FOCUS: Japan Govt Seeks Legal Recognition for Use of Maiden Names

Tokyo, Dec. 26 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government and ruling coalition plan to submit a bill to next year’s ordinary session of parliament that would give legal force to the use of maiden names in daily life by people who have changed surnames upon marriage. The initiative is a flagship policy of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who has long been a staunch supporter of Japan’s single-surname system for married couples and has opposed allowing husbands and wives to use separate surnames in the family register. By authorizing the broader everyday use of maiden names, the government aims to ease the practical inconveniences caused by mandatory surname changes after marriage. Advocates of a selective dual-surname system, however, are increasingly frustrated that the debate has shifted away from whether married couples should be allowed to adopt different surnames and toward the narrower issue of expanding the use of maiden names. At a House of Representatives Budget Committee meeting on Dec. 9, Takaichi said the government would “work closely with the ruling parties and proceed with the necessary discussions” on codifying the use of maiden names. Following the launch of the Takaichi administration in October, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, led by her, changed its coalition partner from Komeito, which supports an optional dual-surname system, to the Japan Innovation Party (Nippon Ishin no Kai), which is in favor of expanding the use of former surnames. The coalition agreement between the LDP and the JIP explicitly includes a pledge to establish a legal framework to broaden the use of maiden names. Takaichi has long advocated maintaining the requirement that married couples share a single surname, arguing that this is necessary to ensure the “stability of children’s surnames.” During her tenure as internal affairs minister, she promoted allowing married couples to use their maiden names in parallel with their registered surnames in administrative procedures. In February 2025, before becoming prime minister, she presented a private proposal that would allow former surnames to be recorded on certificates of residence, while leaving the post-marriage names on the family registry unchanged. The proposal also urged businesses and other organizations to take necessary steps to facilitate the common use of maiden names. The bill now being prepared is expected to be based on Takaichi’s proposal. Ministries and agencies have begun surveys on how widely maiden names are used as common names in their respective jurisdictions. The prime minister has expressed confidence that fully implementing the practice of listing maiden names alongside current surnames will “reduce the number of people who feel inconvenienced or disadvantaged in social life.” It is already possible to list both maiden and current surnames on certificates of residence, passports and driver’s licenses. A 2022 survey by the Financial Services Agency found, however, that just over 30 pct of banks did not allow customers to open or maintain accounts under a former surname, citing concerns about fraud and other risks. In addition, because former surnames are not stored in the integrated circuit chips of passports, some people have encountered difficulties when traveling or conducting procedures overseas. The key question is how far such inconveniences can be alleviated under the proposed legal framework. The JIP has submitted a bill to parliament that would permit residence certificates, passports and other official documents to list only an individual’s maiden name by allowing maiden names to be recorded in family registers. Party co-leader Fumitake Fujita has noted that whether to permit the exclusive use of maiden names on such documents will be “one of the points of contention.” Whether the JIP’s proposal will be incorporated into a government-sponsored bill is expected to become a key issue in negotiations between the government and the ruling parties. Some argue that legalizing the use of pre-marriage surnames would eliminate the need to authorize married couples to adopt separate surnames, a prospect that has heightened alarm among advocates of a selective dual-surname system. Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito has suggested that if the government plans to submit a bill that include proposals diverging from the Legislative Council’s 1996 recommendation, it “should submit the matter to the council for consideration.” In that recommendation, the council, an advisory body to the justice minister, endorsed allowing married couples to choose separate surnames. Japanese Communist Party chair Tomoko Tamura criticized the bill, saying: “This is an attempt to crush the proposal for a selective separate surname system. It’s unacceptable, as it concerns human rights and identity.” On Dec. 12, turmoil also erupted during a meeting of the government’s Council for Gender Equality. Tomoko Yoshino, president of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, or Rengo, the umbrella organization for labor unions nationwide, voiced opposition to the draft sixth Basic Plan for Gender Equality. She noted that a commitment to consider legalizing the use of maiden names had been added to the plan without any prior explanation. In response, the council decided not to submit a policy recommendation to the prime minister. Within the LDP, a key advocate of a selective dual-surname system for married couples expressed disappointment, noting that “the momentum for separate surnames has receded.” Nevertheless, the official stressed that “the use of maiden names and the introduction of a separate surname system are not a binary choice,” and added, “If problems remain that can’t be resolved even after the proposed legislation, then we should consider allowing separate surnames.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]