Article 1.　The purpose of this Law is to prescribe, in accordance with the special character of the duty and responsibility of the foreign public service personnel, exceptions to the National Public Service Law (Law No.120 of 1947) and other necessary matters, in regard to their position classification, appointment and dismissal, compensation, efficiency, guarantee, performance of duty, etc., and also to provide for the appointment of the Honorary Consul General, Honorary Consul, and other foreigners in the service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Article 2.　The term "foreign public service personnel" as used in this Law shall comprise the following personnel:

2　The term "Government Representative" as used in this Law means a person who has been invested with power to negotiate with a foreign Government for a specific purpose, or to participate or act in an international conference or international organ, representing the Japanese Government.

3　The term "Delegate" as used in this Law means a person who has been invested with power to negotiate with a foreign Government for a specific purpose, or to participate in an international conference, and to sign and seal a treaty, representing the Japanese Government.

4　The term "foreign affairs personnel" as used in this Law means those of the national public service personnel in the general service serving in the Ministry Proper of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who are engaged in the dipromatic and consular affairs (including affairs which are directly related to such affairs) and their general auxiliary affairs and who are specified by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance, and all of the regular national public service personnel who are in the service of the diplomatic and consular offices abroad.

Article 3.　The provisions of the National Public Service Law and the laws and orders issued thereunder shall be applicable concerning the foreign affairs personnel, unless exceptions to them are provided for by this Law.

Article 4.　The provisions of Article 96 paragraph 1, Article 98 paragraph 1, Article 99, and Article 100 paragraphs 1 and 2, of the National Public Service Law shall apply mutatis mutandis to the Ambassador and Minister, and to the Government Representative and Delegate and their deputy, adviser and suite. In this case, "employee" in Article 96 paragraph 1, "Personnel" in Article 98 paragraph 1, "employee" in Article 99 and Article 100 paragraph 1, of the National Public Service Law, shall read "Ambassador or Minister, Government Representative or Delegate, or deputy, adviser or suite of the Government Representative or Delegate" and "their" in Article 98 paragraph 1 shall read "his" , and in Article 100 paragraph 2, "an employee" and "the head of his employing agency of government (or in the case of a retired person, the head of the agency of government having jurisdiction over the government position he held at the time of his retirement or the government position similar thereto)" shall read respectively "he" and "the Minister for Foreign Affairs" .

2　With the exception of the matters provided for in the preceding paragraph, the appointment and dismissal and other matters concerning the status, and matters concerning the performance of duty, of the Ambassador and Minister, Government Representative and Delegate, and the deputy, adviser and suite of the Government Representative or Delegate, shall be subject to the provisions of this Law.

Article 5.　The class allocation of positions provided for in Article 31 of the National Public Service Law shall be made by the Minister for Foreign Affairs in the case of the foreign affairs personnel, regardless of the provisions of the same Article and Article 12 of the Law concerning the Position-Classification Plan for the National Public Service (Law No.180 of 1950).

2　Matters necessary for the class allocation of the positions of the foreign affairs personnel shall be provided for by Cabinet Order.

Article 6.　The foreign affairs personnel (excluding the Administrative Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs) may, in addition to their organizational titles, use the titles of Councillor, First Secretary, Second Secretary, Third Secretary, and Diplomatic Attache;Consul General, Consul, Vice Consul, and Consular Attache;and First Attache;Second Attache, Third Attache, and Assistant Attache, and Chancellor, as official titles used in accordance with international usage for official convenience.

2　The Minister for Foreign Affairs may, if he deems it especially necessary in accordance with international usage for official convenience, cause foreign affairs personnel to use other official titles than those mentioned in the preceding paragraph.

3　With the exception of the matters provided for in the preceding two paragraphs, necessary matters concerning official titles shall be provided for by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance.

Article 7.　In addition to the cases which fall under the provisions of Article 38 of the National Public Service Law, persons who have no nationality, or who have foreign nationality, or those who have such persons as their spouses, cannot become foreign public service personnel.

2　The foreign public service personnel shall, when they have become unable to be foreign public service personnel in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph, ipso facto lose their positions, except in cases provided for by Cabinet Order.

