Recognition of same-sex unions in Japan

In January 2019, the Government of Ibaraki Prefecture announced it was considering introducing a partnership system for same-sex couples in April 2019.[131][132][133] In March 2019, Governor Kazuhiko Ōigawa expressed his personal support for the introduction of such a scheme.[134] The Ibaraki Prefectural Assembly began examing legislation to this effect in June 2019.[135] The prefecture has offered partnership certificates since July 1, 2019, which made it the first prefecture to do so.[136][137] Eight days later, Mito, the prefectural capital, announced it would make couples who are in the possession of the prefecture's certificates eligible to move into the municipality's public housing facilities, starting in August 2019.[138]

On 15 January 2020, Osaka Prefecture announced it would start a partnership system on January 22.[139] Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura said in a statement that "we should aim for a society where one can live as themselves". The first couple to receive a certificate were Shuji Yamada and Shigeo Hiruda on 31 January. The certificate allows couples to apply to move into prefectural housing and consent to surgery, among other limited benefits. 5 cities in Osaka had already established such a system before its extension to the entire prefecture.[140]

Gunma Prefecture announced on 5 November 2020 that it would introduce a partnership system by the end of the year. The system would provide same-sex couples with some limited recognition, including the ability to move into prefectural housing and visit each other in hospitals. Governor Ichita Yamamoto hoped the move would "send a positive message" and "promote diversity".[141] On 17 December, Yamamoto announced the system would be established on 21 December.[142] The first certificate was issued to couple Saori Tanaka and Hisanagi Makita in Shibukawa on 24 December.[143]

On 20 November 2020, Governor Eikei Suzuki of Mie Prefecture announced his intention to introduce a partnership system within the end of the year.[144]

Governor Hajime Furuta of Gifu Prefecture announced on 10 December 2020 that he is considering establishing a partnership system in the prefecture.[145]

On October 30, 2019, the cities of Fukuoka and Kumamoto announced they would recognize each other's partnership certificates effective immediately. This marked the first time that two or more jurisdictions in Japan had begun recognizing each other's certificates, easing recognition for same-sex couples.[146] Since 1 April 2020, certificates from Kitakyushu and Koga are also recognized between the four cities.[147][148] Certificates from Okayama are also recognised in Fukuoka.[149]

On December 2, 2019, the mayor of Yokosuka announced his intention to establish a similar joint recognition with the cities of Zushi and Kamakura, taking effect on 1 April 2020.[150] Hayama joined the scheme on 1 July 2020,[110] and Miura joined on 1 January 2021.[151]

In July 2020, Okayama and Sōja agreed to mutually recognize their certificates and eliminate the need for new procedures when couples move between the two cities. Okayama reached a similar agreement with Fukuoka in November 2020 and Hiroshima in January 2021,[149] and is considering one with Takamatsu.[83]

The cities of Chiba and Yokohama made a similar recognition agreement in January 2021, effective on 1 February 2021.[152]

The following 73 municipalities and three prefectures have established a "partnership oath system" (パートナーシップ宣誓制度, pātonāshippu sensei seido), comprising about 34% of the Japanese population. In 26 further jurisdictions, such policies have yet to take effect.

• Ibaraki (2019)
• Osaka (2020)
• Gunma (2020)

The first couple to receive a partnership certificate were Koyuki Higashi and Hiroko Masuhara in Shibuya on 5 November 2015. They were personally congratulated by Mayor Ken Hasebe.[7] Later that day, Setagaya Ward issued certificates to seven couples.[7] By April 2017, 17 same-sex couples had been issued partnership certificates in Shibuya.[178]

Nijiiro Diversity maintains statistics on the number of registered couples.[179] It has found a large increase in partnerships: 319 in late November 2018,[180] 426 in April 2019,[181] 617 in October 2019,[182] 759 in January 2020,[183] 945 in April 2020,[184] 1,052 in June 2020,[185] and 1,301 in November 2020.[186]

