Alien registration and immigration

Changing statuses during and after the Occupation of Japan

By William Wetherall

First posted 1 January 2007
Last updated 11 September 2014

American anti-subversion laws 1940 US Alien Registration Act
Alien registration laws 1946 Chosenese, Chinese, Taiwanese, Nansei Islander registration order • 1946 Osaka Chosenese registration ordinance • 1947 Alien Registration Order • 1952 Alien Registration Law • 1955 Fingerprinting Regulations • 1988-2000 Fingerprinting abolishment
Immigration control laws 1949 Order Concerning Control of Immigration • 1951 Illegal Entrant Deportation Order • 1951 Immigration Control Order : Article 24 Deportation • 1952 Civil Affairs A No. 438 notification • 2007 Anti-terrorist measures
Treaty status laws 1952 Potsdam Declaration Law • 1966 Special law to implement Japan-ROK status agreement • 1982 Special measure permanent residence law • 1991 Special measure law concerning persons who separated from [Japanese] nationality

American anti-subversion laws

In the course of its history as a state, which is one of aggressive expansion from the late 18th through the early 20th centuries, the United States moved from being fairly receptive to migrants to being extremely xenophobic.

America's xenophobia legally climaxed during World War II, three decades after completing its sea-to-shining-sea empire. Much of this this xenophobia was directed at Japan, which had to respond to American demands to control Japanese emigration to America, and to discourage dual nationality among the US-born offspring of Japanese immigrants.

By the late 1930s, America's xenophobia had become laced with fear that the United States had become seriously infiltrated by agents from Nazi and communist states, and from potential enemy countries like Japan. And in 1940, this fear of alien subversives culminated in the Alien Registration Act, the first-stated purpose of which was "To prohibit certain subversive activities".

The 1940 act required that all aliens register, and that aliens 14-years old and older be fingerprinted to facilitate the identification of those who had violated anti-subversive, immigration, and other laws.

Influence on Japan

Japanese law enforcement agencies had been fingerprinting some people, to deal with criminal acts, which included certain subversive activities and even thoughts, long before 1940. And universal registration of all Japanese nationals went started in 1872. But not until after its surrender in 1945, while an occupied country under the direction of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP), did Japan enact laws requiring the registration and fingerprinting of aliens -- 14 years old and over.

It would be wrong to blame Japan's postwar alien control laws on the United States, which dominated Japan's legal reconstruction after World War II. Yet America's obsession with alien control and its fear of communism, epitomized by the Alien Registration Act of 1940, clearly inspired the various experiments, under SCAP direction, which resulted in the enactment of both the Immigration Control Order, and the Alien Registration Law with a provision for fingerprinting, before SCAP's authority ended on 28 April 1952.

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Alien Registration Act (United States)

29 June 1940

Enacted by Congress on 28 June 1940.

Passed into law when signed by President Roosevelt on 29 June 1940.

Also known as the Smith Act, after its principal proponent, Howard W. Smith (1883-1976), a conservative Democratic U.S. Congressman from Virginia, who authored the antisedition section of the law.

The US Alien Registration Act of 1940 allowed the US Immigration and Naturalization Service to collect information on resident aliens for the purpose of controlling their activities in the US. Non-citizen, non-national immigrants were required to complete a two-page form available at most post offices. Aliens under 14-years of age were not fingerprinted.

Post offices sent completed forms to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. INS processed the forms and returned to each alien a perforated part of the form, called an Alien Registration Receipt Card, which the alien was required to carry at all times.

In 1933, the Bureau of Immigration and the Bureau of Naturalization, in the Department of Labor, were merged into the Immigration and Naturalization Service (Executive Order 6166 of 10 June 1933). On 22 May 1940, in the wake of Germany's invasion of France, President Roosevelt recommended to Congress that it quickly accept his reorganization plan to move INS to the Department of Justice.

Roosevelt argued that "the startling sequence of international events which has occurred . . . necessitated a review of the measures required for the nation's safety" -- which in turn "revealed a pressing need for the transfer of the immigration and naturalization functions from the Department." He went on to argue:

While it is designed to afford more effective control over aliens, this proposal does not reflect any intention to deprive them of their civil liberties or otherwise to impair their legal status. This reorganization will enable the Government to deal quickly with those aliens who conduct themselves in a manner that conflicts with the public interest.

Roosevelt, when signing the bill into law on 29 June 1940, remarked that "It would be unfortunate if, in the course of the regulative program, any loyal alien was subjected to harassment." By February and March 1942, he was issuing executive orders that authorized the relocation of enemy aliens and others from "military areas" prescribed by the Secretary of War or designated military commanders.

The Alien Registration Act allowed the FBI to identify Germans, Italians, and Japanese as enemy aliens. Naturalization records facilitated the identification of Americans who had once been Germans or Italians. Most Japanese immigrants were "ineligible to citizenship" on account of their putative race.

An Act Respecting Alien Enemies, also known as the Alien Enemies Act, approved 6 July 1798, provided that, in the event of a declared war or other act of war by a foreign nation or government, "all natives, citizens, denizens, or subjects of the hostile nation or government, being males of the age of fourteen years and upwards, who shall be within the United States, and not actually naturalized, shall be liable to be apprehended, restrained, secured and removed, as alien enemies."

However, Executive Orders 9066 (19 February 1942) and 9102 (18 March 1942) did not limit the evacuation of designated "persons or classes of persons" from military areas to enemy aliens. All Americans of putative Japanese ancestry, residing on the West Coast, were moved to "relocation centers" along with immigrant parents and perhaps an immigrant spouse. Some German and Italian Americans were also interned in such camps.

The Alien Enemies Act of 1798, and the Alien Registration Act of 1940, are still on the books.

An Act Concerning Aliens, otherwise known as the Aliens Act, approved 25 June 1798, authorized the deportation of aliens the President considered "dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States". This law remained in force for only two years.

Alien Registration Act of 1940

U.S. Statutes at Large (76th Cong., 3rd Sess., 670-676)

AN ACT

To prohibit certain subversive activities; to amend certain provisions of law with respect to the admission and deportation of aliens; to require the fingerprinting and registration of aliens; and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

TITLE I

Section 1. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person, with intent to interfere with, impair, or influence the loyalty, morale, or discipline of the military or naval forces of the United States:

(1) to advise, counsel, urge, or in any manner cause insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty by any member of the military or naval forces of the United States; or

(2) to distribute any written or printed matter which advises, counsels, or urges insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty by any member of the military or naval forces of the United States.

(b) For the purposes of this section, the term "military or naval forces of the United States" includes the Army of the United States, as defined in section 1 of the National Defense Act of June 3, 1916, as amended (48 Stat. 153; U.S.C., title 10, sec. 2), the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Naval Reserve, and Marine Corps Reserve of the United States; and, when any merchant vessel is commissioned in the Navy or is in the service of the Army or the Navy, includes the master, officers, and crew of such vessel.

Sec. 2. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person:

(1) to knowingly or willfully advocate, abet, advise, or teach the duty, necessity, desirability, or propriety of overthrowing or destroying any government in the United States by force or violence, or by the assassination of any officer of any such government;

(2) with the intent to cause the overthrow or destruction of any government in the United States, to print, publish, edit, issue, circulate, sell, distribute, or publicly display any written or printed matter advocating, advising, or teaching the duty, necessity, desirability, or propriety of overthrowing or destroying any government in the United States by force or violence.

(3) to organize or help to organize any society, group, or assembly of persons who teach, advocate, or encourage the overthrow or destruction of any government in the United States by force or violence; or to be or become a member of, or affiliate with, any such society, group, or assembly of persons, knowing the purposes thereof.

(b) For the purposes of this section, the term "government in the United States" means the Government of the United States, the government of any State, Territory, or possession of the United States, the government of the District of Columbia, or the government of any political subdivision of any of them.

Sec. 3. It shall be unlawful for any person to attempt to commit, or to conspire to commit, any of the acts prohibited by the provisions of this title.

Sec. 4. Any written or printed matter of the character described in section 1 or section 2 of this Act, which is intended for use in violation of this Act, may be taken from any house or other place in which it may be found, or from any person in whose possession it may be, under a search warrant issued pursuant to the provisions of title XI of the Act entitled "An Act to punish acts of interference with the foreign relations, the neutrality and the foreign commerce of the United States, to punish espionage, and better to enforce the criminal laws of the United States, and for other purposes", approved June 15, 1917 (40 Stat. 228; U.S.C., title 18, ch. 18).

Sec. 5. (a) Any person who violates any of the provisions of this title shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than ten years, or both. (b) No person convicted of violating any of the provisions of this title shall, during the five years next following his conviction, be eligible for employment by the United States, or by any department or agency thereof (including any corporation the Stock of which is wholly owned by the United States).

TITLE II

Sec. 20. Section 19 of the Immigration Act of February 5, 1917 (39 Stat. 889; U.S.C., title 8, sec. 155), as amended, is amended by inserting, after "Sec. 19.", the letter "(a)", and by adding at the end of such section the following new subsections:

"(b) Any alien of any of the classes specified in this subsection, in addition to aliens who are deportable under other provisions of law, shall, upon warrant of the Attorney General, be taken into custody and deported:

"(1) Any alien who, at any time within five years after entry, shall have, knowingly and for gain, encouraged, induced, assisted, abetted, or aided any other alien to enter or to try to enter the United States in violation of law.

"(2) Any alien who, at any time after entry, shall have on more than one occasion, knowingly and for gain, encouraged, induced, assisted, abetted, or aided any other alien or aliens to enter or to try to enter the United States in violation of law.

"(3) Any alien who, at any time after entry, shall have been convicted of possessing or carrying in violation of any law any weapon which shoots or is designed to shoot automatically or semi-automatically more than one shot without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger, or a weapon commonly called a sawed-off shotgun.

"(4) Any alien who, at any time within five years after entry, shall have been convicted of violating the provisions of title I of the Alien Registration Act, 1940.

"(5) Any alien who, at any time after entry, shall have been convicted more than once of violating the provisions of title I of the Alien Registration Act, 1940.

"No alien who is deportable under the provisions of paragraph (3), (4), or (5) of this subsection shall be deported until the termination of his imprisonment or the entry of an order releasing him on probation or parole.