Article 8.　The appointment and dismissal of the Ambassador and Minister shall be made by the Cabinet upon the proposal of the Minister for Foreign Affairs and shall be attested by the Emperor.

2　The appointment and dismissal of the Government Representative and Delegate and their deputy, adviser and suite shall be made by the Cabinet upon the proposal of the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Article 9.　The credentials and letter of recall of the Ambassador and Minister, and full powers, and the commission of the consular officials, shall be attested by the Emperor.

Article 10.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs may, as provided for by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance, appoint foreign affairs personnel by selection, in order to cause them to be engaged exclusively in those diplomatic and consular affairs which concern financial affairs, commercial affairs, agricultural affairs, labor, etc., or those which require special technique, or if there is special necessity.

Article 11.　The promotion of the foreign affairs personnel shall be made by examination or selection as provided for by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance.

Article 12.　The Ambassadors and Ministers who are heads of the diplomatic and consular offices abroad and the Ambassadors and Ministers who are otherwise in the service of such offices shall be placed on the waiting list when they have been relieved of service in such offices concerned, until they are newly ordered to serve in such offices or until they are sent abroad to deal with special affairs.

2　The Ambassadors or Ministers on the waiting list shall be relieved of services when the period of their waiting has passed one year.

3　The Ambassadors or Ministers on the waiting list may be temporarity engaged in the affairs of the Ministry Proper of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if there is special necessity.

4　The Ambassadors and Ministers on the waiting list shall be paid eighty per cent of salaries and duly place allowance, while they are on the waiting list, wite the exception of the case where they are temporarily engaged in the affairs of the Ministry Proper of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as provided for by the preceding paragraph.

5　With the exception of the cases provided for in the preceding three paragraphs, the Ambassadors or Ministers on the waiting list shall not differ from the Ambassadors or Ministers who are not on the waiting list in regard to the application of this Law.

Article 13.　The compensation of the foreign public service personnel in the service of the diplomatic and consular offices abroad shall be paid in accordance with the Law concerning Compensation of Foreign Public Service Personnel in the service of Diplomatic and Consular Offices Abroad (Law No.93 of 1952).

Article 14.　Necessary matters concerning the evaluation of the performance of work of the foreign affairs personnel and its records shall be provided for by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance.

Article 15.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs must, as provided for by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance, give the foreign affairs personnel an epportunity to receive training at the Foreign Service Training Institute or elsewhere including foreign countries.

Article 16.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs may send a person deemed appropriate among the foreign public service personnel as inspector, in order to cause him to inspect whether the affairs of the diplomatic and consular offices abroad are being executed properly.

2　The inspector must report in writing the result of inspection to the Minister for Foreign Affairs without delay.

3　The Minister for Foreign Affairs shall, when he has received the report mentioned in the preceding paragraph, take such actions as he deems necessary on the basis of the report.

4　With the exception of the matters provided for in the preceding three paragraphs, necessary matters concerning inspection shall be provided for by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance.

Article 17.　The foreign affairs personnel must, when they intend to request that an appropriate administrative action on working conditions be taken by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, so request the Foreign Office Personnel Council (hereinafter referred to as "Council" ), regardless of the provisions of Article 86 of the National Public Service Law.

2　The provisions of Article 87 and Article 88 of the National Public Service Law shall apply mutatis mutandis to the review and evaluation of the case involved in the request mentioned in the preceding paragraph and the action to be taken as a result of evaluation. In this case, in Article 87 of the National Public Service Law, "the preceding Article" shall read "Article 17 paragraph 1 of the Foreign Public Service Law" , and "persons" shall read "foreign affairs personnel" ;in the same Article and Article 88, "authority" shall read "Foreign Office Personnel Council" ;and in Article 88, "take its own action on the matters under its jurisdiction, and recommend the head of an appropriate agency of government to take action in regard to other matters" shall read "recommend the Minister for Foreign Affairs to take action on the matters under his jurisdiction" .

3　With the exception of the matters provided for in the preceding two paragraphs, necessary matters concerning the procedures of the review of the request for an administrative action on working conditions shall be provided for by Cabinet Order.

