Hanko for foreigners: when you need one, how to make it and inkan registration

A hanko for foreigners is optional for most daily life, but you need a registered seal (実印) to register a car or property, and some landlords ask for one, as of October 2026. Any foreign resident with a certificate of residence (住民票), aged 15 or older, can register a seal at the city office. The seal must show your name exactly as your 住民票 records it: alphabet, a registered katakana name, a registered alias or your kanji name.

This page covers the practical steps. For why Japan still uses seals at all, and how far the government has cut them back, see why Japan still runs on fax, hanko and cash.

Do foreigners need a hanko in Japan?

Often not, because the law doesn’t require one for most contracts. A 2020 Q&A from the Cabinet Office, Ministry of Justice and METI says a contract is formed by agreement, and leaving it unsealed doesn’t affect its validity unless a rule says otherwise. The Code of Civil Procedure treats a signature (署名) and a seal (押印) the same way: either one makes a private document presumed genuine.

Government forms also dropped most seals. In November 2020 the Cabinet Office said 14,909 of 14,992 procedures that asked for a seal were being abolished or prepared for abolition. The 83 that kept one are procedures such as those needing a seal certificate, a registration (登記・登録) or a seal registered with a bank.

So the cases where you still meet a seal are the ones where it proves who you are: property, cars, some leases and some bank accounts.

What is the difference between jitsuin, ginkoin and mitomein?

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (総務省) says registered seals are legally required for real-estate registration, car registration and notarial deeds (公正証書). The seal proves your identity only together with the seal registration certificate (印鑑登録証明書) that the city issues.

Which name can go on a hanko for foreigners?

For a registered seal, the rule is simple: the seal must match a name on your 住民票. Your city decides the details under its own seal ordinance, so a seal one city accepted can be refused in the next (Ota City says this directly).

Ota City’s guide uses the name CLARK THOMAS ANDREW and refuses these:

• initials only, such as CTA
• part of a name, such as THOM
• nicknames, pen names or an alias that isn’t on your 住民票
• self-styled signature lettering, pictures or patterns
• impressions smaller than 8mm or larger than 25mm across

Chuo City adds that rubber stamps and stamp-type seals that deform easily, and a seal already registered by someone in your household, can’t be registered.

How do I add a katakana name or alias to my 住民票?

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications allows residents from alphabet-using countries to have a katakana form of their name written in the remarks column of the 住民票. Hamamatsu offers the katakana route to people from countries that don’t use Chinese characters (kanji). Ask at the resident records counter (住民記録係).

An alias is stricter. Koto City asks for 2 or more documents showing you already use the alias, such as an employment certificate, and allows only kanji, hiragana and katakana. Once recorded, the alias can’t be changed except after a change such as marriage, so choose carefully. Your certificate of residence page explains the rest of the 住民票: certificate of residence (住民票).

How do I register a hanko as a foreigner (印鑑登録)?

In Chuo City, your residence card (在留カード) is enough for same-day registration: the ward lists it with the My Number card, passport and driver’s license as photo ID. Without photo ID, the ward mails an inquiry form to your registered address and you bring it back within 30 days, so registration takes two visits.

Costs vary by city. Registration is ¥50 in Chuo City and free in Hamamatsu (¥350 to re-register). A seal certificate costs ¥300 per copy in Chuo City.

If you have a My Number card, you can also print the seal certificate at a convenience store. See My Number card for foreigners.

What happens to my seal registration when I move or leave Japan?

The city erases your registration when you file a moving-out notification (転出届). Register again at your new city office after you move: see moving within Japan. If you’re leaving Japan, get any certificate you need before your moving-out date, as covered in the leaving Japan checklist.

Where is a hanko still needed, and where does a signature work?

Do I need a hanko for a bank account?

Not at every bank. SMBC’s app opens a seal-less account (印鑑レス口座) with a residence card as ID, and at the branch your SMBC card (cash card or Olive card) plus PIN replaces the bank seal. SMBC still asks you to register a seal for a housing loan application and for forms going to other financial institutions.

MUFG’s seal-less account also uses an IC cash card instead of a seal at the counter, but its account-opening app can’t be used by people without Japanese nationality, according to its page dated 17 October 2025. Bank-by-bank requirements are in bank accounts for foreigners.

Can a consulate signature certificate (署名証明) replace a hanko?

Sometimes. Some embassies in Tokyo issue a signature certificate (署名証明) that confirms your signature, for people with no registered seal. The Embassy of Denmark, for example, issues one to Danish citizens in person by appointment, for use with contracts in Japan. Services differ by country, so check your own embassy’s consular page.

Who accepts it:

• UR rental housing lists a signature certificate from a consulate as an alternative to the registered seal and seal certificate for foreign nationals without a seal custom. If you come to sign in person with photo ID and hand over a copy, UR doesn’t need the seal certificate at all.
• Company registration: the Ministry of Justice accepts a signature certificate from your home country’s embassy in Japan or a home-country notary.
• Cars and real estate: we found no official page confirming acceptance from foreign residents. Ask the Land Transport Bureau (運輸支局) or the legal affairs bureau (法務局) first, or a judicial scrivener (司法書士) for property.

More guides: why Japan still uses fax, hanko and cash, certificate of residence (住民票), bank accounts for foreigners, buying a car in Japan.