Your UK or other English-language birth certificate translated in full into Japanese and signed by a named professional translator, ready for an embassy, ward office or immigration file.
A birth certificate translation into Japanese is usually needed when a UK or other English-language birth certificate goes to the Embassy of Japan, a Japanese municipal office or the Immigration Services Agency. VisaDocTranslation translates every entry on the certificate into Japanese, and a named professional translator signs it with their full name, contact details and qualifications.
It costs £41.99 per page and arrives by the next working day. Each Japanese office sets its own requirements, so confirm what yours wants before you order; our Japanese translation overview covers the basics.
Japan
Not accepted for
Most often to register the birth of a child born abroad to a Japanese parent, to show family relationships in a dependant or spouse residence application, or when a municipal office in Japan asks for proof of parentage. Foreign-language certificates submitted to these offices generally need a Japanese translation attached.
The case we see most is a baby born in the UK to a Japanese parent. The birth is reported to the Embassy of Japan in London or the Consulate-General in Edinburgh with a 出生届 (the Japanese birth notification), the UK full birth certificate and a Japanese translation. If the child also acquired another nationality at birth, the notification must be made within three months of the birth together with a declaration reserving Japanese nationality. Miss it, and Japanese nationality is lost back to the date of birth, which makes it the one deadline in this file that genuinely doesn't negotiate.
Birth certificates also appear in Immigration Services Agency applications for dependants, where they prove the parent-child link, and in family register matters handled by a city or ward office in Japan.
Japanese offices generally ask for a complete Japanese translation that names and is signed by the person who made it, rather than a translator with a particular accreditation. A translation signed by a named professional translator meets that format, but check the office's current guidance before you submit.
Japanese offices care less about letterheads than about two things: is the translation complete, and who made it? The Immigration Services Agency takes the same line for visa paperwork, asking for a Japanese translation of any foreign-language document with the translator identified. Our translations are signed by a named translator with their full name and contact details, so the office knows exactly who stands behind the wording.
Many parents translate the certificate themselves, and that's generally allowed. Where it goes wrong is detail: the registration district, the informant, each parent's occupation and any marginal notes from the registrar all need to appear. A short certificate leaves out the parents altogether, so order the full certificate before you start.
Japanese records use Japanese script, so a foreign parent's name is normally given in katakana, while the child's name follows the characters the parents choose to register. Tell us any spellings already used in Japanese records so the translation matches them.
Katakana is a phonetic approximation, and the same English name can be written more than one way. Short, plain names are easy; anything with silent letters gives the translator more to think about. Once a spelling is entered in the family register (戸籍), every later document should match it, so use the notes box on the upload form to give us the katakana or kanji you've already used.
Name order matters too: Japanese puts the family name first, and we follow the convention the receiving office expects. Our guide to names spelled differently across documents is written for UK visas, but the principle travels well.
Not always. Some Japanese offices accept a UK certified copy with a Japanese translation, while others ask for an apostille from the FCDO. Check with the office receiving it, and if an apostille is needed, get it before you order so we can translate it too.
Japan is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, so a UK apostille is the usual way to authenticate a British public document for use there. The apostille confirms the registrar's signature, not the contents of the certificate: it is, quite literally, a certificate about a certificate. If you attach one, the Japanese office will usually want it translated along with the document, and it counts as a page.
Our apostille translation page explains how the two steps fit together. We don't issue apostilles ourselves.
Upload a clear scan or photo of the full certificate on our quote form, choose Japan, tell us which office it's for and pay. A named translator translates and signs it, and the PDF is emailed by the next working day.
Each page is £41.99, and most UK birth certificates are a single page. Include the reverse if anything is written on it, plus any apostille. Every document comes with 2 free revisions, which is handy if the office asks for a different katakana spelling after the fact. We work to the ISO 17100 standard for translation services.
Reporting a marriage to Japan as well? See marriage certificate translation into Japanese and passport translation into Japanese, or start now on the quote form.
Japanese offices generally accept a translation signed by the person who made it, so translating it yourself is often possible. A professional translation saves you working through registrar terminology and is signed by a named translator. Check the embassy's current guidance before you decide.
A birth abroad must be reported within three months. If the child also acquired another nationality at birth, the notification must include a declaration reserving Japanese nationality within that period, or Japanese nationality is lost. Confirm the details with the embassy or consulate.
The full certificate. The short version omits the parents' details, which Japanese offices usually need to see.
£41.99 per page, charged in pounds sterling, with no separate certification fee. Most UK birth certificates are one page.
No. Each translation is reviewed and signed by a named translator, so there's no rush tier. Delivery is by the next working day.
Yes. We translate birth certificates from Scotland, Northern Ireland and other English-speaking countries into Japanese. Formats differ, and every entry is translated.
Foreign names are normally given in katakana in Japanese documents. If a spelling has already been used in Japanese records, tell us when you order and we'll match it.
Every document includes 2 free revisions. Send us the office's comments and the translator will update the translation.
Upload a photo or scan, see your price instantly and pay securely online.