"(c) In the same of any alien (other than one to whom subsection (d) is applicable) who is deportable under any law of the United States and who has proved good moral character for the preceding five years, the Attorney General may (1) permit such alien to depart the United States to any country of his choice at his own expense, in lieu of deportation, or (2) suspend deportation of such alien if not racially inadmissible or ineligible to naturalization in the United States if he finds that such deportation would result in serious economic detriment to a citizen or legally resident alien who is the spouse, parent, or minor child of such deportable alien. If the deportation of any alien is suspended under the provisions of this subsection for more than six months, all of the facts and pertinent provisions of law in the case shall be reported to the Congress within ten days after the beginning of its next regular session, with the reasons for such suspension. The Clerk of the House shall have such report printed as a public document. If during that session the two Houses pass a concurrent resolution stating in substance that the Congress does not favor the suspension of such deportation, the Attorney General shall thereupon deport such alien in the manner provided by law. If during the session the two Houses do not pass such a resolution, the Attorney General shall cancel deportation proceedings upon the termination of such session, except that such proceedings shall not be canceled in the case of any alien who was not legally admitted for permanent residence at the time of his last entry into the United States, unless such alien pays to the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization a fee of $18 (which fee shall be deposited in the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts). Upon the cancelation of such proceedings in any case in which such fee has been paid, the Commissioner shall record the alien's admission for permanent residence as of the date of his last entry into the United States and the Secretary of State shall, if the alien was a quota immigrant at the time of entry and was not charged to the appropriate quota, reduce by one the immigration quota of the country of the alien's nationality as defined in section 12 of the Act of May 26, 1924 (U. S. C., title 8, sec. 212), for the fiscal year then current or next following.

"(d) The provisions of subsection (c) shall not be applicable in the case of any alien who is deportable under (1) the Act of October 16, 1918 (40 Stat. 1008; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 137), entitled 'An Act to exclude and expel from the United States aliens who are members of the anarchist and similar classes', as amended; (2) the Act of May 26, 1922, entitled 'An Act to amend the Act entitled "An Act to prohibit the importation and use of opium for other than medicinal purposes", approved February 9, 1909, as amended' (42 Stat. 596; U. S. C., title 21, sec. 175); (3) the Act of February 18, 1931, entitled 'An Act to provide for the deportation of aliens convicted and sentenced for violation of any law regulating traffic in narcotics', as amended (46 Stat. 1171; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 156a); (4) any of the provisions of so much of subsection (a) of this section as relates to criminals, prostitutes, procurers, or other immoral persons, the mentally and physically deficient, anarchists, and similar classes; or (5) subsection (b) of this section."

Sec. 21. The Act entitled "An Act to provide for the deportation of aliens convicted and sentenced for violation of any law regulating traffic in narcotics", approved February 18, 1931, is amended:

(1) By striking out the words "and sentenced";

(2) By inserting after the words "any statute of the United States" the following: "or of any State, Territory, possession, or of the District of Columbia,"; and

(3) By inserting after the word "heroin" a comma and the word "marihuana".

Sec. 22. No alien shall be deportable by reason of the amendments made by section 20 or 21 on account of any act committed prior to the date of enactment of this Act.

Sec. 23. (a) The first paragraph of section 1 of the Act entitled "An Act to exclude and expel from the United States aliens who are members of the anarchistic and similar classes", approved October 16, 1918, as amended, is amended to read as follows:

"That any alien who, at any time, shall be or shall have been a member of any one of the following classes shall be excluded from admission into the United States:".

(b) Section 2 of such Act of October 16, 1918, as amended, is amended to read as follows:

"Sec. 2. Any alien who was at the time of entering the United States, or has been at any time thereafter, a member of any one of the classes of aliens enumerated in section 1 of this Act, shall, upon the warrant of the Attorney General, be taken into custody and deported in the manner provided in the Immigration Act of February 5, 1917. The provisions of this section shall be applicable to the classes of aliens mentioned in this Act, irrespective of the time of their entry into the United States."

TITLE III

Sec. 30. No visa shall hereafter be issued to any alien seeking to enter the United States unless said alien has been registered and fingerprinted in duplicate. One copy of the registration and fingerprint record shall be retained by the consul. The second copy shall be attached to the alien's visa and shall be taken up by the examining immigrant inspector at the port of arrival of the alien in the United States and forwarded to the Department of Justice, at Washington, District of Columbia.

Any alien seeking to enter the United States who does not present a visa (except in emergency cases defined by the Secretary of State), a reentry permit, or a border-crossing identification card shall be excluded from admission to the United States.

Sec. 31. (a) It shall be the duty of every alien now or hereafter in the United States, who (1) is fourteen years of age or older, (2) has not been registered and fingerprinted under section 30, and (3) remains in the United States for thirty days or longer, to apply for registration and to be fingerprinted before the expiration of such thirty days.

(b) It shall be the duty of every parent or legal guardian of any alien now or hereafter in the United States, who (1) is less than fourteen years of age, (2) has not been registered under section 30, and (3) remains in the United States for thirty days or longer, to apply for the registration of such alien before the expiration of such thirty days. Whenever any alien attains his fourteenth birthday in the United States he shall, within thirty days thereafter, apply in person for registration and to be fingerprinted.

Sec. 32. Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 30 and 31? (a) The application for the registration and fingerprinting, or for the registration, of any alien who is in the United States on the effective date of such sections may be made at any time within four months after such date.

(b) No foreign government official, or member of his family, shall be required to be registered or fingerprinted under this title.

(c) The Commissioner is authorized to prescribe, with the approval of the Attorney General, special regulations for the registration and fingerprinting of (1) alien seamen, (2) holders of border-crossing identification cards, (3) aliens confined in institutions within the United States, (4) aliens under order or deportation, and (5) aliens of any other class not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence.

Sec. 33. (a) All applications for registration and fingerprinting under section 31 shall be made at post offices or such other places as may be designated by the Commissioner.

(b) It shall be the duty of every postmaster, with such assistance as shall be provided by the Commissioner, to register and fingerprint any applicant for registration and fingerprinting under such section, and for such purposes to designate appropriate space in the local post office for such registration and fingerprinting. Every postmaster shall forward promptly to the Department of Justice, at Washington, District of Columbia, the registration and fingerprint record of every alien registered and fingerprinted by him. The Commissioner may designate such other places for registration and fingerprinting as may be necessary for carrying out the provisions of this Act, and provide for registration and fingerprinting of aliens at such places by officers or employees of the Immigration and Naturalization Service designated by the Commissioner. The duties imposed upon any postmaster under this Act shall also be performed by any employees at the post office of such postmaster who are designated by the postmaster for such purpose.

Sec. 34. (a) The Commissioner is authorized and directed to prepare forms for the registration and fingerprinting of aliens under this title. Such forms shall contain inquiries with respect to (1) the date and place of entry of the alien into the United States; (2) activities in which he has been and intends to be engaged; (3) the length of time he expects to remain in the United States; (4) the criminal record, if any, of such alien; and (5) such additional matters as may be prescribed by the Commissioner, with the approval of the Attorney General.

(b) All registration and fingerprint records made under the provisions of this title shall be secret and confidential, and shall be made available only to such persons or agencies as may be designated by the Commissioner, with the approval of the Attorney General.

(c) Every person required to apply for the registration of himself or another under this title shall submit under oath the information required for such registration. Any person authorized to register aliens under this title shall be authorized to administer oaths for such purpose.

Sec. 35. Any alien required to be registered under this title who is a resident of the United States shall notify the Commissioner in writing of each change of residence and new address within five days from the date of such change. Any other alien required to be registered under this title shall notify the Commissioner in writing of his address at the expiration of each three months' period of residence in the United States. In the case of an alien for whom a parent or legal guardian is required to apply for registration, the notices required by this section shall be given by such parent or legal guardian.

Sec. 36. (a) Any alien required to apply for registration and to be fingerprinted who willfully fails to refuses to make such application or to be fingerprinted, and any parent or legal guardian required to apply for the registration of any alien who willfully fails or refuses to file application for the registration of such alien shall, upon conviction thereof be fined not to exceed $1,000 or be imprisoned not more than six months, or both.

(b) Any alien, or any parent or legal guardian of any alien, who fails to give written notice to the Commissioner of change of address as required by section 35 of this Act shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not to exceed $100, or be imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both.

(c) Any alien or any parent or legal guardian of any alien, who files an application for registration containing statements known by him to be false, or who procures or attempts to procure registration of himself or another person through fraud, shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not to exceed $1,000, or be imprisoned not more than six months, or both; and any alien so convicted within five years after entry into the United States shall, upon the warrant of the Attorney General, be taken into custody and be deported in the manner provided in sections 19 and 20 of the Immigration Act of February 5, 1917, as amended.

Sec. 37. (a) The Commissioner, with the approval of the Attorney General, is authorized and empowered to make the prescribe, and from time to time to change and amend, such rules and regulations not in conflict with this Act as he may deem necessary and proper in aid of the administration and enforcement of this title (including provisions for the identification of aliens registered under this title); except that all such rules and regulations, insofar as they relate to the performance of functions by consular officers or officers or employees in the Postal Service, shall be prescribed by the Secretary of State and the Postmaster General, respectively, upon recommendation of the Attorney General. The powers conferred upon the Attorney General by this Act and all other powers of the Attorney General relating to the administration of the Immigration and Naturalization Service may be exercised by the Attorney General through such officers of the Department of Justice, including officers of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, attorneys, special attorneys, and special assistants to the Attorney General, as he may designate specifically for such purposes.

(b) The Commissioner is authorized to make such expenditures, to employ such additional temporary and permanent employees, and to rent such quarters outside the District of Columbia as may be necessary for carrying out the provisions of this title.

Sec. 38. (a) For the purposes of this title:

(1) the term "United States", when used in a geographical sense, means the States, the Territories of Alaska and Hawaii, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands;

(2) the term "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization.

(b) The provisions of this title shall take effect upon the date of enactment of this Act; except that sections 30 and 31 shall take effect sixty days after the date of its enactment.

Sec. 39. The President is authorized to provide, by Executive order, for the registration and fingerprinting, in a manner as nearly similar to that provided in this title as he deems practicable, of aliens in the Panama Canal Zone.

TITLE IV

Sec. 40. If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of the Act, and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affected thereby.

Sec. 41. This Act may be cited as the "Alien Registration Act, 1940".

Approved, June 28, 1940.

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Alien registration laws

Alien registration, as a matter of residence registration, began in Japan during the Occupation that started in 1945 after World War II. However, the present system did not fully begin until the Occupation ended on 28 April 1952.

Alien registration is the counterpart, for aliens, of family registration and residence registration for Japanese. Family registration establishes, for Japanese, their principal local affiliation, hence nationality. Japanese also register as residents, hence affiliates, of the municipality where they reside.

Aliens are considered to be principally affiliated with their countries of nationality if not stateless. Aliens allowed to reside in Japan also register as residents, hence affiliates, of the municipality where they reside.

