Japan Visa Documents to Notarise From Australia

For most Japanese visas, an Australian applicant needs no notary. The heavy paperwork happens in Japan. For almost every long stay, your sponsor there applies to Japan's Immigration Services Agency for a Certificate of Eligibility first. The Australian documents in that application go as plain originals or copies with Japanese translations, not as notarised or apostilled ones.

Key takeaways

• Short visits and working holidays, as last checked, involve no notarised documents.
• Most long stays need a Certificate of Eligibility (CoE), applied for in Japan by your sponsor or a proxy, not by you in Australia.
• Japan's Immigration Services Agency (ISA) wants a Japanese translation of foreign-language documents, and English counts as foreign.
• Submitted documents are, in principle, not returned. Do not post your only original without asking.
• A notary fits only when an employer, school or other body asks for a certified or apostilled copy, or a sworn statement.

Why does Japan's visa paperwork mostly happen in Japan?

Japan has a reputation for paperwork, and the reputation is fair. But for long-stay visas, most of it is done by someone in Japan. Your employer, school or spouse applies to ISA for a Certificate of Eligibility. ISA assesses the application and issues the CoE. Only then do you apply for the visa itself in Australia, and that step is short.

That changes where the notary question sits. It is not about the visa application you lodge here. It is about what ISA wants from you as part of the CoE application in Japan. On ISA's own lists, that is mostly plain documents with translations.

This page covers the visa pack: short visits, the working holiday visa, CoE-based visas and the spouse visa. Marrying in Japan, seals, property and company documents are covered on our page on the Japan apostille.

Do short visits need any notarised documents?

No. When last checked, the embassy said visa exemption for eligible travellers such as Australians had resumed. A short tourist or business visit involves no notarised documents. Check the embassy's current page before you travel, because entry arrangements can change.

Does the working holiday visa need a notary?

No. The embassy's working holiday page sets out who can apply. When last checked, it was limited to Australian citizens living in Australia, within the age range the scheme sets, who had never held a Japanese working holiday visa. An Australian living overseas had to come home to apply. Applications go to the embassy or consulate for your area. Check the current conditions on the embassy's page.

The embassy's list, when last checked, asked for:

• your passport and a copy of the photo page;
• the application form and a recent photograph, with evidence of when it was taken;
• flight details from an airline or accredited travel agent;
• a résumé and a proposed schedule, on the embassy's template;
• a signed, typed statement of purpose;
• a recent Australian bank statement showing the funds it specifies.

Nothing on that list is certified, notarised or apostilled. The embassy may ask for more, or for an interview, but a notary is not part of the standard application. See working holiday documents for other countries' schemes.

What does ISA want for a Certificate of Eligibility?

For work, study, spouse and most other long stays, the embassy says you need a CoE. ISA issues it in Japan, on an application by your sponsor or a proxy at a regional immigration office. Once you have one, the visa application in Australia needs the form, a photograph, your passport, a copy of its photo page and the CoE. Check with the embassy whether a digital CoE or a printout is accepted, and whether you must carry the original.

So the real question is what ISA wants from you. Two rules on its pages apply to every category:

• Foreign-language documents need a Japanese translation attached. An English-language Australian document is still a foreign-language document for this purpose.
• Submitted documents are, in principle, not returned. If you want an original back, ISA says to ask when you apply. Do not post your only original testamur or marriage certificate to Japan without knowing whether it will come back.

ISA's pages also set a recency limit on certificates issued in Japan, such as your sponsor's family register. That rule is about Japanese documents, not your Australian ones. Your sponsor can tell you how recent they need to be.

What does the spouse of a Japanese national need?

ISA's CoE list for a spouse, when last checked, included several documents from the Japanese spouse. These are the family register (koseki tōhon) showing the marriage, a residence record, a letter of guarantee, proof of income, a questionnaire and photographs of the couple. From the Australian applicant, it asked for one marriage certificate issued by an authority of the applicant's country of nationality.

For an Australian married in Australia, that is the certificate from the state or territory registry of births, deaths and marriages, with a Japanese translation. ISA's page did not ask for it to be notarised or apostilled. Order the full registry certificate, not the decorative certificate given at the ceremony. ISA generally keeps what it receives, so consider ordering a second certificate from the registry rather than parting with your only one.

