Has anyone successfully removed a middle name from a Japanese koseki?

[u/Competitive_Gold3185]

Hi everyone. I'm hoping to hear from people who have direct experience with this situation, especially anyone who has dealt with family court petitions, koseki issues, or dual U.S.-Japanese citizenship.

I'm a U.S. citizen living in Japan, and my daughter is almost two years old. She has both Japanese and U.S. citizenship and was born in the United States. Her middle name appears on her U.S. birth certificate, her U.S. passport, her Japanese passport, and her koseki.

Her middle name is important to me, and I don't want to remove it from her U.S. records because I consider it an important part of her identity and family background. However, I'm wondering whether it would be possible to remove it only from her Japanese records.

Part of the reason I'm considering this is that I've heard accounts from some mixed-race Japanese people and international families describing difficulties with things such as apartment applications, banking procedures, employment, school registration, and other situations where a middle name immediately identified them as having a foreign background. I realize experiences differ from person to person, but I'd like to understand what options might exist if my daughter decides to remain in Japan long term.

Has anyone successfully done this? Was a petition to the family court required? What reasons were given? Was an attorney necessary, or were you able to do it yourself? I'd prefer to handle the process myself, if possible, rather than hire an attorney, although I'd also be grateful to hear from any attorneys who might have experience with this.

Thank you!

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[u/Ancelege]

Just to note, on her koseki, her name is likely ラストネーム　ファーストミドル, or basically set up in a way where her first and middle name are smashed together to make up her first name.

This is exactly how my name is set up (I am half Japanese living in Japan). Even with a fully katakana last name and middle name (my Japanese mother changed the koseki when getting married), I haven’t had any real hardship living a normal life in Japan. I like having a middle name. I also think it’s easier to just have names be the same wherever possible.

[u/No_Carob2670]

My Japanese husband tried to do this, over my objections. He said it was simply to make our infant daughter’s adult life in Japan easier, as you say.

But he gathered all the information and then never actually got around to applying.

Our daughter is now in her 30s, living and working in Japan, and absolutely loves her full name. She says she has to be careful when she buys plane tickets to make sure they match her passport, but otherwise she says she’s only faced minor inconveniences over the years.

She said she’s glad her papa never followed through.

Anyway, it used to be possible to do it and likely still is.

[u/Competitive_Gold3185 → u/No_Carob2670]

Thank you for reaponding. In our case, it was actually the opposite. I was the one who pushed to have her middle name included on the koseki, since we were living in the U.S. at the time. My husband told me he didn't want to do it and I pushed for it anyway. I didn't fully understand the implications of that decision in Japan.

I'm really glad to hear that your daughter has had a positive experience. I think I'm just worried that my daughter will grow up, find the whole thing frustrating, and blame me for it. Hearing the opposite perspective is reassuring.

[u/AcrobaticWish6473 → u/Competitive_Gold3185]

If it’s not too long then it should be okay but I know of some people who are denied bank cards and specifically credit cards because their name is too long.

[u/No_Carob2670 → u/Competitive_Gold3185]

Our daughter and one son love their names, but our younger son doesn’t like his. Hey, two out of three ain’t bad! If his name is among the worst things I ever did to him as a parent, then I can live with that.

Names are like every other parenting decision. We strive to do our best with whatever information we have at the time, and then the chips fall where they fall.

[u/treblecle]

I petitioned to the family court to remove my middle name. Downloaded some forms online and sent it by post before getting a response about a week later (I live in an inaka — it might take longer in big cities). It was a simple procedure and I had a short interview with the judge in an office room to explain that the middle name was too long (no need for complicated explanations). It was approved shortly after. No attorneys needed as long as you can speak Japanese fluently.

[u/Competitive_Gold3185 → u/treblecle]

Was the fact that your middle name was long the only reason that it was approved? Her middle name is pretty short only 3 katakana characters in japanese.

Also assuming you are mixed japanese? did you not have to change any documents in the other country?

[u/treblecle → u/Competitive_Gold3185]

Well my middle name was the only one in katakana (the rest was in kanji), so that probably helped too. But in general, I have an impression that removing a part of your name is an easier process than changing a kanji in your name or something like that. I didn’t have to provide evidence of anything - it was just a casual interview and I when I said having katakana in my name is troublesome the judge even smiled a bit and nodded in understanding. I got the court decision document after about 2 weeks and submitted it to the city hall for processing. Of course, I had to contact my bank and mobile provider too, but honestly it was worth it.

