a city town or village may, in order to assure the correct carrying out of resident registration, examine into the fact concerned at any time when there is an adequate reason to suspect that any matter mentioned in Article 4 is not true. 2 The official concerned may, when deemed necessary in order to make the examination referred to in the preceding paragraph, ask questions of interested persons, or require presentation of a document. 3 In case the act referred to in the preceding paragraph is done outside the city, town or village office, the official concerned shall carry with him a certificate showing his status and present it to the interested person.

(Penal Provisions) Article 31. Any person who has failed, without due reason, to make notification to be made within specified period shall be punished with a non-criminal fine not exceeding 500 yen. 2 The decision imposing such non-criminal fine shall be rendered by a summary court.

Article 32. Every person who has refused or evaded to answer questions pursuant to the provision of Article 30 paragraph 2, has made false statements, has denied, has interfered or has refused to present a document or has presented a false document, shall be punished with a fine not exceeding 50,000 yen.

(Delegation to Cabinet Order) Article 33. Other than those provided for by this Law, the matters necessary for dealing with the business of resident registration shall be provided for by Cabinet Order.