As a private sector response to the lack of national recognition of same-sex partnerships, the Famiee Project created a digital blockchain-secured partnership registry in 2019. In order to receive a Famiee certificate, the couple must apply via an phone app and will receive a digital certificate to be used as proof of familial status.[187] The Famiee Project received the backing of at least 17 companies who will recognize the digital partnership certificate and treat a couple the same as a different-sex marriage for banking and insurance purposes. The partnerships are not currently recognized by the Government of Japan, but aim to create pressure from the private sector for political progress on LGBT rights in the country.[188]

On March 27, 2009, it was reported that Japan allows its nationals to marry same-sex foreign partners in countries where same-sex marriage is legal. Japan does not allow same-sex marriage domestically and had so far also refused to issue a document, which states that a person is single and of legal age and is required for citizens to wed overseas, if the applicant's intended spouse was of the same legal sex. Under the change, the Ministry of Justice instructed local authorities to issue the key certificate for those who want to have same-sex marriages.[189]

In June 2011, the deputy head abbot of Kyoto's Shunkō-in Zen temple announced that the temple would perform same-sex marriage ceremonies as part of Gay and Lesbian Pride Month.[190] Similarly, in April 2020, Senda Akihiro, the deputy head abbot of Kawagoe's Saimyouji temple, announced that he will perform same-sex marriage ceremonies.[191]

Since 15 May 2012, Tokyo Disney Resort has allowed symbolic (not legally recognized) same-sex marriage ceremonies in its Cinderella's Castle hotel.[192] On March 3, 2013, its first same-sex marriage was held between Koyuki Higashi and her partner Hiroko Masuhara.[193][194]

In March 2019, the Justice Ministry revoked a deportation order for a gay Taiwanese man who had remained in Japan illegally after overstaying his visa, giving consideration to his longtime same-sex relationship with a Japanese national. The ministry issued a special residency permit to the man, who had lived in Japan for about 25 years. The ministry's Immigration Bureau granted him a one-year resident visa after the Tokyo District Court suggested that it review the order.[195][196]

Article 24 of the Japanese Constitution states:[197] "Marriage shall be based only on the mutual consent of both sexes and it shall be maintained through mutual cooperation with the equal rights of husband and wife as a basis." Previously, a couple in Japan could marry only if their respective head of household (the father, or in the absence of a father, the eldest son) consented to the union. As a result, arranged marriage was the dominant form of marriage. Those couples who could not obtain permission had to elope and stay in common-law marriage.

The purpose of Article 24 of the Constitution was to assert freedom of consenting adults to marry, and to explicitly establish the equality of both sexes in marriage. The wording defines marriage as a union of husband and wife. Some legal scholars argue that because the intent behind the article was not in reference to same-sex marriage, it need not apply in legalising same-sex marriage. However, conservative lawmakers as well as legal scholars who take a literal approach to constitutional interpretation argue that such an argument is a stretch.[198]

In February 2015, the National Diet debated whether same-sex marriage should be recognized under Japan's Constitution.[199] Kota Matsuda, a member of the House of Councillors, said:

We need to eliminate lifestyle difficulties for same-sex couples. A prerequisite to achieving this goal is dealing with Article 24 of the Constitution.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe expressed his opinion on the issue:[199]

Extending the institution of marriage to same-sex couples was not anticipated under the current Constitution. It is an issue that concerns the very core of family values and, I believe, one that requires extremely careful consideration.