If you married in Japan, the marriage was registered by a Japanese city office. The Australian paperwork was needed at that stage, usually a Certificate of No Impediment. That is covered on the Japan apostille page.

The embassy also describes an alternative for spouses who cannot get a CoE, to be discussed with the embassy first. It asks for Japanese documents and evidence of finances. Again, no Australian document needs notarising.

Do work visas need a notarised degree?

For common skilled work visas, ISA sorts employers into categories by size and listing. For large or listed employers, ISA says other documents are, in principle, not required beyond the core forms. For smaller employers, it asks for a CV and a certificate of graduation or equivalent proof of education, or proof of relevant work experience.

ISA does not say the certificate must be notarised. Your employer or its immigration adviser in Japan will tell you what form it wants. That is often an official document from your university, with a Japanese translation. Ask them before arranging anything in Australia.

Where might an Australian notary still fit?

A notary is not part of the standard visa pack, but three situations can bring one in:

• An employer, school or program in Japan may set its own rules and ask for a certified or apostilled copy of your degree.
• ISA or a sponsor may ask for a sworn statement and accept one made in Australia.
• Documents for use in Japan beyond the visa, such as property, company or bank matters.

If an apostille is wanted on a degree, there are two routes. DFAT can apostille the original once the university has verified it. Or a notary prepares a copy whose certificate states that the original record was verified with the issuing institution. A plain "true copy" is not enough for DFAT. Allow time for the university to verify. See DFAT's page on documents it can legalise.

1. Get the request in writing from the employer or school, naming the form it wants.
2. Arrange university verification of the record, which DFAT needs on either route.
3. Bring the original and photo identification to the notary, if you use the copy route.
4. Send it to DFAT for an apostille.
5. Have it translated into Japanese, if the receiver wants the apostille translated too.

Japan is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, in force for Japan since 27 July 1970 as of our last check. Check the HCCH status table on the day. That means an apostille, not embassy legalisation.

Who translates documents for Japan?

ISA wants a Japanese translation attached to foreign-language documents. Its pages, as last checked, did not require the translator to hold a particular credential. Many sponsors arrange the translation in Japan, where they can check it against ISA's expectations. Ask your sponsor who will translate before you pay for anything here.

If you translate in Australia, a NAATI-certified translator into Japanese is a sound choice. The receiving authority still decides whether it accepts the translation. See document translation.

Can a Justice of the Peace certify documents for Japan?

For the standard visa pack, the question rarely arises, because ISA's lists do not ask for certified copies. Where a Japanese employer or school does want a certified copy for use in Japan, a JP will not usually do. A JP is a volunteer witness for Australian purposes, and DFAT cannot apostille a JP's certification.

That is different from Australian immigration. For the Department of Home Affairs, a copy certified by an authorised person, including a JP, is usually enough. The two systems do not share rules.

Which documents need what?

Document	Visa	Notary?
Passport and bank statement	Working holiday	No
Registry marriage certificate	Spouse, via CoE	No, as last checked; translation needed
Certificate of graduation	Work, smaller employer	Not on ISA's list
Apostilled degree copy	Employer or school request	Notary copy, or verified original
Sworn statement	If a sponsor asks	Yes, sworn before a notary

Here is an illustration, not a real case

An engineer in Perth accepts a job with a mid-sized firm in Osaka. The firm's adviser applies for her CoE and asks for her CV and degree certificate. She sends a colour copy, and the adviser arranges the Japanese translation in Japan. No notary is involved. Her new employer later asks for an apostilled degree for a professional registration, which goes through university verification and DFAT.

In short

Most Japanese visas need no notary from Australia. Your sponsor applies for the CoE in Japan, and ISA wants plain documents with Japanese translations. Keep your originals unless ISA agrees to return them. A notary fits only where an employer, school or other body asks for a certified or apostilled copy, or a sworn statement. More on the notarial step is at document notarisation.

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Moving to Japan? Send us your sponsor's document list, and we will explain each step before you book.