Divorce in Japan When One Spouse Is Not Japanese: Governing Law, Courts, Custody and Residence Status

If one spouse is a Japanese national habitually resident in Japan, Japanese law governs the divorce even if the other spouse is a foreign national (Act on General Rules for Application of Laws, Article 27, proviso). Under Japanese law a couple can divorce by agreement, through family court mediation or by court judgment. Whether a divorce granted in Japan will also be recognised in the other spouse's country depends on that country's law. Since 1 April 2026 parents may share parental authority after divorce, and a foreign spouse on a spouse-based residence status must notify the immigration authorities within 14 days of the divorce (Immigration Control Act, Article 19-16(iii)).

• A Japanese husband and a foreign wife living in Tokyo have started talking about divorce.
• The foreign spouse has gone back to their home country and does not intend to return to Japan.
• You are unsure whether filing a divorce notification in Japan is enough, or whether a procedure is also needed in the other country.
• You want to return to Japan with your child, or you fear the other parent will take the child abroad.
• You live in Japan as the "Spouse or Child of Japanese National" and want to stay after the divorce.

The first question in an international divorce is which country's law applies (the governing law). If one spouse is a Japanese national whose habitual residence (the place where they ordinarily live) is in Japan, the divorce is governed by Japanese law (Act on General Rules for Application of Laws, Article 27, proviso; the "General Rules Act").

For example, if a Japanese national and a foreign spouse live together in Tokyo, Japanese law applies whatever the foreign spouse's nationality.

If that proviso does not apply, the governing law is determined in this order (General Rules Act, Article 27 main text and Article 25):

1. The spouses' common national law (the law of the country of their nationality), if they share one
2. If not, the law of their common habitual residence
3. If neither exists, the law of the place most closely connected with the spouses

For example, if a Japanese national and a French national both live in Paris, they have no common nationality but share a habitual residence in France, so French law governs. Even if the case is heard in Japan, the Japanese court will apply French law.

If a person has two or more nationalities and one of them is Japanese, Japanese law is that person's national law (General Rules Act, Article 38(1), proviso). Otherwise it is the law of the country of nationality where the person habitually resides or, failing that, the one most closely connected with the person (Article 38(1)).

A foreign law will not be applied if applying it would be contrary to public policy in Japan (Article 42).

Separately from the governing law, there is the question of whether Japanese courts have international jurisdiction at all. Rules on this were added to the Personal Status Litigation Act by an amendment that took effect on 1 April 2019. A divorce action can be brought in Japan in cases such as the following (Personal Status Litigation Act, Article 3-2):

• The defendant's domicile is in Japan (item 1)
• Both spouses are Japanese nationals (item 5)
• The spouse living in Japan sues, and the spouses' last common domicile was in Japan (item 6)
• The spouse living in Japan sues, and the other spouse is missing, a judgment given in the other spouse's country of domicile is not effective in Japan, or there are other special circumstances in which a hearing in Japan would serve fairness between the parties or a proper and speedy hearing (item 7)

Even where Japanese courts have jurisdiction, the court may dismiss the action if special circumstances, such as the nature of the case, the burden on the defendant, the location of evidence and the interests of minor children, mean that a hearing in Japan would be unfair to the parties (Article 3-5).

Under Japanese procedure, a person who wants to bring a divorce action must, as a rule, first apply to the family court for mediation (Domestic Relations Case Procedure Act, Article 257(1)). Japanese courts can handle divorce mediation if they have jurisdiction over the divorce action, if the respondent's domicile is in Japan, or if the parties have agreed to mediate in a Japanese family court (Article 3-13(1)).

Divorce mediation cannot be concluded by an audio-only method such as a telephone call. It can, however, be concluded by a method in which the family court and both parties can see and hear each other in real time (Domestic Relations Case Procedure Act, Article 268(3)). Whether that method is used in a particular case is for the family court handling it.