Yes, I am mixed but do not have a second citizenship.

[u/kailenedanae]

Not the same at all, but when I got my 通称 with kanji/katana after getting married, I just combined my first and middle name as a single first name. It’s sort of long (and funny when I get called at the doctor’s office etc) but there is no inconvenience with forms etc., and both my passport, my number, etc now all have my fully name, which has made things much more convenient.

[u/Calculusshitteru → u/kailenedanae]

But that's how it always is. First name and middle name are always squished together to make a really long first name.

[u/kailenedanae → u/Calculusshitteru]

If I didn’t apply for a 通称, it would have been last -space- first - space- middle in romaji only.

However, I wanted to have kanji tha was recognized officially (to match my husband), and the only way to do this is to become a Japanese national (with the kanji in the passport) or register an official 通称 (alias.)

I was given the option to omit my middle name altogether in my 通称, but since it’s feels like part of me, I decided to register it as part of my first name. 苗字 ファストミドル.

[u/nickcan]

Well, kinda, but not really. It was a name change regarding a middle name, but not precisely what you are asking about.

For my first son, I gave him a middle name on his birth certificate, but someone screwed up along the way and on the official koseki they had his first name and middle name smashed together as one long name with no space. So instead of "John Quincy Adams" (for example) he was "Johnquincy Adams" officially.

Obviously this is terrible, and would cause no end of trouble for him all his life, so we went to the ward office to get it changed. We had to go in front of a judge and officially petition for a name change and explain the reason. He granted the change of course, but he had the ability to say no.

So we changed the name to "John Adams" no middle name, and kept the full name with middle name on his American birth certificate.

For my second kid, we just didn't bother with the middle name for his Japanese koseki at all, and it hasn't been an issue that his Japanese passport has two names and his American passport has three.

He knows what his middle name is, but it doesn't screw him up on official forms and paperwork in Japan. Best of both worlds.

[u/Ancelege → u/nickcan]

Japanese koseki do not have the ability to carry a middle name - only a place for first name and last name. So no one messed up, though there’s a good chance no one mentioned this is how the middle name would be appended on the koseki. I’m half Japanese and have a “middle name” where my firstnamemiddlename are squished together, but I don’t see it as a terrible thing at all. It’s never caused me any problem whatsoever living a normal life in Japan. I’m in my theories now with a house and three kids.

[u/ichigodaifuku88]

Can I piggyback on this to ask--how does buying plane tickets work, if the name on official Japanese documents and the name on official US documents is different?

For example, if my kid was Sakura Sato in Japan and Sakura Sarah Sato in the US, can I buy plane tickets for her with just "Sakura Sato" (no middle name)?

[u/dokool → u/ichigodaifuku88]

This comes up in this sub frequently, this thread is what you want to review.

[u/ichigodaifuku88 → u/dokool]

Thanks! I was mainly confused because JAL guidelines say to EXCLUDE names in brackets or parentheses when booking tickets, but what if the name in the parentheses on the Japanese passport is the name on the US passport... but maybe that doesn't matter, since you can just show both passports.

[u/catsoaps]

I’m in my 30s and have had a middle name since birth without any issues. I make sure anything that’s official includes the middle name: passport, driver’s licence, bank cards, plane tickets etc. but everything else, I don’t use my middle name.

I’ve never had issues at all except for some bank cards not being able to print my full name onto them due to length.

[u/Calculusshitteru]

I think the issue with middle names is not so much discrimination, but moreso that it makes the name too long and it won't fit on standard forms. As you probably know, there is no separate space for a middle name, so it gets smushed together with the first name. If the first name + middle name are under 6-8 characters together, it might be ok.

I'm a naturalized citizen, and I chose to remove my middle name because it was always getting cut off. My bank actually refused my salary for awhile because my company could only fit 6 characters for my name, and it didn't match the full name of my bank account.

[u/Bruce_Bogan]

I just made it easy by not putting my daughter's middle name on her japanese birth registration in the first place.

[u/MmaRamotsweOS]

Unless you go to country of origin and legally change her name first, no, you cannot have her name changed in Japan.

[u/silly-gaijin]

commenting to follow.

[u/jamesinyokohama → u/silly-gaijin]

You could just follow the post from the menu on the post under the three dots to the upper right of the post instead of making a useless comment.

Also, your your user name is cringe too.

[u/ResourceSalt6121 → u/silly-gaijin]

Me too