Some early forms of alien registration were carried out by police. Alien registration as a national practice, however, was first overseen by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which also over saw immigration. Both immigration control and alien registration were placed under the Ministry of Justice from 1 August 1952.

For an overview of alien registration laws, see Alien control laws in Japan: The regulation of entry, stay, and residence.

See below for details on selected provisions of the Alien Registration Law.

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Chosenese, Chinese, Taiwanese, Nansei Islander registration order

13 March 1946

Order for registration of Chosenese, Chinese [Republic of China nationals], This-island-people [Taiwanese] and persons possessing principal registers in Kagoshima prefecture south of thirty degrees north latitude (including Kuchinoshima) or Okinawa prefecture

Welfare, Interior, Justice Ministerial Order No. 1 of 13 March 1946

Promulgated on and enforced from 13 March 1946

1. This order was jointly issued by the Ministry of Welfare, the Ministry of Interior Affairs, and the Ministry of Justice, in conjunction with a SCAP instruction which separated areas like the Ryukyus (Nansei islands), Chōsen, Taiwan, and Karafuto from Japan de jure.

2. The order required people affiliated with the separated areas, who were residing in what was left of Japan as redefined by SCAP, to register as non-Japanese, pursuant to other SCAP instructions which called for the registration of such people who wished to be "repatriated".

3. The order was abolished by Law No. 126 of 1952. Promulgated on and enforced from 28 April 1952, the day the San Francisco Peace Treaty came into effect, this law concerned measures in various Ministry of Foreign Affairs related ordinances related to the Potsdam Declaration.

Summary of related SCAP instructions

On 1 November 1945, the General Headquarters of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (GHQ/SCAP) issued a memorandum to the Imperial Japanese Government concerning the "Repatriation of Non-Japanese from Japan" (SCAPIN-224). This SCAP instruction defined Koreans, Chinese, Formosans, and Ryukyuans in "Japan" as defined by the Instrument of Surrender as non-Japanese for purposes of repatriation.

On 29 January 1946, the General Headquarters of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (GHQ/SCAP) issued a memorandum to the Imperial Japanese Government concerning "Governmental and Administrative Separation of Certain Outlying Areas from Japan" (SCAPIN-677). This instruction, which more specifically defined "Japan" for purposes governing the country under the terms of the Potsdam Declaration, was very slightly amended by a 22 March 1946 directive.

On 17 February 1946, GHQ/SCAP issued a memorandum to the Imperial Japanese Government concerning the "Registration of Koreans, Chinese, Ryukyuans and Formosans" (SCAPIN-746). The stated purpose of registration was to facilitate the orderly repatriation of such persons under rules that entitled registrants to a government-subsidized "privilege of repatriation".

See "Japan" and "Japanese": How JCS and SCAP redefined the Empire of Japan for transcripts of all these SCAP instructions.

See 1952 Foreign Ministry Potsdam Declaration Law on this page for Japanese text and translations of crucial articles of this law.

Survey results

The purpose of the registration order of 1946 was limited to a survey of concerned persons as to whether they had a "desire to return" to their places of principal affiliation. The survey results were as follows (my translations and remarks, unknown source:; yes, the first column is strangely headed).

帰還希望者        登録人数    その内在留希望者
Persons          Number of             Persons   
desiring        registered    among registered
to return           people    desiring to stay

朝鮮人             647,006             132,946
["Koreans" in most Allied documents]

中華民国人          14,941              12,569
Chinese [Republic of China nationals]

本島人 (台湾人)     15,906               3,122
This-island-people (Taiwanese)
["Formosan-Chinese" in some documents]

1946 order to register "non-Japanese" in "Japan"
Chosenese, Chinese, Taiwanese, and Nansei Islanders who "wish to return"

Japanese text

The Japanese text is a slightly reformatted version of the text posted at 中野文庫法令集 (Nakano Bunko / "The Nakano Library"). Only the main body of the law is posted. The received copy reflects the original katakana orthography but uses later, simplified versions of characters.

English version

The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).

朝鮮人、中華民国人、本島人及本籍ヲ北緯三十度以南(口之島ヲ含ム)ノ鹿児島県又ハ沖縄県ニ有スル者登録令

Order for registration of Chosenese, Chinese [Republic of China nationals], This-island-people [Taiwanese], and persons who possess a principal register in Kagoshima prefecture south of 30 degrees north latitude (including Kuchinoshima) or Okinawa prefecture

昭和二十一年三月十三日
厚生、内務、司法省令第一号

13 March 1946
Welfare, Interior, and Justice Order No. 1

Terminology

Chinese reflects "Chūka Minkoku jin" (中華民国人) or "Republic of China people" -- meaning ROC nationals. By this time, ROC had occupied Taiwan and set up a military government under Governor-General Chen Yi. On 12 January 1946, Chen's government issued a decree which provided that all Taiwanese would be regarded as having recovered their Chinese nationality effective from 25 October 1945, the day that ROC received Japan's surrender in Taiwan. Regulations for nationality recovery for Taiwanese residing outside China would not be promulgated by ROC's Executive Yuan until 22 June 1946, after which it became possible for Taiwanese in Japan to obtain certificates of nationality from ROC officials in Japan. In any event, at the time of the 13 March 1946 registration order issued by the Welfare, Interior, and Justice ministries, practically all Chinese in SCAP-defined "Japan" were migrants from mainland provinces and had no connection with Taiwan.

This-island-people reflects "Hontōjin" (本島人), the usual term for Japanese nationals whose principal register was on Taiwan -- otherwise called "Taiwanjin" (台湾人) or "Taiwanese" in laws and official documents. Most Chinese on Taiwan elected to became Japanese affiliated with Taiwan in 1895 when Taiwan became part of Japan. Some of those who elected to remain Chinese later naturalized as Japanese.

第一条

朝鮮人、中華民国人、本島人及本籍ヲ北緯三十度以南(口之島ヲ含ム)ノ鹿児島県又ハ沖縄県ニ有スル者ノ帰還希望ノ有無ヲ調査スル為登録ヲ実施ス

Article 1

[Authorities] shall implement registration in order to survey the presence of a desire to return of Chosenese, Chinese [Republic of China nationals], This-island-people [Taiwanese] and persons possessing a principal register in Kagoshima prefecture south of thirty degrees of north latitude or Okinawa prefecture.

第二条

登録ハ昭和二十一年三月十八日午前零時ノ現在ニ依リ同時期ニ於テ内地(特別ノ事情アル地域ニシテ厚生大臣ノ指定スルモノヲ除ク以下同ジ)ニ現在スル者ニ付之ヲ行フ

2　前項ノ時期前ニ内地ノ港湾ヲ発シ途中寄港セズシテ同項ノ時期後二日以内ニ始メテ内地ノ港湾ニ入リタル者ハ同項ノ時期ニ内地ニ現在シタル者ト看做ス

Article 2

As for the registration, [authorities] shall carry it out on persons who are at present in the Interior (except those stipulated those the Health and Welfare Minister designates in areas where there are special circumstances, herebelow the same) at the same time as of [the present of] zero hours AM of 18 March 1946.

2. Persons who before the time of the preceding paragraph embark from a harbor of the Interior and do not call at a port en route and within two days after the time of the same paragraph first enter a harbor of the Interior shall be viewed as persons who are presently in the Interior at the time of the same paragraph.

Areas excluded from registration survey

The areas referred to in Article 2, Paragraph 1 were designated by Ministry of Health and Welfare Directive No. 33 of 13 March 1946.

All of the areas in the directive are those excluded from SCAP's definition of "Japan" in SCAPIN-677 concerning the "Governmental and Administrative Separation of Certain Outlying Areas from Japan" (29 January 1946).

Note that where SCAPIN-677 specifies only "Liancourt Rocks (Take Island)", the ministerial directive designates precisely "Shimane prefecture -- Takeshima among the five villages within the jurisdiction of Oki branch office". This is the island group the Republic of Korea calls "Tokdo" (獨島), and occupies under protest of Shimane prefecture and the Japanese government.

SCAPIN-1033 -- a "Memorandum For Imperial Japanese Government" on the subject of "Area Authorized for Japanese Fishing and Whaling", issued on 22 June 1946 through GHQ/SCAP's Central Liaison Office in Tokyo -- rescinded provisions in FLTLOSCAP Serial No. 80 of 27 September 1945, SCAJAP Serial No.42 of 13 October 1945, and SCAJAP Serial No.587 of 3 November 1945 concerned with Japanese fishing areas, and redefined such areas. FLTLOSCAP was the US Pacific Fleet Liaison Officer, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. SCAJAP was the US Naval Shipping Control Authority for Japanese Merchant Marine.

Paragraph 3(b) of SCAPIN-1033 stated that "Japanese vessels or personnel thereof will not approach closer than twelve (12) miles to Takeshima (37°15' North Latitude, 131°53' East Longitude) nor have any contact with said island." This modification of a 27 September 1945 directive on fishing rights became known as the "MacArthur Line". This line, which placed Takeshima outside the Japanese fishing zone, was the basis for the "Rhee Line" declared on 18 January 1952 by the Republic of Korea.

The authority of the directive was qualified by the concluding paragraphs, Paragraph 4: "The present authorization does not established a precedent for any further extension of authorized fishing areas", and Paragraph 5: "The present authorization is not an expression of allied policy relative to ultimate determination of national jurisdiction, international boundaries or fishing rights in the area concerned or in any other area."

Areas excluded by Health and Welfare Ministry Directive No. 33 of 1946
Japanese text The following Japanese version of the directive originated from the text shown in the notes following the Nakano Bunko version of the joint ministerial order. I have modified the Nakano Bunko text, which shows the title and number but only the year of the directive, to reflect the full date, headings, kana usage, and punctuation of the directive included with the order as published in Jinkō mondai kenkyū (Vol. 5, Nos. 3, 4, 5, 6, June 1947, pages 76-77). English translation The English translation is mine.
厚生省告示第三十三號 (昭和二十一年三月十三日) Ministry of Health Directive No. 33 (13 March 1946)
樺太全域。北海道国後郡、色丹郡、紗那郡、択捉郡、蘂取郡、得撫郡、新知郡、占守郡、花咲郡歯舞村ノ内志発島、多楽島、水晶島、勇留島及秋勇留島東京都大島支庁管内全域、三宅支庁管内全域、八丈支庁管内全域、小笠原支庁管内全域島根県隠岐支庁管内五箇村ノ内竹島鹿児島県大島支庁管内(十島村ノ内竹島、黒島、硫黄島ヲ除ク) 沖縄県全域	Karafuto Entire area Hokkaido Kunashiri district, Shikotan district, Shana district, Etorofu district, Shibetoro district, Uruppu district, Shimushiro district, Shumushu district, and within Habomai village of Hanasaki district of Shibotsu island, Taraku island, Suishō island, Yuri island and Akiyuri island Tokyo Prefecture Entire area within jurisdiction of Oshima branch office, entire area within jurisdiction of Miyake branch office, entire area within jurisdiction of Hachijo branch office, and entire area within jurisdiction of Ogasawara branch office Shimane prefecture Takeshima among the five villages within the jurisdiction of Oki branch office Kagoshima prefecture [Areas] within the Ōshima branch office (except Takeshima, Kuroshima, and Iōjima within Toshima village) Okinawa prefecture Entire area

第三条

登録ハ左ノ各号ノ事項ニ付之ヲ行フ

一　氏名
二　年齢(数ヘ年)
三　男女ノ別
四　本籍地
五　住所
六　職業
七　帰還希望ノ有無
八　帰還ヲ希望スルトキハ其ノ目的地

Article 3

[Authorities] shall carry out registration in the matters of the items to the left [below].

