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2026-09-12

How to fill in the divorce notification and the witnesses ― typical reasons it is not accepted, and the \"request for non-acceptance\" to file beforehand

You can get the divorce notification form at the municipal office counter, and submit it with the signatures of both spouses and two witnesses. But it may not be accepted because the holder of parental authority is missing, the witnesses do not meet the requirements, the registered domicile is written wrongly, or corrections are made the wrong way. This article sets out the points to watch in each box, who can be a witness, where to submit and what to bring (from March 2024, attaching a family register certificate is in principle unnecessary), submitting at night or on holidays, and the \"request for non-acceptance\" that stops the other spouse submitting it without your knowledge.

About this translation ― This page is an English translation of an article originally written in Japanese by KuraLab's operator, a licensed real-estate transaction specialist (宅地建物取引士) and administrative scrivener (行政書士) in Japan. The Japanese original is the authoritative text; where the two differ, the Japanese version prevails. The article explains Japanese law and procedure in general terms as of the date shown. It is not legal, tax or immigration advice for your situation ― please confirm with a licensed professional in Japan. Japanese terms are kept in parentheses so you can search for them. Read the Japanese original

A man came to me after his divorce notification had been sent back twice at the city office counter. The first time, the parental authority box was blank. The second time, the lot number of the registered domicile differed by one character from the family register. "I want it accepted the third time." Looking at the form, the signature of one of the witnesses was clearly not in that person's own hand. His wife had written her own mother's name. "Is that no good either?" It is not. As it stood, the third attempt would also have been sent back. This article is about getting one sheet of paper accepted.

In the article on divorce by agreement, I wrote about what to decide before submitting the notification. This article is about the notification itself. The divorce notification (離婚届) is a single sheet of paper, but if you fill it in wrongly it will not be accepted, and until it is accepted, the divorce does not take effect. Here are the typical reasons for being sent back at the counter, and how to avoid them.

You can get the form in the same format at the counter of any municipality in Japan, and many local authorities let you print it from their website. You fill in each spouse's name, date of birth, address and registered domicile (本籍), the type of divorce (divorce by agreement), which family register the spouse returning to their pre-marriage surname will go into (back to the parents' register, or a new register), the holder of parental authority over any minor children, the period of living together, the address before separation, the household's main occupation, and the signatures of the persons notifying. Since September 2021, a seal is no longer needed.

The typical reasons for non-acceptance. One: there is a minor child but no holder of parental authority is entered. This is the most common reason for being sent back. Under the April 2026 amendment, if you choose joint parental authority you enter "both father and mother," and for sole parental authority, the father or the mother. Two: there are defects in the witness boxes. Three: the lot number of the registered domicile or the head of the family register (筆頭者) differs from the family register. The registered domicile is often different from the address, and writing it from memory leads to mistakes. Check it against a family register certificate. Four: corrections are not made with a double line and a correction seal (or signature). Correction fluid cannot be used. Five: the "register to return to" is not entered for the spouse returning to their pre-marriage surname.

Typical reasons for non-acceptance and what to do. No holder of parental authority entered for a minor child: enter "both father and mother" for joint parental authority, or the father or the mother for sole parental authority (after the amendment). A witness under 18, or signed by someone else: two adults sign in their own hand; if there is no one to ask, ask a professional. Registered domicile or head of the register different from the family register: write it while looking at the family register certificate, not from memory. Correction with correction fluid: strike through with a double line and add a correction seal or signature. The register to return to not entered for the spouse resuming their pre-marriage surname: enter whether they return to their parents' register or create a new one.

On witnesses. A notification of divorce by agreement requires the signatures of two adult (18 or over) witnesses. Either spouse's parents, siblings, friends: anyone will do. A witness's role is to attest that they "know the two have agreed to divorce"; they bear no responsibility for the terms of the divorce, and they do not become a guarantor of child support. If there is no one to ask, a professional such as an administrative scrivener may act as witness (for a fee; a few thousand yen to about 10,000 yen is a guide). The witness must sign in their own hand; a signature written by someone else is invalid.

You submit it to the municipality of the couple's registered domicile or of the notifier's whereabouts (place of residence). When submitting somewhere other than the registered domicile, you used to have to attach a family register certificate (all-items certificate), but with the amendment of the Family Register Act on 1 March 2024, staff at the receiving municipality can check the register at the registered domicile, and attaching family register certificates when filing a notification is in principle no longer necessary. At the counter you will be asked to show identification. Either spouse alone can submit it, and it can be sent by post. At night or on holidays, an out-of-hours counter (such as the security office) keeps it, and if it is examined and accepted on the next working day, the day it was handed in becomes the date of divorce. If you want "to have divorced on such-and-such a date," you can achieve that by submitting (or handing it in) on that day.

