Hanko is simply a Japanese seal impression equivalent to the signature. The seal culture in Japan has started from sealing off valuable things (box) in the name of someone who possesses it. Hanko was a kind of locking key of safety box.

Its way of using has changed with the times from sealing off something in the name of someone to personal identification.

Today, I want to talk about Jitsuin (実印), endorsed by the municipality

What is Jitsuin(実印)

Jitsu-In is a registered Hanko, endorsed by the municipality. In other words, this Hanko is recognized and guaranteed by the third party (municipality) that “this is unmistakably your Hanko and no one is allowed to take this”.

There are two types of “Jitsuin”, which are personal Jitsuin and corporate Jitsuin. The personal one is used when you make your personal contract such as buying real estate, car and renting an apartment. In contrast, the corporate one is used when making a business contract.

If you want to make Jitsuin personally, you should take Hanko to a municipal office and do the necessary procedure.

If you want to make Jitsuin for business use, you should take Hanko to a regional legal affair “Houmukyoku” (法務局).

The difference of whether or not, Hanko you possess is registered officially becomes the difference of whether Hanko you possess is just “Mitomein” or “Jitsuin”. If you do have your Hanko registered at a municipal office, it is just a Mitome-in.

Legal effect of Jitsuin

Just because you stamp Jitsu-In on a document doesn’t produce any special legal effects from Jitsuin. Only the benefit that you can receive from Jitsuin is that a document stamped with Jitsuin is way more credible to the fact that you stamped it yourself when you end up in a court because the person who can stamp with Jitsuin is only who registered it. In other words, even if not you buy someone else stamped jitsuin on a document, a court will end up judging you stamp it.

For example, imagine the case that you have a private bond that has a name of the person you lent but the borrower insists “I didn’t write that private bond”.

In this case, even if there is not your autograph on it and your name is filled with typeface in the signature column, if your Jitsu-In is stamped and seal registration certificate is attached on it, a document is as credible as the one you sign on it.

Therefore, even though the borrower excuses like “I have nothing to do with that private bond”, the bond is judged to be written by him at the Court.

When to stamp Jitsuin

In personal case, it is needed when you are required to stamp it by a contractor. In a business case, it is needed when required to stamp jitsu in and submit Hanko registration certificate.

  • under the procedure of succession to property
  • when making a notarial document (testament, financing contract with the royalty payment condition)
  • when establishing a company
  • when buying a new car or dealing a used car between individuals.
  • when making a loan contract
  • when dealing a telephone subscription right contract
  • when buying real estate property
  • when making a insurance contract

How to register hanko

From here, I am going to explain how to register Hanko.

First of all, a person who applies for Hanko registration needs to be 15 years old or older than 15 years old.

Hanko registration procedure is gone through at a municipality where you did resident registration principally.

If you have your identification documents and go directly to a municipal office, the procedure will complete on the spot. However, if you don’t own your identification document and can’t go to a municipal office for some reason, the procedure will take you a couple of days till it’s done.

Your situation can be divided into the following 4 cases

  • You can go to a municipal office with identifation document.
  • You can go to a municipal office without identification document. (If you have a gurantor)
  • You can go to a municipal office without identification document. (If you don’t have a gurantor)
  • You can’t go to a municipal office

I am going to explain how you can register your Hanko in these cases

You can go to a municipal office with identifation document.

You just take the following things at a municipal office and fill in the Hanko registration application equipped on a writing table and wait for the issuance of Hanko registration certificate on the spot.

What you need to bring to a municipal office

  • Your passport
  • Resident card
  • Hanko (created by Hanko craftsman)
  • Filled hanko registration application form (you can get it at a municipal office)

You can go to a municipal office without identification document. (If you have a gurantor)

If you have no identification documents for some reason, you need to ask someone for becoming a guarantor. A guarantor’s jitsuin is in place of your identification documents in this case.

If you have someone willing to become your guarantor, you go to a municipal office with a guarantor and you fill in the Hanko registration application form and get guarantor’s autograph and jitsuin stamp in the column of guarantor’s section.

If a guarantor can’t accompany you to a municipal office, download, and print out the application form and get guarantor’s name and autograph on it beforehand. If you submit this form, Hanko registration procedure will be done on the spot.,

This is the Hanko registration form produced by Kaga-shi, Ishikawa prefecture. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any English version of the Hanko registration form on the internet. You somehow fill in the form in Japanese with support of your Japanese friend or guarantor,

What you need to bring to a municipal office

  • Health insurance card and a official document that prove yours (employment certificate, pention pension book). You have to prepare two items.
  • Gurantor’s Hanko registration certificate
  • Hanko (created by Hanko craftsman)
  • Filled hanko registration application form with guarantor’s autograph and Hanko

You can go to a municipal office without identification document. (If you don’t have a gurantor)

If you can go to a municipal office but you don’t have your identification document and you don’t have anyone to ask for a guarantor, you need to go to a municipal office two times.
Your procedure will not be done on the spot.

You go to the municipal office and fill in the Hanko registration form (you write nothing in the column of identification) and submit it to a window.

Later, an inquiry sheet will be sent to you by a municipal office.

You fill in an inquiry sheet and take it to a municipal office. Submit an inquiry sheet and Hanko at a window.

What you need to bring to a municipal office

First time
  • Hanko
  • Health insurance card and a official document that prove yours (employment certificate, pention pension book). You have to prepare two items.
Second time
  • Hanko
  • Health insurance card and a official document that prove yours (employment certificate, pention pension book). You have to prepare two items.
  • Filled inquiry sheet

You can’t go to a municipal office

Jitsuin registration is a very important procedure. I don’t recommend you to ask someone to register Hanko. Unless you have a special circumstance, you should do it yourself.

However, you can’t go to a municipal office by any means for some reasons, you have a choice to ask someone to register Hanko in place of you.

In this case, the substitute will have to go to a municipal office two times and Hanko registration procedure will not be done on the day.

First thing first, you write a letter of proxy and hand it to your substitute.

a letter of proxy

Your substitute goes to a municipal office and submits it to a window. Later, an inquiry sheet will be sent to you from a municipal office.

You fill in an inquiry sheet and you hand it and your identification document to your substitute.

Your substitute will go to a municipal office and submit the two things to a window. Then, the procedure will be done.

What you need to bring to a municipal office

First time
  • Your Hanko
  • A letter of proxy
  • Substitute’s identification document with ID photo
Second time
  • Filled inquiry sheet
  • Your Hnanko
  • A letter of proxy (second time)
  • Your identification doument with ID photo
  • Substitute’s identification document
  • Substitute’s hanko

Inkan registration card which you need when requesting a copy of Hanko registration certificate

After all your procedure is done, you receive “Inkan registration card” (印鑑登録証 = Inkan touroku shou). Issuing this card, it costs you 300 yen. As often as you need a copy of Hanko registration certificate, you can easily request issuance with this card.

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