(1) Name
(2) Age (calender years)
(3) Sex
(4) Locality of principal register
(5) Address
(6) Occupation
(7) Presence of desire to return
(8) When [if] [one] desires to return, destination

Terminology

calender years reflects "kazoedoshi" (数え年). This refers to the practice of reckoning age by counting the number of calendar years in which one has lived, beginning with the year one is born, rather than the number of birthdays after one's birth. Since the year in which one is born is the first calendar year of one's life, the first day of the next calendar year marks the beginning of the second year of one's life (somewhat like calling a newborn horse a "yearling"). A person born on the eve of a new year thus becomes one on the day they were born, and two the next day.

locality of principal register reflects "honseki" (本籍). This is one's legal affiliation with a polity -- which as Chōsen, Taiwan, the Republic of China, or a prefecture city, town, or village within a prefecture in the Interior.

第四条

　世帯主ハ其ノ世帯ニ現在スル第二条第一項ニ規定スル者ニ付第三条各号ノ事項ヲ別ニ定ムル申告票用紙ニ記入シ府県知事ノ定ムル期日迄ニ市町村長又ハ別ニ定ムル登録調査員ニ提出スルコトニ依リ申告スベシ

2　世帯ニ於テ世帯主不在ナルトキハ事実上之ヲ管理スル者又ハ登録調査員ノ指定シタル者ヲ以テ世帯主ト看做ス

3　第二条ノ時期ニ汽車、電車、其ノ他世帯ナキ場所ニ現在シタル者及聯合国軍ノ管理スル建物若ハ地域又ハ中華民国人以外ノ聯合国人ノ世帯ニ偶現在シタル者ハ同条ノ時期後始メテ到着シタル世帯ニ現在シタル者ト看做ス

4　本令ニ於テ世帯トハ住居及家計ヲ共ニスル者ヲ謂ヒ一人ニシテ住居ヲ有シ家計ヲ立ツル者亦一世帯トス家計ヲ共ニスルモ別ニ住居ヲ有スル者又ハ住居ヲ共ニスルモ別ニ家計ヲ立ツル者ハ別ノ世帯トス其ノ一人ナル場合亦同ジ

5　寄宿舎、病院、旅館、下宿屋、合宿所ノ場屋又ハ船舶ニ在ル者ニシテ其ノ家計ヲ共ニセザル場合ト雖モ一場屋又ハ一船舶毎ニ一世帯ニ準ズ

Article 4

第五条

市町村長ハ第四条第一項ノ規定ニ依リ提出セル申告票ヲ朝鮮人、中華民国人、本島人及本籍ヲ北緯三十度以南(口之島ヲ含ム)ノ鹿児島県又ハ沖縄県ニ有スル者ノ各別ニ編綴シ登録簿ヲ作成スベシ

Article 5

City, town, and village heads, shall create registers in which they have bound the declaration cards submitted in accordance with the provisions of Article 4, Paragraph 1 by each Chosenese, Chinese, This-island-people and person who possesses a principal register in Kagoshima prefecture south of 30 degrees of north latitude (including Kuchinoshima) or Okinawa prefecture.

第六条

市町村長ハ前条ノ登録簿ニ依リ府県知事ニ(府県支庁長ノ管轄区域内ノ町村長ハ府県支庁長ヲ経テ)其ノ定ムル期日迄ニ左ノ事項ヲ報告スベシ

一　朝鮮人、中華民国人、本島人及本籍ヲ北緯三十度以南(口之島ヲ含ム)ノ鹿児島県又ハ沖縄県ニ有スル者各別総数

二　朝鮮人、中華民国人、本島人及本籍ヲ北緯三十度以南(口之島ヲ含ム)ノ鹿児島県又ハ沖縄県ニ有スル者各別帰還希望者数(朝鮮人帰還希望者ニ付テハ帰還目的地ノ北緯三十八度線ニ依ル南北朝鮮別及其ノ道別、中華民国人帰還希望者ニ付テハ帰還目的地ノ華北、華中、華南別、本籍ヲ北緯三十度以南(口之島ヲ含ム)ノ鹿児島県又ハ沖縄県ニ有スル者ニ付テハ帰還目的地ノ各島別)

2　府県知事前項ノ報告ヲ受理シタルトキハ之ヲ速ニ取纏メ厚生大臣ニ報告スベシ

Article 6

第七条

天災事変其ノ他已ムヲ得ザル事由ニ因リ第二条第一項ノ規定ニ依リ難キ場合ニ於テハ府県知事ハ厚生大臣ノ定ムル所ニ依リ其ノ認可ヲ経テ区域ヲ限リ別段ノ定ヲ為スコトヲ得

Article 7

第八条

左ノ各号ノ一ニ該当スル者ハ六月以下ノ懲役若ハ禁錮又ハ千円以下ノ罰金ニ処ス

一　第四条ノ規定ニ違反シ申告ヲ為サズ又ハ虚偽ノ申告ヲ為シタル者

二　第四条ノ規定ニ依ル申告ヲ妨ゲタル者

三　登録調査員ノ事務執行ヲ妨ゲタル者

Article 8

As for a person who falls under one of the items to the left [below], [authorities] shall impose on [deal] them an imprisonment or a confinement of six months or less, or a fine of 8,000 yen or less.

A person who effects a declaration in violation of the provisions of Article 4, or who effects a false declaration

A person who impedes a declaration in accordance with the provisions of Article 4

A person who impedes the execution of work [business, tasks] of registration survey personnel

第九条

本令中市町村又ハ市町村長若ハ町村長ニ関スル規定ハ東京都ノ区ノ存スル地域並ニ市制第六条及市制第八十二条第三項ノ市ニ在リテハ区又ハ区長ニ、府県支庁長ニ関スル規定ハ市制第六条及市制第八十二条第三項ノ市ニ在リテハ市長ニ之ヲ適用シ府県トアルハ東京都及北海道ヲ、府県知事トアルハ東京都長官及北海道庁長官ヲ、府県支庁長トアルハ東京都支庁長及北海道庁支庁長ヲ、市町村トアリ又ハ市町村長若ハ町村長トアルハ各々之ニ準ズベキモノヲ含ム

Article 9

附則

Supplementary provisions

本令ハ公布ノ日ヨリ之ヲ施行ス

This order shall be enforced from the day of its promulgation

Top

Osaka Chosenese registration ordinance

1 December 1946

Osaka prefectural ordinance No. 109 of 1946

Established 30 November 1946 and promulgated by an "extra edition" (号外) of the "Osaka prefecture gazette" (大阪府公報)

Enforced from 1 December 1946

大阪府朝鮮人登録條例
Ōsaka-fu Chōsenjin tōroku jōrei
Osaka prefecture Chosenese registration ordinance

This prefectural ordinance required both registration and fingerprinting of Chosenese in Osaka prefecture, where most Chosenese had settled. It is widely seen as a test run of the 1947 Alien Registration [Imperial] Ordinance, which did not require fingerprinting. The 1947 ordinance was the forerunner of the 1952 Alien Registration [Cabinet] Order, which did require fingerprinting -- though its fingerprinting provisions were not enforced until 1955.

Chosenese who complied with the ordinance received a "Chosenese registration certificate" (朝鮮人登録証). The card showed the bearer's name, occupation, principal register address (in Chōsen), and address (in Osaka), among other information.

A photograph was attached to the certificate, which also had two boxes for prints of the left and right index fingers.

Bilingual card

The certificate is bilingual. It's English name is "Korean Registration Certificate". Today this is the English name of the registration certificate the Republic of Korea issues to its own nationals as a form of photo identification and proof of nationality. ROK requires that all its nationals be fingerprinted as a matter of family registration -- except ROK nationals with treaty-accorded status of residence in Japan.

SCAP inspiration

The ordinance was inspired by a 5 November 1946 statement issued by GHQ/SCAP Records, Civil Information and Education Section concerning the repatriation of Koreans from Japan (朝鮮人の引揚に関する総司令部民間情報教育局発表), which prompted SCAP's Osaka Military Government Team to issue a directive concerning the deportation of Chosenese who had snuck into (or back into) the prefectures (密入国朝鮮人の送還指令).

The certificate very closely resembles contemporary US military and other occupation personnel ID cards.

Sources

Yun Ŭi Sŏn (尹義善 윤의선), researcher, "History Museum of J-Koreans" (在日韓人歴史資料館), Tokyo, website feature on Osaka Chosenese registration ordinance. The exhibit includes frontal scans of two Chosenese Registration Certificates. Each bears a photograph but no fingerprint. The backs are not shown.

A footnote in Takemae 2002 describes the ordinance as follows (page 450, note 111, pages 652-653).

The ARO [Alien Registration Ordinance of 1947] had been preceded by a 'Korean registration' statute enacted locally by the Osaka Municipal government in November 1946 with the consent of the Osaka Regional Military Government Team. The Osaka Korean Registration Ordinance required Koreans to give their fingerprints and carry an identification cad, but fierce resistance made the fingerprinting requirements unenforceable, and the registration itself could only be partially completed. See Yang Yŏng-hu, 'Ōsaka-fu Chōsenjin tōroku jōrei seitei: 1946 no tenmatsu ni tsuite' (The Establishment of Municipal Osaka's Korean Registration Ordinance: Concerning the Events of 1946), in Zainichi Chōsenjin-shi Kenkyū, no. 16, 1986, pp. 104-26.

Top

Alien Registration Order

2 May 1947

Promulgated by Imperial Ordinance No. 207 of 2 May 1947.

All but Article 15 came into force on the same day. Article 15 came into force the following day, when the 1947 Constitution came into force.

