City Hall Procedures

When foreigners with residence cards are moving to Hikone to live in, they are all required to register as a resident of Hikone within two weeks after their initial arrival in Hikone. This procedure is called “Jumin Toroku (Resident registration)” in Japanese. You must bring your residence card and passport to complete the resident registration at the city hall. Your name written on your residence card is your official name in Japan. (You cannot register your name in Katakana alone.) You can receive a wide range of services from the city upon the completion of your resident registration.

You are required to come to the City Hall of Hikone to change your registered address within Hikone or to move out of Hikone. For this procedure, please bring your residence card with you. For those who are moving out of Hikone, the city will issue a moving-out certificate called “Tenshutsu Shomeisho” in Japanese. You have to hand over this certificate to a local government office in your next city within two weeks. For more details, please contact the Life Service Division of Hikone City Hall.

You must report to the city hall about your departure and complete necessary procedures. If you fail to come to the city hall for the procedures to leave Japan, the information of your tax payments, national health insurance, etc. will be compromised, and you might face penalties when you come back to Japan next time.

Once you complete your resident registration, you will be able to apply for a resident certificate (called “Jumin Hyo” in Japanese). This certificate shows your basic residence information based on your resident registration and verifies your residence in Hikone. For more information, please contact the Life Service Division of Hikone City Hall.

To register your Tsushomei (legal alias), you need to submit an official certificate that proves the name, which you want to register as a legal alias, is used in your everyday life. Once you register your Tsushomei, it will be next to impossible to make a change.

Once you register your name in Katakana, you will see your name in Katakana appear in the remarks column of your resident certificate. For more information, please contact the Life Service Division .

Hikone residents who are 15 years or older can register their own Inkan (Name Seal). You might be required to get an “Inkan Registration Certificate” when selling or buying a car, house, etc.

The certificate can be issued to anyone who holds an Inkan Registration Card. (You can get your Inkan Registration card upon the completion of its registration process.)

The name of an Inkan you can register must match the one of your residence card. For those who have the registered Tsushomei, a Tsushomei name can be used for the Inakn registration as well. Your name officially registered  in Katakana can be used too.

Effective 2015 October, all residents of Japan are given the individual 12-digit number (so-called My Number), regardless of nationalities. This individual number will not change for keep except for a few exceptions, so please keep your My Number card safe and handy.

Your My Number is written on the paper-based card. Please keep it safe.

You need to fill out and submit an application form to receive this plastic My Number card. You can use it as your ID card, but you need to renew the card before its expiration date at the city hall.

Once you get hold of your own plastic My Number card, you can get the local-government-issued certificates (see below) at stores, such as SEVEN ELEVEN, LAWSON, Some HEIWADO franchise Stores and FAMILY MART.

• Residence Certificate
• Inkan Registration Certificate
• Tax・Tax Payment Certificate (the one for Child Allowance included)

Please register your new-born baby within two weeks. You can do a birth registration procedure at the city hall even when it is closed.

For more information, please get in touch with the Life Service Division.

This is the procedure to report a deceased person to the city.

 You have a week to report about a person’s demise at the city hall after you receive a death confirmation document from a doctor. You can do a death registration procedure at the city hall even when it is closed.

The required procedures vary depending on what country you come from.

If you need more clarifications, be advised to get in touch with the Life Service Division directly.

The divorce registration process varies depending on your country’s law.
For more information, please contact the Life Service Division .

Your Koseki certificate may be required when renewing your visa.
Its application form is available at the Life Service Division.

The city lends a temporary licence plate of a vehicle or a motorbike during the maintenance, vehicle inspection and so forth.

Inquiries in Japanese：Life Service Division  0749-30-6111

Hikone Foreign Residents Support Center (Human Rights Policy Division) 0749-30-6113