Omura in Nagasaki is now the first known city in Japan to register a same-sex couple as common-law spouses on a residence certificate. On May 28 2024, 38-year-old Keita Matsuura and his partner, 39-year-old Yutaro Fujiyama, held a press conference after becoming the first known same-sex couple in Japan to be recognised as a de facto marriage on a government-issued certificate of residence.
As of May 2024, 26 of the 47 prefectures in Japan have a Partnership Oath System, which encourages the recognition of same-sex partnerships in Japan and aims to promote awareness for sexual minorities. Couples who are over the age of 20 can apply for special partnership certificates under this system, but the certificates are not legally binding and do not change official family registries or documents like the certificate of residence.
Matsuura and Fujiyama applied for a partnership certificate under the Partnership Oath System in 2020 and had a Shinto wedding ceremony at a shrine in Hyogo prefecture in June 2023. However, they had no legal documents indicating they were married until recently. After moving to Omura city in March of this year, they applied to be registered as a de facto married couple on their certificate of residence, rather than two households under one roof.
The municipality originally offered to list the pair as relatives, but after further deliberation, issued a certificate listing Matsuura as the 'head of household' and Fujiyama as his 'unregistered husband'. According to Asahi Shimbun, the city of Kurayoshi in Tottori prefecture began offering the option of being listed as an 'unregistered wife or husband' on certificates of residence to same-sex couples, but Matsuura and Fujiyama are the first known couple in Japan to be listed on government documents in this manner.
What does this mean for same-sex couples in Japan?
While being listed as unregistered spouses on a residence certificate does not confer the same benefits as a legal marriage, it potentially offers additional leverage beyond the Partnership Oath System certificates. This could make it easier for LGBTQ+ individuals to visit their partners in the hospital, apply for mortgages together, or make medical decisions on behalf of their partners, among other benefits that are common in heterosexual marriages.
Activists view the recent developments as a positive step forward, hoping it will establish a new precedent in Japan. Recognising more same-sex couples as common-law partners on government documents could pave the way for the full legal recognition of same-sex marriages.
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