This law was promulgated by the last imperial ordinance to be issued under the 1890 Constitution of the Empire of Japan, and came into force, on the eve of 3 May 1947, when the new Constitution came into force and the "Imperial Diet" of the "Empire of Japan" became the simply the "Diet" of "Japan".

Importance of order

The 1947 Alien Registration Order is usually described only in terms of its title -- i.e., as an "alien registration" measure. However, it was actually also a border control order, tantamount to what would later be called an "immigration [exit-enter-country] control" law.

Importance as "immigration control" measure

Article 1 clearly states that the purpose of the order was "to appropriately enforce the measures concerning the entry of aliens [into this country], and to assure the propriety of the various treatments toward aliens" (my translation).

Article 3 forbid aliens to enter the country -- except as permitted by SCAP -- and except through SCAP designated harbors or airports.

All three punitive provisions, two of which authorize deportation, list first "persons who enter this country in violation of the provisions of Article 3" (Articles 12-14, not shown here).

Importance as "alienation" measure

The functions of Articles 2 and 11 are respectively to (1) exclude some actual aliens from treatment as "aliens" for the purpose of the order, and (2) include some actual Japanese as "aliens" for entry and registration purposes.

1. Article 2 defined "aliens" as persons, among those who do not possess Japanese nationality, except (1) Allied Forces personnel, (2) SCAP members and employees and their families, and (3) people in Japan on official business of a foreign government and accompanying staff and families.

2. Article 11 stipulated that Taiwanese as determined by the Minister of Interior, and Chosenese, would be regarded as "aliens" in the application of the ordinance.

Article 2 thus excludes some aliens from treatment as "aliens" formally regarded as persons who do not possess Japanese nationality. Article 11 deems that Chosenese and some Taiwanese -- though not aliens as defined by the main clause of Article 2 -- will nonetheless be treated as aliens for purposes of the order. Such "deeming" creates what is known in law as a "legal fiction" (see below).

In effect, the 1947 Alien Registration Order divides two categories of people defined by possession or not of Japanese nationality -- Japanese and aliens -- into four statuses.

1. Aliens treated as aliens (Article 2)
2. Aliens not treated as aliens (Article 2)
3. Non-aliens (Japanese) treated as aliens (Article 11)
4. Non-aliens (Japanese) treated as non-aliens (implied)

The 1947 Alien Registration Order followed by less than half a year the end of SCAP's formal repatriation program, which had defined Koreans, Formosans, Chinese, and Ryukyuans "non-Japanese" for purposes of the program. Chinese in were not Japanese to begin with. Ryukyuans were Japanese nationals.

Taiwanese and Chosenese had also been Japanese nationals. Taiwanese who remained in Japan became Chinese if they registered as such with ROC agents in Japan, otherwise they remained Taiwanese with Japanese nationality. Chosenese who did not leave Japan remained Chosenese with Japanese nationality, as there was as yet no Korean state, much less one that had been recognized by SCAP for purposes of nationality registration. And of course Ryukyuans in Japan remained Japanese.

But there was a slight problem. From the viewpoint of Japanese law and in SCAP's regard, even Taiwanese and Chosenese who had left for Taiwan (Formosa) and Chōsen (Korea) -- regardless of their nationality status there -- remained Japanese, since the separation of Taiwan and Chōsen from Japan's sovereign territory had not been finalized by treaties. Yet ROC would certainly be confirmed as Taiwan's successor state, and the state established in Korea would certainly be confirmed as it's successor state.

Taiwanese in Japan had generally welcomed status as Chinese, and Chosenese in Japan generally showed no interest in being Japanese. Demographically, the resident Chosenese population was maybe 100 times the size of the Taiwanese population, and more problematic because of the relative ease of sneaking into and out of Japan, for all manner of purposes, including possibly criminal and subversive activities. Whatever. The important thing was that they were not aliens -- while Allied Forces and SCAP personnel, and generally also their families if in Japan, were aliens, as were foreign government representatives that SCAP permitted to enter Japan.

So the 1947 Alien Registration Order did four things that were simple and sensible from SCAP's and the Japanese government's point of view -- and perfectly legal.

It explicitly defined "alien" in the normal manner -- as universally understood in international law -- as people who do not possess Japanese nationality (Article 2). As the order was about aliens, it did not have to define Japanese -- which are understood to be persons who possess Japanese nationality as a matter of legal status.
It explicitly excepted Occupation forces and personnel and foreign government officials -- though they were actually aliens -- from treatment as "alien" for the purpose of the order -- treating Occupation forces and personnel in a manner consistent with foreign government officials, since they too were essentially in Japan on official business of the Allied Powers (the United Nations which had vowed to defeat Japan).
It explicitly deemed Chosenese, and some Taiwanese -- though they were actually not aliens -- as "aliens" for the purpose of applying the order -- i.e., it alienated all Japanese nationals in Chōsen registers, and most Japanese nationals in Taiwan registers. Taiwanese in Japan who had been recognized as Chinese nationals were categorical aliens, but they would be excepted from alien treatment if they were Occupation personnel or government officials.
It implicitly did not alienate Japanese nationals in Interior registers not then under Japan's control and jurisdiction.

The sum of these explicit and implicit determinations was to draw a sharp line between Japanese whose nationality was tied to Interior territories and those whose nationality was tied to the former exterior territories of Taiwan and Korea -- "former" for purposes of control and jurisdiction, and "former" for the purposes of de facto sovereignty, but not yet "former" for the purposes of de jure sovereignty.

Moreover, the order regarded Taiwanese who had remained in Japan but been enrolled by ROC in its nationality as Chinese -- the nationality of the state recognized as having control and jurisdiction, and de facto sovereignty, over Taiwan. However, Chosenese who had remained in Japan continued to be affiliates of the former Japanese territory of Chōsen, which as yet had no state.

The 1947 Alien Register Order, essentially inspired by SCAP's alienation of Koreans and Formosans, and timed to come into force with the new Constitution, anticipated the separation of Chosenese and Taiwanese in 1952. The dotted line that represented semi-alienation in 1947 become the solid line that represented full alienation in 1952.

Revisions and abolishment

Law No. 195 of 17 December 1947
Law No. 239 of 26 December 1947
Cabinet Order No. 312 of 19 August 1949
Cabinet Order No. 381 of 3 December 1949
Cabinet Order No. 227 of 11 July 1950
Cabinet Order No. 295 of 30 September 1950
Cabinet Order No. 33 of 28 February 1951

Abolished by Alien Registration Law (Law No. 125 of 28 April 1952).

1947 Alien Registration Order
Provisional treatment of some Japanese as aliens

Japanese text

The Japanese text is a slightly reformatted version of parts selected from a Wikisource copy which retains the contemporary characters. The content of this copy, while apparently accurate, has not been confirmed.

Note on "Ministry of Interior" as competent agency Apparently the copy shown below is the original law, as promulgated over the imperial seal and signature of Emperor Hirohito and the signatures of Prime Minister of Cabinet Yoshida Shigeru and the Minister of Interior Uehara Etsujiro. Later editions, as cited in other sources, reflect the change in competent ministry from the Interior (Home Affairs) Ministry to the Foreign Ministry later that year when the Interior Ministry was disbanded. Apparently Law No. 195 of 17 December 1947, concerning adjustments of laws and orders concomitant with the establishment of the Attorney General's Office, stipulated that this office, to be replace the Ministry of Justice from 15 February 1948, would oversee the Alien Registration order. Apparently Law No. 239 of 26 December 1947, adjustments of laws and orders concomitant with the abolishment inter alia of the Interior Ministry system, stipulated that the Ministry of Justice would oversee the Alien Registration Order when the Interior Ministry was disbanded on 31 December 1947. In other words, in the shuffling and renaming these ministries, the Alien Registration Order passed through the Justice Ministry on its way from the Interior Ministry to the Attorney General's Office.

English version

The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).

昭和二十年勅令第五百四十二号ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件に基く外国人登録令

Alien Registration Order pursuant to Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945, Matters concerning orders issued in conjunction with acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration

朕は、昭和二十年勅令第五百四十二号ポツダム宣言の受託に伴い発する命令に関する件に基く外國人登錄令を裁可し、ここにこれを公布せしめる。

御名御璽 [裕仁]

昭和二十二年五月二日

內閣総理大臣　吉田茂
內務大臣　植原悦ニ郎

勅令第二百七号

I [the emperor] sanction the Alien Registration Order pursuant to Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945, Matters concerning orders issued in conjunction with acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration, and herein promulgate it.

Imperial seal [Hirohito]

Showa 22-5-2 [2 May 1947]
Prime Minister of the Cabinet Yoshida Shigeru
Minister of Interior Uehara Etsujiro

Imperial Ordinance No. 207

"pursuant to Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945"

During the Allied Occupation, ordinances and laws promulgated and enforced by the Japanese government as a result of direction from the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers under the terms of the Potsdam Declaration, which Japan formally accepted on 2 September 1945, were prefaced by reference to Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945.

This ordinance was abolished by Law No. 81 of 1952, which was timed to come into force with the San Francisco Peace Treaty on 28 April 1952. The 1945 ordinance and the 1952 law therefore bracket the period during which the government of Japan was formally subject to orders from SCAP.

Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945

Called "Matters concerning orders issued in conjunction with acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration" (ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件), this ordinance came into force from the day it was promulgated on 20 September 1945. The single line of its main body enabled the Japanese government to issue orders to make determinations and establish punishments as required to implement matters related to demands by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers associated with Japan's acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration.

Law No. 82 of 1952

Called "Law concerning the abolition of 'Matters concerning orders issued in conjunction with acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration'" (ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件の廃止に関する法律), this law was promulgated on 11 April 1952 and came into force with the San Francisco Peace Treaty on 28 April 1952. The law (1) abolished Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945, (2) stipulated that all orders issued under the 1945 ordinance would continue to have efficacy for no more than 180 days in the event no measures were taken to either abolish or continue them, and (3) declared that its effect did not extend to laws or orders that had already been abolished in accordance with the 1945 ordinance. The effect of (2) was to allow all ordinances pertaining only to the Occupation to automatically expire.

外國人登錄令

Alien Registration Order

第一條

この勅令は、外國人の入國に関する措置を適切に実施し、且つ、外國人に対する諸般の取扱の適正を期することを目的とする。

Article 1

The purpose of this imperial ordinance is to appropriately enforce the measures concerning the entry of aliens [into this country], and to assure the propriety of the various treatments toward aliens.

