2025-06-09

If a foreign national wishes to acquire Japanese citizenship, they must apply for naturalization and pass the examination. At that time, the examination also examines the “Japanese language ability” required to live as a Japanese citizen in the future. What level of “Japanese language proficiency” is required?

Application for naturalization and its requirements

Application for naturalization is an application to Legal Affairs Bureau by a foreign national who wishes to acquire Japanese nationality. The following six requirements must be met in order for an application for naturalization to be approved.

The first is an “address requirement,” which states that the applicant must have a continuous domicile in Japan by the time of application. However, even if the applicant has an address in Japan, this condition may not apply if the applicant has lived abroad for a long period of time during the five years prior to the application.

The second is the “ability requirement” that the applicant be at least 18 years old. At the same time, they must also have reached the age of majority under the laws of their home country.

The third is the “background condition” that the applicant has not been delinquent in paying taxes, has not been criminally convicted, has not committed any serious traffic violations, etc.

Fourth, the applicant must be able to live on the assets and skills of the applicant or his/her spouse or other relatives with whom the applicant shares a common livelihood. It is advantageous if the applicant or relatives have assets and the skills and qualifications to earn a living.

Fifth is the “condition to prevent dual nationality,” which states that the applicant himself/herself has no nationality or agrees to lose his/her current nationality by acquiring Japanese nationality.

The sixth is the “Constitutional Compliance Condition,” which states that the applicant has never plotted or advocated the destruction of the Constitution of Japan or the government established under the Constitution by violence, or formed or joined a political party or other organization for such purposes.

When is Japanese language proficiency determined?

In addition to the six requirements explained earlier, there is another important aspect of living as a Japanese citizen in the future. That is, do you have the ability to use Japanese in your daily life without any difficulty?

When is this Japanese language ability determined? It is determined in the following situations.

First, at the Legal Affairs Bureau. If you wish to apply for naturalization, you must first go to the Legal Affairs Bureau for consultation. At this time, your Japanese language ability will be checked by the person in charge.

Next, there is the “Statement of Motive. When applying for naturalization, the applicant must write and submit a statement of motive for applying for naturalization. This “Statement of Motive” is to be handwritten by the applicant, so it will be clear whether the applicant’s Japanese language ability is high or low.

In addition, the person in charge of the application will check your documents and ask you some questions, so his/her Japanese language ability will also be checked at this time. In addition, you must read the “written oath” in front of the person in charge at the time of application. At this time, too, you will be checked to see if you can read Japanese properly.

After your application is accepted, you will be called by the Legal Affairs Bureau and an interview will be conducted. At this time, you will take a Japanese language test.

What level of Japanese language proficiency is required?

What level of Japanese language proficiency is required for a foreign national to apply for naturalization?

Generally, it is said that the level of Japanese language proficiency is about that of a 3rd grade elementary school student. In addition, the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) requires a level of “N3”. This “N3” is defined as “being able to understand Japanese used in everyday situations to some extent.

Foreign nationals who are considering applying for naturalization should take the Japanese Language Proficiency Test to check their Japanese language ability before applying. Foreign nationals who have graduated from a Japanese four-year university are basically exempted from taking the JLPT.

Summary

Foreign nationals need to have a Japanese language proficiency equivalent to a third grade Japanese in order to become naturalized. If you are considering naturalization in the future, why not take the Japanese Language Proficiency Test to test your own Japanese language ability?