Notarising Immigration Documents for a Japan Visa Application from Australia

Last reviewed: 26 September 2026. Japanese visa procedures changed in 2026, including digital Certificates of Eligibility and new visa fees. The Embassy of Japan in Australia, the consulate for your state, and Japan's Immigration Services Agency (ISA) are the only reliable sources.

For most Japanese visas, an Australian applicant needs no notary. That surprises people, because Japan has a reputation for paperwork. The paperwork is real, but it mostly happens in Japan. For almost every long-term visa, your sponsor in Japan applies to ISA for a Certificate of Eligibility (CoE) first, and the visa application you lodge in Australia is short. The Australian documents that go into the CoE application go as plain documents with Japanese translations, not as notarised or apostilled ones.

This page covers the working holiday visa, visas based on a CoE, and the spouse visa. Marrying in Japan, property, seals and company documents are on a separate page, Apostille or Embassy Legalisation: What Japan Requires.

Short visits

The embassy says visa exemption for eligible travellers such as Australians has resumed. A short tourist or business visit involves no notarised documents.

Working holiday: no notary

The embassy's working holiday page is specific about who can apply: an Australian citizen, living in Australia, aged 18 to 30, who has never held a Japanese working holiday visa. An Australian living overseas must come home to apply. Applications go to the embassy or consulate for your area, not online.

What it asks for:

• your passport and a copy of the photo page
• the application form and a recent photograph, with evidence of when it was taken, such as a receipt
• flight details from an airline or accredited travel agent
• a résumé
• a proposed schedule for your first six months, on the embassy's template
• a signed statement of purpose, at least one typed A4 page
• a three-month Australian bank statement, no older than one month, 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.

Visas based on a Certificate of Eligibility

For work, study, spouse and most other long stays, the embassy says you need a CoE, which ISA issues in Japan on an application made by your sponsor (an employer or spouse) or a proxy at a regional immigration office. The embassy does not issue CoEs. Once you have one, the visa application in Australia needs the form, a photograph, your passport and a copy of its photo page, and a printout of the CoE. Since 17 March 2026 a digitally issued CoE can be used as a copy; a physical CoE must still be carried to Japan in the original.

So the question is really what ISA wants from you for the CoE. 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 at the time of application. Do not post your only original testamur or marriage certificate to Japan without knowing whether it will come back.

ISA's pages also say certificates issued in Japan must be less than three months old. That rule is about Japanese documents, such as your sponsor's family register, not your Australian ones.

Spouse of a Japanese national

ISA's CoE list for a spouse includes the Japanese spouse's family register (koseki tōhon) showing the marriage, their residence record and a letter of guarantee, proof of their income, a questionnaire, photographs of the couple, and, from the applicant, one marriage certificate issued by an authority of the applicant's country of nationality.

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

If you married in Japan, the marriage was registered by a Japanese city office, which is where the Australian paperwork was needed: the Certificate of No Impediment covered on the Japan destination page.

The embassy also describes an alternative for spouses who cannot get a CoE, to be discussed with the embassy first. That route asks for Japanese documents (the family register issued in the last three months, a residence record, the spouse's passport, a letter of guarantee) and evidence of finances. Again, no Australian document needs notarising.

Work visas

For the common "Engineer / Specialist in Humanities / International Services" visa, ISA sorts employers into four categories. For large or listed employers (categories 1 and 2), ISA says other documents are in principle not required beyond the core forms. For smaller employers (categories 3 and 4), 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: often an official document from your university, with a Japanese translation. Ask them before arranging anything in Australia.

Where an Australian notary might still fit

• An employer, school or programme in Japan may set its own rules and ask for a certified or apostilled copy of your degree. If it wants an apostille, the usual chain is a notarised copy followed by a DFAT apostille. DFAT now requires a notarised copy of a university document to be verified with the university, and the notary's certificate to say so. Allow time for that.
• A sworn statement, if ISA or a sponsor asks for one and accepts one made in Australia.
• Documents for use in Japan beyond the visa, such as property, company or bank matters, covered on the destination page.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to notarise my marriage certificate for a Japanese spouse visa? ISA's CoE list asks for a marriage certificate issued by your own country, with a Japanese translation. It does not ask for notarisation or an apostille.

Does my degree need an apostille for a Japanese work visa? Not on ISA's own list. Your employer may ask for more; follow its written instructions.

Do I need a notary for a Japanese working holiday visa? No. Nothing on the embassy's document list is certified.

Can I get my CoE in Australia? No. The embassy says the CoE is applied for in Japan by your sponsor or a proxy.