第二條

この勅令において外國人とは、日本の國籍を有しない[者]のうち、左の各号の一に該当する[者]以外の[者]をいう

一　連合國軍の將兵及び連合國軍に附属し又は随伴する[者]並びにこれらの[者]の家族

二　連合國最高司令官の任命又は承認した使[節]團の構成員及び使用人及びにこれらの[者]の家族

三　外國政府の公務を帶びて日本に駐在する[者]及びこれに随從する[者]並びにこれらの[者]の家族

Article 2

In this imperial ordinance, alien shall refer to, among persons who do not possess the nationality of Japan, a person who is other than a person who falls under one of the items to the left [below]

(1) Officers and men of the Allied Forces and persons affiliated with or accompanying the Allied Forces and the families of these persons

(2) Members and employees of missions which the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers has appointed or approved and and the families of these persons

(3) Persons who stay in Japan on official business of a foreign government and persons who attend these and the families of these persons

第三條

外國人は、当分の間、本邦（內務大臣の指定する地域を除く。以下これに同じ。）に入ることができない。

前項の規定は、連合國最高司令官の承認を受け（連合國最高司令官が経由すべき港湾又は飛行場を指定したときは、当該港湾又は飛行場を経由し）本邦に入る外國人については、これを適用しない。

Article 3

Aliens, for the present, shall not be able to enter this country (except regions designated by the Minister of Interior. Hereafter the same as this.).

The provision of the preceding paragraph, with respect to an alien who enters this country receiving the approval of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (when the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers has designated the harbor or airport through which [the alien is to enter], through the said harbor or airport), shall not apply.

"this country" and "alien" (1947 Alien Registration Order)

Article 1 of the Enforcement Regulations, promulgated and enforced together with the Alien Registration Order, excluded from "this country" (本邦 honpō) as stipulated in Article 3 of the Order, the territories cited in an appended list (Koshikawa 1949, Article 1 pages 329, appended table pages 333-334).

Appended list of excluded territories 1. Chōsen [Korea] 2. Taiwan [Formosa] 3. Kantōshō [Kwantung Province] 4. Karafuto [southern half of Sakhalin] 5. Nan'yo Guntō [South Sea Islands] 6. Within the jurisdiction of the Nemuro Branch office of the Hokkaido government [eight insular county entities listed] and among Habomai village of Hanasaki county [five islands listed] 7. [Islands] within the jurisdiction of the Ogasawara branch office of Tokyo prefecture 8. Takeshima within the five villages of [insular] Oki county of Shimane prefecture 9. [Islands] within the jurisdiction of the Ōshima branch office of Kagoshima prefecture (except Takeshima, Kuroshima, and Iōjima within Toshima village) 10. Okinawa prefecture

Russia has control and jurisdiction of the Hokkaido entities, several of which Japan claims are parts of what it calls its "Northern Territories". The Republic of Korea has control and jurisdiction of Takeshima, which Japan claims is part of its territory.

"this country" in other laws

The 1947 Alien Registration Order, in order to determine who was to be registered as an alien in Japan, had to define "this country" in a manner consistent with how "Japan" had been redefined by SCAP under the terms of surrender. Hence the list of entities to be excluded from what had been within Japan's legal control and jurisdiction before it surrendered.

The definitions of "this country" (Article 3) and of "alien" (Articles 2 and 11) in the 1947 Alien Registration Order were referred to by other orders.

The 1951 cabinet order concerning procedures to deport illegal entrants -- promulgated by Cabinet Order No. 33 of 28 February 1951, enforced in part from this date and in part from 1 April 1951 -- defined "this country" and "alien" according to Article 3 of the 1947 Alien Registration Order.

Nansei Islanders

The 1951 deportation procedure order, however, applied not only to "aliens" as persons who do not possess Japanese nationality, designated Taiwanese, and Chosenese, but also to persons with principal registers in the Nansei Islands south of 30 degrees north latitude -- called "Nansei Islanders" (南西諸島人 Nanseishotōjin) for short.

The "Nansei Islands" include some islands affiliated with Kagoshima prefecture as well as the islands of Okinawa prefecture. Hence "Nansei Islanders" referred to people with principal registers in Kagoshima Prefecture south of 30 (29) degrees north latitude (including Kuchinoshima) or in Okinawa prefecture.

Article 2 (Definitions) of the 1951 Immigration Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319) defined sixteen terms, beginning with "this country" and "alien" (see above).

Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers

SCAP, as the sovereign authority in Japan, was responsible for the security of "Japan" as redefined by the Allied Powers under the terms of surrender. As an occupied entity, Japan was essentially a military and diplomatic protectorate of the Allied Powers, and SCAP controlled, and proxied, all matters related to legal border crossing and relations with states SCAP recognized.

The 1947 Alien Registration [cum border control] Order reflected, of course, SCAP's desire to control illegal movements, mainly into Japan, especially from the Korean peninsula. Both SCAP and the Japanese government were concerned about illegal entry from Korea, and those treated as "aliens" for purposes of applying the law were of course mainly Koreans.

Given the facts that (1) Korea (Chōsen) and Formosa (Taiwan) had been permanently separated from Japan under the terms of surrender, and (2) SCAP had treated Koreans (Chosenese) and Formosans (Taiwanese) as "non-Japanese" for purposes of repatriation, it made sense to alienate Chosenese and most Taiwanese in the 1947 order. The purpose of alien registration appears to have been to (1) increase the level of bureaucratic awareness of and control over aliens who were legally domiciled in Japan, and (2) make it more difficult for aliens to establish illegal identities, including registration in more than one place or under more than one name (multiple family registration was also illegal).

第四條

外國人は、本邦に入つたときは六十日內に、外國人でないものが外國人になつたときは十四日以內に、居住地を定め、內務大臣の定めるところにより、当該居住地の市町村（東京都の区の存する区域並びに京都市、大阪市、名古屋市、横浜市及び神戶市においては区以下これに同じ。）の長に対し、所要の事項の登錄を申請しなければならない。

地方長官は、交通困[難]その他やむを得ない事由があると認めるときは、前項に規定する期間を伸長することができる。

第一項の申請は、二以上の市町村の長に対してこれをすることができない。

Article 4

Aliens, within 60 days when they have entered this country, and within 14 days when a person who is not an alien has become an alien, shall determine a place of residence, and in accordance with determinations by the Minister of Interior, must apply for registration of required particulars, with the head of the city, town, or village of the said place of residence (The same applies to the districts which constitute the wards of Tokyo prefecture, and to the wards in the cities of Kyoto, Osaka, Nagoya, Yokohama and Kobe.).

The director of a region [prefectural governor], when recognizing that there are transportation difficulties or other unavoidable reasons, can extend the period provided in the preceding paragraph.

The application of Paragraph 1 cannot be made to more than one head of a city, town, or village.

第十一條

台湾人のうち內務大臣の定めるもの及び朝鮮人は、この勅令の適用については、当分の間、これを外國人とみなす。

この勅令及びこの勅令に基く命令に規定する登錄の申請その他の行爲は、疾病その他內務大臣の定める事由に因り本人においてこれをすることができないときは、內務大臣の定める[者]がこれをしなければならない。

Article 11

Those among Taiwanese the Minister of Interior determines and Chosenese, with respect to the application of this imperial ordinance, for the present shall be regarded [deemed] as aliens.

Application for registration and other acts pursuant to this ordinance and orders based on this ordinance, when the person concerned is unable to effect these because of illness or other reasons determined by the Minister of Interior, one determined by the Minister of Interior must effect them.

"Taiwanese the Minister of Interior determines"

Koshikawa -- when citing the phrase "Those among Taiwanese the Minister of Interior determines" -- parenthetically observes that this means "Persons who reside outside [Japan] and persons who as Taiwanese in [this] country have received from a representative of the Republic of China [mission] in Japan an issuance of a certificate of registration [as a national of ROC] -- [Enforcement] Regulation Article 10" (Koshikawa's 1949, page 7).

Article 10 of the enforcement regulation makes the following more complete statement concerning Taiwanese (Koshikawa 1949, page 331, my transcription and translation, and [bracketed comments] and note).

第十條 令第十一條第一項に規定する臺灣人のうち內務大臣の定める者は、臺灣人で本邦外に在るもの及び本邦に在る中華民國駐日代表團から登録證明書の發給を受けたもののうち、第二條各號に揚げる者以外の者とする。

Article 10 As for persons the Minister of Interior determines among Taiwanese [as] stipulated in Paragraph 1 of Article 11 of the Order -- they shall be persons, among those who as Taiwanese reside in this country and have received from a representative of the Republic of China [mission] in Japan an issuance of a certificate of registration [as a national of ROC], other than persons raised [cited] in the respective items of Article 2 of the Order [Note].

Note "Article 2 of the Order" defines aliens for purposes of the Order as persons who do not have Japanese nationality, and itemizes categories of aliens who the Order exempts from alien registration on account of their being members of the Allied Forces or related Occupation personnel, which included ROC nationals as ROC was an Allied Power.

Article 11 of the order therefore means that all Taiwanese, whether outside Japan or inside Japan, will be treated as aliens for the purposes of the 1947 order -- except those who, having registered as nationals of ROC with ROC officials, qualify as members of the Occupation forces or government officials.

Essentially then -- on account of SCAP's recognition of the effects of ROC's 22 June 1946 law regulating the recovery of Chinese nationality among Taiwanese outside China, and the subsequent enrollment of Taiwanese domiciled in Japan in ROC's nationality -- Taiwanese in Japan became dual Chinese-Japanese nationals. Under ROC's laws they had become "overseas Chinese", and Japan also viewed them, following SCAP's authority, as having become Chinese . But under Japan's laws, as also recognized by SCAP, Taiwan had yet to be formally separated from Japan, and hence Taiwanese still retained Japanese nationality.

"regarded"

As a legal term "regard" [deem, view, look upon] (看做す > 見做す > みなす minasu) means that the provision has been made with the awareness that its stipulation is other than actual -- i.e., the stipulation creates a "legal fiction" (法律上の擬制 hōritsu-jō no gisei). Because a "minashi kitei" is based on legislative policy that is made with the awareness that the matter stipulated is other than actual, counter evidence (proof to the contrary) against a decision pursuant to the provision is not recognized (Kōjien, 5th edition).

In this case, the stipulation that "Chosenese" and some "Taiwanese" are to be treated as "aliens" for purposes of applying the Alien Registration Order was made with full awareness that they were in fact not aliens because they possessed Japan's nationality. Had they been "aliens" defined as persons who do not possess Japanese nationality (Article 2), there would have been no need for the "deem provision" (Article 11). The manner in which the law is written makes it legally impossible to argue that one should not have to register as an "alien" because one is one really an "alien" -- since the fact that one is not really an "alien" (according to the primary definition of "alien" in the main clause of Article 2) is implied by the provision that one is "deemed" to be an "alien" for the purpose of applying the order.