Under Japanese law, spouses can divorce by agreement (Civil Code, Article 763). A divorce by agreement takes effect when it is notified under the Family Register Act (Civil Code, Articles 764 and 739). The form must state which parent will have parental authority and over which children (Family Register Act, Article 76). The MOJ states that a divorce by agreement requires the signatures of two adult witnesses.

If the spouses cannot agree, they try to reach agreement in family court mediation. An agreement recorded in the mediation record has the same effect as a final judgment (Domestic Relations Case Procedure Act, Article 268(1)).

If mediation fails, a spouse can bring a divorce action. A court grants a divorce only on the grounds of infidelity, malicious desertion, the spouse's survival being unknown for three years or more, or another serious reason making it difficult to continue the marriage (Civil Code, Article 770(1)). After a divorce by judgment, it must be notified within 10 days of the judgment becoming final (Family Register Act, Articles 77(1) and 63(1)).

A divorced spouse may claim a division of property from the other (Civil Code, Article 768(1)). If they cannot agree, they can ask the family court to decide, but not once five years have passed since the divorce (Article 768(2)).

A Japanese divorce by agreement takes effect on filing, without any court involvement. However, a survey of the laws of 24 countries carried out by the MOJ with the help of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (summary published April 2020) found that many countries do not allow divorce by agreement, whether or not there are children (for example, the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Switzerland and Argentina).

So even if a divorce by agreement is valid in Japan, whether it is recognised in the other spouse's country of nationality or residence depends on that country's law. Before choosing between a divorce by agreement and a divorce through mediation or judgment, check which forms of divorce the other country recognises.

Conversely, a foreign court's divorce judgment takes effect in Japan only if the foreign court's jurisdiction is recognised, the defendant was served with the documents needed to start the proceedings or appeared, the judgment and procedure are not contrary to public policy in Japan, and there is reciprocity (Code of Civil Procedure, Article 118).

Legal relations between parents and children are governed by the child's national law if it is the same as the father's or mother's national law, and otherwise by the law of the child's habitual residence (General Rules Act, Article 32). For example, if the child and the Japanese parent are both Japanese nationals, parental authority is decided under Japanese law.

The Act Partially Amending the Civil Code and Other Acts (Act No. 33 of 2024) came into force on 1 April 2026 (MOJ). In a divorce by agreement, the parents decide by agreement whether both of them or one of them will hold parental authority (Civil Code, Article 819(1)). In a divorce by judgment, the court decides (Article 819(2)).

The court decides in the child's interests, taking into account the relationship between each parent and the child, the relationship between the parents and all other circumstances (Article 819(7)). It must choose one parent where a parent may harm the child, or where a risk of domestic violence or similar circumstances would make it difficult for the parents to exercise parental authority jointly (Article 819(7)(i) and (ii)).

Parents exercise parental authority jointly. However, one parent may act alone in an emergency in the child's interests and for day-to-day matters of care and education (Civil Code, Article 824-2(1) and (2)). If the parents cannot agree on a particular matter, the family court can decide that one of them may decide it alone (Article 824-2(3)).

On divorce, the parents also agree on who will care for the child, contact between parent and child, child support and other necessary matters, giving the highest priority to the child's interests (Article 766(1)). Where Japanese courts have jurisdiction over the divorce action, they can also decide parental authority and child custody matters (Personal Status Litigation Act, Article 3-4(1)).

Japan is a party to the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (the Hague Convention). The Japanese implementing Act came into force on 1 April 2014 (Act for Implementation of the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction; the "Implementation Act").

If a child habitually resident in a Contracting State is removed or retained in breach of rights of custody, the question of returning the child to that state (the state of habitual residence) arises. Japan's Central Authority is the Minister for Foreign Affairs, and assistance can be requested both for children taken to Japan and for children taken from Japan (Implementation Act, Articles 3, 4 and 11).

For a child brought to Japan, a person whose custody rights have been breached can apply to the family court for an order to return the child (Article 26). If the requirements are met, including that the child is under 16, the court must order the return (Article 27). However, the court will not order a return where, for example, the application was made more than one year after the removal and the child has settled in the new environment, or where return would expose the child to a grave risk of being placed in an intolerable situation (Article 28(1)). These cases are heard by the Tokyo or Osaka Family Court (Article 32).