In July 2019, the Japan Federation of Bar Associations submitted a paper in support of same-sex marriage to the Minister of Justice, the Prime Minister, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the House of Councillors. The paper states that Article 24 does not ban such marriages as "the notion of same-sex marriage was beyond the scope of assumption at the time of [its] enactment", and that prohibiting it constitutes a major breach of human rights, urging the National Diet to legalize same-sex marriage.[200][201][202][203]

The opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) supports same-sex marriage.[204] In December 2018, the party announced it would introduce a bill in 2019 to amend the Civil Code to legalise same-sex marriage.[205] On 3 June 2019, the bill was submitted by the CDP, the Japanese Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party. It seeks to adopt gender-neutral language with the terms "party of marriage" being used instead of "husband" and "wife", while "father and mother" would be replaced by "parents".[206][207][208] In June 2019, the CDP added the legalisation of same-sex marriage and ending discrimination against the LGBT community to their party platform ahead of the 2019 Japanese House of Councillors election.[209]

Individual lawmakers from the Liberal Democratic Party (including the former Minister of Agriculture, Ken Saitō), the Democratic Party for the People (including party leader Yuichiro Tamaki), Nippon Ishin no Kai and Komeito have also expressed their personal support for same-sex marriage.[210] Both councillors from Reiwa Shinsengumi, Eiko Kimura and Yasuhiko Funago, also support same-sex marriage.[211]

In September 2020, the Nagaokakyō City Assembly adopted a motion urging the National Diet to discuss the legalization of same-sex marriage.[212]

Supporters of same-sex marriage hope the introduction of the partnership oath system in numerous municipalities will encourage parliamentarians to legalise same-sex marriage. The LGBT organisation Marriage for All Japan has also organised signature gatherings and meetings with lawmakers from across the political spectrum.[213] The organisation notes in particular that the COVID-19 pandemic has made same-sex couples more "vulnerable" and "anxious", as they cannot visit each other in hospitals nor are they entitled to any legal recognition if one of the partners were to die.[214]

In November 2018, several same-sex couples throughout the country announced their intention to file suit against the country's same-sex marriage ban.[215] In January 2019, about a dozen same-sex couples applied for marriage certificates at different city offices in Japan.[216] Lawsuits contesting the same-sex marriage ban were filed on 14 February in district courts in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Sapporo.[217] Another suit was filed in Fukuoka in September 2019.

The Sapporo District Court heard final oral arguments in its case on 28 October 2020. The plaintiffs argue that the same-sex marriage ban contained in the Civil Code contravenes the Constitution of Japan, and that same-sex couples in Japan face numerous discrepancies and disadvantages whilst their ability to marry is denied.[218] A judgement is expected on 17 March 2021.[219]

A first hearing in the Tokyo District Court took place on 26 April 2019, followed by further oral arguments on 8 July, 16 October 2019, 3 February and 2 December 2020. The plaintiffs, Chizuka Oe and Yoko Ogawa, a couple for 25 years, argue that banning same-sex marriage violates articles 13 and 14 of the Constitution,[220] which guarantee fundamental rights and freedoms to the Japanese people, forbid the state from abusing any of these rights and freedoms, and states that "the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness shall, to the extent that it does not interfere with the public welfare, be the supreme consideration in legislation and in other governmental affairs". They also contend that article 24 does not limit marriage to opposite-sex couples, noting that it was meant to establish the equality of women in marriage and that the intent behind the article was not to ban same-sex marriage. The defendants argue that article 24 does not "envisage" same-sex marriage, maintaining that its wording can only apply to a man and a woman.[221]

Proceedings have also begun in the districts courts of Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka, though no judgements are expected yet.

In Japan, each citizen is registered through the koseki system whereby an individual is registered as a part of a household (while in the West, a birth certificate can act as a proof of identity). Koseki registration performs a somewhat similar role to marriage in the West as it endows a member of the same koseki legal power (as next of kin) in dealing with civil matters such as inheritance, hospital visits or the right to organise a funeral. Therefore, registering each other as a part of the koseki works as a substitute for Western-style marriage. As a consequence, Japanese gay couples, in the absence of same-sex marriage or civil partnership laws, often use adoption procedures to register themselves as belonging to the same household (where the older partner legally adopts the younger partner, which in absence of a spouse makes the only adopted child the sole executor of that household).