附則

Supplementary provisions

この勅令は、公布の日から、これを施行する。但し、第十五條の規定（附則第三項において準用する場合を含む。）は、日本國憲法施行の日から、これを施行する。この場合においては、同條の規定施行前になされた地方長官又は內務大臣の処分については、同條第一項中「第十三條の場合にはその処分のあつた日、前條の場合にはその强制に著手した日」とあるのは「日本國憲法施行の日」と読み替えるものとする。

この勅令施行の際現に本邦に在留する外國人は、この勅令施行の日から三十日以內に、第四條の規定に準じて登錄の申請をしなければならない。

第十二條乃至第十五條の規定は、前項の場合について、これを準用する。

This imperial order will be enforced from the day of its promulgation. However, the provisions of Article 15 (including instances where it is applied mutatis mutandis), will be enforced from the day of enforcement of the Constitution of Japan. In this instance, regarding dispositions of regional officials or the Minister of the Interior which have been effected prior to the enforcement of the provisions of the same [said] article, where in Paragraph 1 of the same article there is [it is stipulated that] "in the case of Article 13 the day of the disposition, in the case of the preceding article the day it was compulsorily undertaken", read in its place "the day of enforcement of the Constitution of Japan".

Aliens residing in this country as of when this imperial ordinance comes into force, within 30 days from the day this imperial ordinance comes into force, must make an application for registration in accordance with the provisions of Article 4.

Provisions from Article 12 through Article 15, regarding instances of the preceding paragraph, shall be applied mutatis mutandis.

Top

Alien Registration Law

28 April 1952

Law No. 125 of 28 April 1952
Promulgated on and enforced from 28 April 1952

Abolished Alien Registration Order of 1947 (Imperial Ordinance No. 207)

This law was readied in time to accommodate the change in legal status of Taiwanese and Chosenese who had been Japanese at the time Japan surrendered. Upon losing their Japanese nationality, they were required to register as aliens. In fact, they began to be treated as aliens virtually from the day of surrender, and legally from the enforcement of the Alien Registration Order of 1947 (Imperial Ordinance No. 207).

This law also applied to a number of alien civilians who had been excepted under the 1947 registration order because of their association with the Allied Powers.

General requirements

The 1952 law required aliens to register within sixty days of landing. Children born in Japan as aliens had to be registered within thirty days of their birth. Photographs were required of aliens who were 14 years old or older.

Alien Registration Certificate

An Alien Registration Certificate was valid for two years. An alien's address and other particulars had to be confirmed, and a new certificate with a new photograph issued, within thirty days of a certificate's expiration. Alien registration information had to be confirmed, and a new Alien Registration Certificate every two years.

Aliens 14 years old and older had to carry their Alien Registration Certificate with them at all times, and show their certificate to a police officer or justice ministry authority on request.

Fingerprinting

Aliens were required to give fingerprints. However, the fingerprinting provisions did not immediately come into force. Moreover, there was no stipulation on age from which fingerprints were required.

