Japan Spouse Visa

Last verified June 14, 2026 against official ISA/MOFA sources

Japan spouse visa:
Vietnam

Country-specific steps

Country guides cover the parts that depend on your nationality: the documents, legalisations, and consular steps. For some countries this work begins before the COE. For the overall process and the COE itself, start with the main guide.

Processing time at the consulate

The Japanese visa takes about 5 to 6 business days after the COE. Allow extra time for Vietnam's consular legalisation chain and translations, and prepare relationship evidence the COE stage looks at closely.

Main mission

Marriage and single-status documents: the Embassy of Vietnam in Tokyo or a Consulate-General in Japan. The visa: a Japanese mission in Vietnam (Hanoi, Da Nang, or Ho Chi Minh City) for the region where you live.

Where to apply

Apply at the mission with jurisdiction over your residential address — official embassy site .

General documents

  • Valid passport (original).
  • Completed and signed Japan Visa Application Form (fill every field; write "N/A" where it does not apply).
  • One recent passport photo to the mission's specification.
  • Certificate of Eligibility (COE): original or printed copy.

Vietnam-specific documents

  • Certificate of legal capacity to marry from the Vietnamese Embassy or a Consulate-General in Japan, used to marry in Japan. It rests on a single-status certificate (Giấy xác nhận tình trạng hôn nhân) from your commune or ward People's Committee in Vietnam, valid for six months.
  • Some city offices accept a birth certificate plus the single-status certificate and your passport, each with a Japanese translation, in place of the formal certificate. Requirements vary by municipality, so confirm with your city office first.
  • To marry in Vietnam, the Japanese partner's certificate of legal capacity to marry from the Embassy of Japan in Vietnam (koseki issued within three months), plus the medical certificate of mental capacity that Vietnam requires of a foreign spouse, issued within six months.
  • After marrying in Vietnam, the Vietnamese marriage certificate (Giấy chứng nhận kết hôn) with a Japanese translation, to report the marriage to a Japanese authority within three months.
  • Pre-entry tuberculosis screening (J-PETS): nationals of Vietnam applying for a status over three months, including the spouse visa, must submit a tuberculosis-clearance certificate at the Certificate of Eligibility stage. It has been mandatory for Vietnam since September 1, 2025, is done at a designated panel clinic, and is valid 180 days from the chest X-ray.

Document authentication

  • Vietnam has joined the Hague Apostille Convention, but it does not take effect for Vietnam until September 11, 2026. Until then, Vietnamese public documents used abroad go through consular legalisation rather than an apostille.
  • The spouse visa and the COE need only a Japanese translation of any Vietnamese document. No apostille or legalisation is required for the visa itself.
  • Consular legalisation matters when you register the marriage in Vietnam: documents pass through the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and, for Japanese documents, the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan.

Submitting your application

  • Order the single-status certificate from your People's Committee in Vietnam early, then the certificate of legal capacity to marry from the Vietnamese mission in Japan.
  • Register the marriage: at the Japanese city office to marry in Japan, or at the Vietnamese People's Committee to marry in Vietnam (with the medical certificate). A marriage registered in Vietnam must be reported to a Japanese authority within three months so it reaches the koseki.
  • Apply for the COE in Japan once the marriage is on the koseki.
  • Apply for the visa at the Japanese mission for your region of Vietnam. Most visa applications in Vietnam go through a designated agency, but the embassy's guidance indicates the spouse of a Japanese national may apply directly at the mission. Confirm the current procedure for your area. The visa usually issues in about five to six business days.

Expert tips

  • The single-status certificate is valid six months. Line up the later steps so it does not expire before the marriage is registered.
  • Keep your name in the same order everywhere. Vietnamese names run family name first, like Japanese, and the spelling and order must match across the passport, the marriage certificate, the COE, and the questionnaire.
  • Expect the COE stage to look closely at the relationship. The Immigration Services Agency publishes its questionnaire in Vietnamese and reviews photos together, messages, and call records for every applicant, so prepare that evidence well.
  • Do not wait for the Vietnamese paperwork before starting the COE. The koseki proves the marriage once the city office accepts it.
  • Check the jurisdiction. Since June 2024 the Da Nang consulate handles the central provinces, alongside Hanoi for the north and Ho Chi Minh City for the south.

Common mistakes

  • Assuming an apostille is available now. It is not in force for Vietnam until September 11, 2026, so today's Vietnamese documents still need consular legalisation.
  • Skipping a step in the consular-legalisation chain for the marriage registration in Vietnam.
  • Letting the six-month single-status certificate expire before the marriage is registered.
  • Name spelling or order that does not match between the passport and the marriage documents.
  • Marrying in Vietnam and forgetting to report the marriage to a Japanese authority within three months.

Translations: Vietnamese documents need a Japanese translation; you or your spouse may translate them, and no certification is required for the spouse visa or the COE. The visa and COE do not require an apostille or consular legalisation, only a translation. Consular legalisation applies to registering the marriage in Vietnam, where documents move through the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the relevant embassy.

Sources