Taking a child across a border without the other parent's consent may fall within these procedures. If you are thinking of leaving or returning to Japan with your child, check the position first.

A mid- to long-term resident with the status "Spouse or Child of Japanese National" (as a spouse), "Spouse or Child of Permanent Resident" (as a spouse) or "Dependent" (as a spouse) must notify the Commissioner of the Immigration Services Agency within 14 days of a divorce (Immigration Control Act, Article 19-16(iii)). The Immigration Services Agency accepts the notification online through its electronic notification system, at its offices or by post.

A person with the status "Spouse or Child of Japanese National" or "Spouse or Child of Permanent Resident" whose status is based on being a spouse may have that status revoked if they stay in Japan for six months or more without engaging in activities as a spouse, unless there is a justifiable reason (Immigration Control Act, Article 22-4(1)(vii)). In that case the Minister of Justice must consider giving the person an opportunity to apply for a change of status or for permanent residence (Article 22-5).

If you want to stay in Japan after the divorce, consider applying to change to another status of residence (Article 20). A change is granted only where the documents submitted show reasonable grounds for finding it appropriate (Article 20(3)).

For other cross-border matters, see "International and cross-border practice".

1. List each spouse's nationality and the country where each ordinarily lives (habitual residence), and work out which country's law governs the divorce.
2. Note the country where the other spouse lives and where the two of you last lived together.
3. Check whether the other spouse's country of nationality or residence recognises a Japanese divorce by agreement, by mediation or by judgment.
4. Note the children's nationalities and your thinking on parental authority, care, contact and child support after the divorce.
5. If you are the foreign spouse, check the status and expiry date on your residence card and prepare for the notification due within 14 days of the divorce.
6. If you are considering leaving or returning to Japan with your child, check before you act whether the Hague Convention procedures could apply.

• The other spouse lives abroad and you do not know whether a Japanese court can handle the divorce.
• You cannot decide how to divorce because you do not know whether the other country recognises a Japanese divorce by agreement.
• You and your spouse cannot agree on whether one or both of you should hold parental authority.
• The other parent has taken, or may take, your child out of the country.
• You want an early view of your residence status after the divorce.

We advise international couples and people living overseas on divorce and parental authority in Japan, in Japanese and English. Please contact us through our enquiry page.

If one spouse is a Japanese national living in Japan, Japanese law applies and the couple can file a notification of divorce by agreement (General Rules Act, Article 27, proviso; Civil Code, Articles 763 and 764). Whether that divorce is recognised in the other spouse's country is a separate question. Many countries have no divorce by agreement, so check how the other country treats it first.

If you live in Japan and the two of you last lived together in Japan, you can bring an action in a Japanese court (Personal Status Litigation Act, Article 3-2(vi)). The same applies if your spouse is missing or there are other special circumstances (item vii). However, the court may dismiss the action if special circumstances mean a hearing in Japan would be unfair (Article 3-5).

No. Either both parents or one parent may hold parental authority (Civil Code, Article 819(1) and (2)). If the parents cannot agree, the family court decides in the child's interests, and it must choose one parent where there is a risk of abuse or domestic violence (Article 819(5) and (7)).

Your status does not end automatically on divorce, but you must notify the Immigration Services Agency within 14 days (Immigration Control Act, Article 19-16(iii)). If you do not engage in activities as a spouse for six months or more without a justifiable reason, your status may be revoked (Article 22-4(1)(vii)). If you want to stay in Japan, consider applying for a change of status (Article 20).

If the child lived in a Contracting State to the Hague Convention and the removal breaches the other parent's custody rights, the other parent may apply to a Japanese family court for the child's return (Implementation Act, Articles 26 and 27). There are grounds on which return will not be ordered, but they are limited (Article 28). Check before you leave.