Where to submit and what to bring. Where to submit: the municipality of the couple's registered domicile or of the notifier's whereabouts. Submitting somewhere other than the registered domicile: from 1 March 2024, attaching a family register certificate is in principle unnecessary (the counter can check the register at the registered domicile). Identification: driving licence, My Number card and so on. Out of hours: kept at the security office or similar and examined on the next working day; the day it was handed in is the date of divorce. Request at the same time: a certificate of acceptance of the divorce notification (used in later procedures).

A system you should know about before submitting is the "request for non-acceptance" (不受理申出). Once one spouse has signed and the witnesses are in place, a divorce notification can be submitted without the other spouse knowing. If there is a risk the other spouse will submit it without your consent, filing a request for non-acceptance with the municipality of the registered domicile means the notification will not be accepted unless you come to the counter in person and withdraw the request. Conversely, if you have signed a divorce notification and handed it over, and then change your mind before the other spouse submits it, you can stop it with a request for non-acceptance. Once a signed notification has left your hands, you remain "not yet divorced" until it is submitted.

One more thing about after the notification is accepted. It takes from a few days to one or two weeks to be reflected in the family register, after which you can get the post-divorce family register certificate. Many post-divorce procedures (change of surname, health insurance, pension, child rearing allowance, 児童扶養手当) require this new certificate or the certificate of acceptance of the divorce notification (離婚届受理証明書). For some procedures, such as child rearing allowance, attaching a family register certificate is no longer necessary if you show your My Number, so check at the counter first. The certificate of acceptance can be issued on the spot at the counter where you submitted the notification, so if you request it at the same time as submitting, the procedures will move faster. The order is set out in the article on procedures after divorce.

In the case, we corrected things one at a time. The parental authority box. The child was six, and the two had chosen joint parental authority under the amendment, so we entered "both father and mother." At the second rejection, the counter had told him "if it's joint, circle both," but he had assumed it had to be one or the other and left it blank. The lot number of the registered domicile. We obtained a family register certificate and confirmed it was "1-chōme 1-ban," not "1-chōme 1-banchi." One character's difference gets it sent back. The witness. His wife's mother signed it herself that weekend. A signature written by someone else is invalid, and even if it had been accepted, it could later become material for disputing the validity of the notification. When I explained that a witness is only required to "know of the two people's intention to divorce" and does not become a guarantor of child support, the wife's mother signed with peace of mind. The third time, it was accepted.

I will also give an example of stopping a notification. The morning after handing her husband a signed divorce notification, a woman came to me: "Actually, I want to settle the property first." Her husband said he would submit it that afternoon. I told her to file a request for non-acceptance with the city office of the registered domicile, and she went to the counter that morning. Her husband went to submit it in the afternoon, and it was not accepted. He was angry, but after this request for non-acceptance the two decided on the division of property and child support and made a notarial deed, and three months later she withdrew the request at the counter herself and then submitted the notification. The paper was the same sheet as the first time.

A word from the case about the certificate of acceptance too. I had the man whose notification was accepted on the third attempt get two copies of the "certificate of acceptance of the divorce notification" on the spot. The following week, this certificate was needed for changing dependants at his workplace and for applying for child rearing allowance. Waiting for it to be reflected in the family register takes one to two weeks, so if you get the certificate on the day you submit, you can begin post-divorce procedures that same week.

Filling in a divorce notification takes ten minutes. But if you submit it without deciding what should be decided first (parental authority, child support, visitation, division of property, pension splitting), what follows the notification becomes long. Once you have the form, first go back to the article on divorce by agreement and check those five things.

In the main text I wrote that filling in a divorce notification takes ten minutes. The man who went to the counter three times took three weeks. Not because of writing mistakes, but because he did not check, before filling in the form, the things that needed checking (the lot number in the family register, how to choose parental authority, the witness's signature). The table in this article is the list of those "things to check first." Once you have the form, look at the table's five rows before you write anything.

Written by: 長澤 湊（licensed real-estate transaction specialist, administrative scrivener, assistant surveyor）　Content checked on: 2026-10-24

This article is a general explanation of Japanese rules and procedures, not advice on an individual case. Figures and rules are as of the date shown. For your own situation, consult a lawyer, judicial scrivener, tax accountant or administrative scrivener in Japan.

Official sources

The rules and figures in this article can be checked against the following official pages (in Japanese).

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