Translating a document from Japan for a Canadian application
Japan does not issue separate birth, marriage or death certificates: these events are recorded in a single family register, the koseki. Japanese documents therefore call for particular care — imperial-era dates, name romanization, coded parentage entries — before they are filed with a Canadian application.
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The koseki tōhon is the Japanese family register: it is what proves your birth, your parentage and your marriage to IRCC, since Japan issues no separate birth certificate. Asiatis produces its certified translation into English, ready to file.
View the guide住民票jūminhyōThe jūminhyō is the Japanese certificate of residence: it attests to your address, your household composition and your former addresses, which IRCC asks for on almost every form. It does not prove parentage — that is the koseki. Asiatis produces its certified translation into English, ready to file.
View the guideWhat does not need translating
- Police certificate (犯罪経歴証明書)
- IRCC says so on its page for Japan: "You do not need to have your certificate translated." The Japanese police issue it in five languages — Japanese, English, French, Spanish, German. Two traps remain. Do not request it before you receive the IRCC request letter: without it the counter refuses, and from Canada each attempt costs two to three months. And if the sealed envelope worries you: the Japanese police warn that opening it voids the certificate, while IRCC asks you to open it for an online filing. Both are true — the seal may be broken only by the receiving authority, and that is IRCC. Finally, the fingerprints taken for this certificate do not replace your immigration biometrics.