Article 18.　The foreign affairs personnel may, if they have objection to the evaluation of the Council in accordance with the provisions of the preceding Article, request the review of the National Personnel Authority.

2　The provisions of Article 87 and Article 88 of the National Public Service Law shall apply mutatis mutandis to the review and evaluation of the case involved in the request mentioned in the preceding paragraph and the action to be taken as a result of evaluation. In this case, in Article 87 of the National Public Service Law "the preceding Article" shall read "Article 18 paragraph 1 of the Foreign Public Service Law" , and "persons" shall read "foreign affairs personnel" ;and in Article 88, "take its own action on the matters under its jurisdiction, and recommend to the head of an appropriate agency of government to take action in regard to other matters" shall read "recommend the Minister for Foreign Affairs to take action on the matters under his jurisdiction" .

Article 19.　The request for review concerning the action in cases where foreign affairs personnel have been subjected to a disciplinary action for the reason that they have prejudiced the important interests of the State by divulging a diplomatic secret must be made to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, regardless of the provisions of Article 90 of the National Public Service Law.

Article 20.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs must, when he has received the request provide for in the preceding Article, immediately refer the case to the Council for investigation.

2　In cases where the Council investigates a case in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph, it must conduct oral examination if requested by the member of the foreign affairs personnel who has been subjected to the action.

3　Oral examination shall not be open to the public.

4　The member of the foreign affairs personnel who has been subjected to the action may be present at all oral examinations, make a statement, cause a witness to be present, and submit papers, records, and all other relevant facts and data.

Article 21.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs must evaluate the case on the basis of the result of the Council's investigation provided for in the preceding Article and approve, revise or cancel the action concerned in accordance with his evaluation. In this case, when he has revised or cancelled the action, he must indemnify the compensation which the member of the foreign affairs personnel concerned has lost on account of the action.

Article 22.　With the exception of the matters provided for in the preceding three Articles, necessary matters concerning the procedures of the review concerning a disciplinary action shall be provided for by Cabinet Order.

Article 23.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs may permit those of the foreign public service personnel in the service of diplomatic and consular offices abroad who have been in continuous service at one or more of such offices for a period exceeding four years (with the addition of one month for every month of service in the case of those diplomatic and consular offices abroad which are at unhealthy places and other similar areas designated by the Minister for Foreign Affairs) once to return to Japan for rest (hereinafter referred to as "home-coming on furlough" ) for a period not to exceed two months (excluding the period required for the trip from the place of service to Japan and back).

2　In cases where there exist special circumstances, the period of home-coming on furlough may be made the one where a period not to exceek two months is added to the period provided for in the preceding paragraph.

3　Home-coming on furlough provided for in paragraph 1 shall be a vacation with pay.

4　With the exception of the matters provided for in the preceding three paragraphs, necessary matters concerning home-coming on furlough shall be provided for by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinance.

Article 24.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs may appoint an Honorary Consul General or Honorary Consul, after hearing the opinion of the Council.

Article 25.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs may employ a foreigner to serve in the Ministry Proper of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, after hearing the opinion of the Council.

2　The head of a diplomatic or consular office abroad may employ a foreigner to serve in such office, after obtaining the permission of the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Article 26.　The Minister for Foreign Affairs, must, when he draws up a draft of the Cabinet Orders provided for in Article 17 paragraph 3 and Article 22, and establishes, amends or abolishes the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ordinances provided for in Article 10, Article 11, Article 14, Article 15, Article 16 paragraph 4, and Article 23 paragraph 4, submit the matter in advance to the Council, and draws up, establishs, amends or abolishes them on the basis of the opinion of the Council.

Article 27.　A person who, in violation of the provisions of Article 100 paragraph 1 or 2 of the National Public Service Law applicable mutatis mutandis under Article 4, has divulged a secret, and a person who has attempted, ordered, wilfully permitted, instigated or assisted the act which is in violation of the provisions of the said paragraphs shall be punished with penal servitude for not more than one year or a fine of not more than thirty thousand yen.

Article 28.　Those penal provisions of the National Public Service Law which are applicable concerning the foreign affairs personnel and the provisions of the preceding Article shall also apply to persons who have committed abroad any of the offences mentioned in the respective Article.