1952 Alien Registration Law Defined "this country", redefined "aliens", established fingerprinting
Japanese text The Japanese text was downloaded from the statutory law database on the 衆議院 (The House of Representatives) website. English version The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).
外國人登錄法	Alien Registration Law
昭和二十七年四月二八日法律第百二十五号	Law No. 125 of 28 April 1952
(目的)	(Purpose)
第一条この法律は、本邦に在留する外国人の登録を実施することによつて外国人の居住関係及び身分関係を明確ならしめ、もつて在留外国人の公正な管理に資することを目的とする。	Article 1 The purpose of this law is to, by implementing the registration of aliens residing in this country, make clear [their] residence [address] relationship and status relationship, and thus contribute to [conduce] the impartial [fair] control of resident aliens.
(定義)	(Definitions)
第二条この法律において「本邦」とは、本州、北海道、四国及び九州並びにこれらに附属する島で外務省令で定めるものをいう。２　この法律において「外国人」とは、日本の国籍を有しない者のうち、出入国管理令（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）の規定による仮上陸の許可、寄港地上陸の許可、観光のための通過上陸の許可、転船上陸の許可、緊急上陸の許可及び水難による上陸の許可を受けた者以外の者をいう。３　日本の国籍以外の二以上の国籍を有する者は、この法律の適用については、旅券（出入国管理令第二条第五号に定める旅券をいう。以下同じ。）を最近に発給した機関の属する国の国籍を有するものとみなす。	Article 2 In this law, "this country" refers to Honshu, Hokkaido, Shikoku and Kyushu and what are determined by Minister of Foreign Affairs ordinances to be islands affiliated with these. 2. In this law, "alien" refers to, among those who do not possess the nationality of Japan, a person other than a person who has received permission for provisional landing, permission for port-of-call landing, permission for transit landing for purpose of sightseeing, permission for change-of-vessel landing, permission for emergency landing or permission for landing due to disaster in accordance with provisions of the Exit-entry-country [Immigration] Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951). A person who possess two or more nationalities other than [neither of which is] the nationality of Japan, in the application of this law, shall be viewed as one who possess the nationality of the country affiliated with the agency that most recently issued [the person] a passport (Refers to a passport as determined in Article 2, Item 5 of Exit-entry-country [Immigration] Control Order. Hereafter the same.).
This country, aliens, multiple nationality this country is defined as in the 1951 Immigration Control Order. This definition limited "Japan" to the territories that were returned to Japan's sovereignty when the San Francisco Peace Treaty came into effect from 28 April 1952. The definition was deleted in 1972 after the return to Japan of Okinawa, the last of the several territories that remained under American control after 28 April 1952. alien is defined from the perspective of alien control within Japan. Whereas the 1947 Alien Registration Order specified that Taiwanese and Chosenese were aliens "for the present" for the purpose of the ordinance, the 1951 Immigration Control Order defined aliens as simply persons who did not possess the national of Japan, while exempting Allied Powers military personnel, Occupation Forces officials, accompanying personnel, and family and dependents of such persons. A person who possesses two or more nationalities, if in one of the countries of nationality, is generally treated as a national of that country, while in that country. If a person is in a country as an alien, and is known to possess two or more valid passports, then the most recently issued passport is generally taken as the basis for determining the alien's nationality, while in the country.
(登録証明書の交付の申請)	(Application for issuance of Alien Registration Certificate)
第三条本邦に在留する外国人は、本邦に入つたときはその上陸の日から六十日以内に、本邦において外国人となつたとき又は出生その他の事由に因り出入国管理令第三章に規定する上陸の手続を経ることなく本邦に在留することとなるときはそれぞれその外国人となつた日又は出生その他当該事由が生じた日から三十日以内に、その居住地の市町村の長（東京都の特別区の存する区域、京都市、大阪市、名古屋市、横浜市及び神戸市にあつては、区長。以下同じ。）に対し、左の各号に掲げる書類及び写真を提出し、外国人登録証明書（以下「登録証明書」という。）の交付を申請しなければならない。一　登録証明書交付申請書一通二　旅券三　写真（提出の日前六月以内に撮影された五センチメートル平方形又は名刺形の無帽、且つ、正面上半身のもので裏面に氏名及び出生の年月日を記入したものとする。以下同じ。）三葉２　前項の申請の場合において、十四歳に満たない者については、写真を提出することを要しない。３　都道府県知事は、第一項の申請の場合において、やむを得ない事由があると認めるときは、同項に定める期間を六十日を限り延長することができる。４　第一項の申請は、外国人が出生した場合には、父がするものとし、父が申請をすることができないとき、又は子の出生前に父母が離婚をしていたときは、母がしなければならない。５　前項の規定によつて申請すべき者が申請をすることができない場合には、左の各号に掲げる者が、当該各号列記の順位により、申請をしなければならない。一　同居の親族二　前号に掲げる者以外の同居者三　出産に立ち会つた医師又は助産婦６　外国人は、第一項の申請をした場合には、重ねて同項の申請をすることができない。	Article 3 [ Paragraph 1 requires that aliens register their residence in Japan at a municipal hall (1) within sixty days of landing when entering Japan, or (2) within thirty days of becoming an alien in Japan, or coming to sojourn in Japan without undergoing landing procedures as through birth or another reason. ] [ Photographs not required if not yet fourteen. ]
(登録原票)	(Registration master card)
第四条市町村の長は、前条第一項の申請があつたときは、当該申請に係る外国人について左の各号に掲げる事項を記載した外国人登録原票（以下「登録原票」という。）を作成し、これを市町村の事務所に備えなければならない。一　登録番号二　登録の年月日三　氏名四　出生の年月日五　男女の別六　国籍七　国籍の属する国における住所又は居所八　出生地九　職業十　上陸した出入国港（出入国管理令に定める出入国港をいう。以下同じ。）十一　旅券番号十二　旅券発行の年月日十三　上陸許可の年月日十四　在留資格（出入国管理令に定める在留資格をいう。）十五　在留期間（出入国管理令に定める在留期間をいう。）十六　居住地の地番十七　世帯主の氏名十八　世帯主との続柄十九　勤務所又は事務所の名称及び所在地二十　市町村名及び作成の年月日２　市町村の長は、前項の登録原票を作成する場合には、その写票二葉を作成し、その一葉を都道府県知事に、他の一葉を都道府県知事を経由して入国管理庁長官に送付しなければならない。３　都道府県知事は、送付を受けた当該登録原票の写票を分類整理しておかなければならない。４　市町村の長は、都道府県知事の承認を受けた場合を除く外、第一項の登録原票を当該市町村の事務所の外に移動してはならない。５　市町村の長は、第一項の登録原票を作成する場合において、外国人登録の正確な実施を図るため、同項各号に掲げる事項について、事実に反することを疑うに足りる相当な理由があるときは、当該職員をして事実の調査をさせることができる。６　前項の調査のため、必要があるときは、当該職員は、関係人に対し質問をし、又は文書の呈示を求めることができる。７　当該職員は、市町村の事務所以外の場所において前項の行為をする場合には、その身分を示す証票を携帯し、関係人の請求があるときは、これを呈示しなければならない。	Article 4 市町村の長は、前条第一項の申請があつたときは、当該申請に係る外国人について左の各号に掲げる事項を記載した外国人登録原票（以下「登録原票」という。）を作成し、これを市町村の事務所に備えなければならない。 (1) Registration number (2) Date of registration (3) Name (4) Date of birth (5) Distinction of sex (6) Nationality (7) Domicile [address] or residence [address] in country of nationality affiliation (8) Place of birth (9) Occupation (10) Exit-entry-country port where landed (Refers to an exit-entry-country port determined in the Exit-entry-country [Immigration] Control Order. Hereafter the same.) (11) Passport number (12) Date of passport issuance (13) Date of landing permit (14) Status of residence (Refers to a status of residence determined in the Exit-entry-country [Immigration] Control Order) (15) Period of stay (Refers to periods a period of stay determined in the Exit-entry-country [Immigration] Control Order) (16) Address of place of residence [in Japan] (17) Name of head of household (18) Relation with head of household (19) Name and location [address] of place of work or office (20) Name of municipality [city, town, village] and date of creation [of alien registration record] [ Other paragraphs omitted. ]
(登録証明書の交付)	(Issuance of Alien Registration Certificate)
第五条市町村の長は、前条の登録原票を作成する場合には、あわせて、当該申請に係る外国人について同条第一項各号に掲げる事項を記載した登録証明書を作成し、これを当該申請をした者に交付しなければならない。	Article 5
(登録証明書をき損し、又は汚損した場合の引替交付)	(Exchange in event of having damaged or soiled Alien Registration Certificate)
第六条外国人は、その登録証明書が著しくき損し、又は汚損した場合には、その居住地の市町村の長に対し、左の各号に掲げる書類及び写真にその登録証明書を添えて提出し、登録証明書の引替交付を申請することができる。一　登録証明書引替交付申請書一通二　写真三葉２　前項の申請の場合において、十四歳に満たない者については、写真を提出することを要しない。３　市町村の長は、第一項の申請があつた場合において、その登録証明書が著しくき損し、又は汚損していると認めるときは、当該き損し、又は汚損した登録証明書と引き替えに新たに登録証明書を交付しなければならない。４　市町村の長は、著しくき損し、又は汚損した登録証明書を携帯する外国人に対し、当該登録証明書を返納して第一項の申請をすべきことを命ずることができる。５　第三項の規定により交付する登録証明書については、き損し、又は汚損した登録証明書の交付の日をもつてその交付の日とする。６　第三項の規定により新たに登録証明書を交付した市町村の長は、き損し、又は汚損した登録証明書を都道府県知事を経由して入国管理庁長官に送付しなければならない。	Article 6 [ Photographs not required if not yet fourteen. ]
(登録証明書の再交付)	(Reissuance of Alien Registration Certificate)
第七条外国人は、紛失、盗難又は滅失に因り登録証明書を失つた場合には、その事実を知つたときから十四日以内に、その居住地の市町村の長に対し、左の各号に掲げる書類及び写真を提出して、登録証明書の再交付を申請しなければならない。一　登録証明書再交付申請書二通二　再交付申請理由書二通三　写真三葉四　前各号に掲げるものを除く外、市町村の長が特に必要と認める書類２　前項の申請の場合において、十四歳に満たない者については、写真を提出することを要しない。３　市町村の長は、第一項の申請があつた場合には、当該登録証明書の紛失、盗難又は滅失があつたと認められるときに限り、都道府県知事の承認を受けて、登録証明書を再交付するものとする。４　前項の規定により登録証明書を再交付したときは、紛失、盗難又は滅失に係る登録証明書は、その効力を失う。５　外国人は、登録証明書の再交付を受けた場合において、紛失又は盗難に因り失つた登録証明書を回復するに至つたときは、すみやかにその居住地の市町村の長に対し、当該登録証明書を返納しなければならない。６　市町村の長は、前項の規定により返納を受けた登録証明書を、都道府県知事を経由して入国管理庁長官に送付しなければならない。７　第三項の規定により再交付する登録証明書については、紛失、盗難又は滅失に因り失つた登録証明書の交付の日をもつてその交付の日とする。	Article 7 [ Photographs not required if not yet fourteen. ]
(居住地の変更に伴う居住地の記載の書換)	(Change of entry of place of residence associated with change of place of residence)
第八条外国人は、居住地を変更しようとする場合には、現居住地の市町村の長に対し、居住地変更届書を提出し、その届出があつたことを証する文書を請求しなければならない。２　外国人は、前項の届出をしたときから十四日以内に、新たに居住しようとする市町村の長に対し、居住地書換申請書に登録証明書及び前項の文書を添えて提出し、登録証明書の居住地の記載の書換を申請しなければならない。３　前項の申請を受理した市町村の長は、当該外国人に係る登録証明書の居住地の記載の書換をするとともに、第一項の文書を発給した市町村の長に対し、すみやかにその外国人に係る登録原票の送付を請求しなければならない。４　前項の規定により登録原票の送付を受けた市町村の長は、その居住地の記載の書換をしなければならない。５　市町村の長は、第二項の申請の場合において、やむを得ない事由があると認めるときは、都道府県知事の承認を受けて、同項に定める期間を十四日を限り延長することができる。６　外国人は、一の市町村の区域内で居住地を変更した場合には、その変更した日から十四日以内に、その市町村の長に対し、居住地書換申請書に登録証明書を添えて提出し、登録証明書の居住地の記載の書換を申請しなければならない。７　前項の申請を受理した市町村の長は、すみやかに当該外国人に係る登録証明書及び登録原票の居住地の記載の書換をしなければならない。	Article 8
(都道府県又は市町村の廃置分合、境界変更等に伴う居住地の記載の書換)	(Change of entry for place of residence associated with dissolution, establishment, division, or merger of prefectures or municipalities [cities, towns, villages], boundary changes et cetera)
第九条外国人は、その居住地の属する都道府県若しくは市町村の廃置分合若しくは境界変更によつてその属する市町村に異動があつた場合又はその居住地の属する都道府県若しくは市町村の名称の変更があつた場合には、遅滞なく、その居住地が新たに属することとなつた市町村又は当該名称の変更があつた市町村の長に対し、居住地書換申請書に登録証明書を添えて提oし、登録証明書の居住地の記載の書換を申請しなければならない。２　前項の申請を受理した市町村の長は、すみやかに当該外国人に係る登録証明書及び登録原票の居住地の記載の書換をしなければならない。	Article 9
(居住地以外の記載事項の書換)	(Changing entry particulars other than place of residence)
第十条外国人は、登録証明書の居住地以外の記載事項に変更を生じた場合には、当該変更の事由が生じた日から十四日以内に、その居住地の市町村の長に対し、書換申請書に登録証明書を添えて提出し、当該記載事項の書換を申請しなければならない。２　前項の申請を受理した市町村の長は、すみやかに当該外国人に係る登録証明書及び登録原票の記載事項の書換をしなければならない。３　市町村の長は、前項の場合において、必要があると認めるときは、当該外国人に対し、記載事項の変更を証する文書の提出を求めることができる。４　第八条第五項の規定は、第一項の申請の場合に準用する。この場合において、第八条第五項中「第二項」とあるのは、「第十条第一項」と読み替えるものとする。	Article 10
(登録証明書の有効期間)	(Validity period of Alien Registration Certificate)
第十一条登録証明書の有効期間は、交付の日から二年とする。２　外国人は、前項の期間満了前三十日以内に、登録証明書を居住地の市町村の長に返納し、第三条第一項各号に掲げる書類及び写真を提出して、新たに登録証明書の交付を申請しなければならない。３　前項の申請の場合において、十四歳に満たない者については、写真を提出することを要しない。４　市町村の長は、第二項の申請があつた場合には、遅滞なく新たに登録証明書を交付しなければならない。５　第三条第六項の規定は、第二項の申請をした場合に準用する。この場合において、第三条第六項中「第一項」とあるのは、「第十一条第二項」と読み替えるものとする。	Article 11 [ Certificate valid for two years. ] [ Photographs not required if not yet fourteen. ]
(登録証明書の返納)	(Return of Alien Registration Certificate)
第十二条外国人は、本邦を出国する場合には、その者が出国する出入国港において入国審査官（入国管理庁設置令（昭和二十六年政令第三百二十号）に定める入国審査官をいう。以下同じ。）に登録証明書を返納しなければならない。２　外国人は、外国人でなくなつた場合には、その事由が生じた日から十四日以内に、居住地の市町村の長に登録証明書を返納しなければならない。３　外国人が死亡した場合には、第十五条各号に掲げる者が、当該各号列記の順位により、その死亡の日から十四日以内に、死亡した外国人が居住していた市町村の長に、死亡した外国人の登録証明書を返納しなければならない。但し、当該外国人の居住地が死亡地と異なる場合には、死亡地の属する市町村の長を経由して居住地の市町村の長に返納することができる。４　前二項の規定により登録証明書の返納を受けた市町村の長は、その登録証明書を都道府県知事を経由して入国管理庁長官に送付しなければならない。	Article 12
(登録証明書の携帯及び呈示)	(Carrying and presentation of Alien Registration Certificate)
第十三条外国人は、常に登録証明書を携帯していなければならない。２　外国人は、入国審査官、入国警備官（入国管理庁設置令に定める入国警備官をいう。）、警察官、警察吏員、海上保安官、鉄道公安職員その他外務省令で定める国又は地方公共団体の職員がその職務の執行に当り登録証明書の呈示を求めた場合には、これを呈示しなければならない。３　前項に規定する職員は、その事務所以外の場所において登録証明書の呈示を求める場合には、その身分を示す証票を携帯し、請求があるときは、これを呈示しなければならない。４　第一項の規定は、十四歳に満たない外国人には適用しない。	Article 13 [ 1. Registered aliens must carry their Alien Registration Certificate at all times. ] [ 2. Such aliens must present their certificate to a competent official when requested. ] [ 3. Competent officials who request to see a certificate other than on the premises of their office must carry evidence of their status, and must present it when asked. [ 4. However, Paragraph 1 does not apply to aliens who are not yet 14 years of age. ]
(指紋の押なつ)	(Impression of fingerprints)
第十四条外国人は、第三条第一項、第六条第一項、第七条第一項又は第十一条第二項の申請をする場合には、政令で定めるところにより、登録原票、登録証明書、登録証明書交付申請書、登録証明書引替交付申請書、登録証明書再交付申請書又は指紋原紙に、指紋を押なつしなければならない。	Article 14 Aliens, in the event that they effect an application of Article 3 Paragraph 1 [issuance of certificate], Article 6 Paragraph 1 [replacement of damaged certificate] issuance], Article 7 Paragraph 1 [reissuance of lost certificate] or Article 11 Paragraph 2 [new issuance of certificate at end of validity period], in accordance with where determined by cabinet order, must impress fingerprints on the registration master card, the registration certificate, the registration certificate issuance application, the registration certificate replacement application, the registration certificate reissuance application, and/or the fingerprint master card.
Fingerprinting Article 14 was not enforced until 1955 when Fingerprinting Enforcement Regulations were promulgated. This article was amended in 1956 with a stipulation that fingerprints were not required of aliens not yet 14 years of age.
(代理人による申請、届出及び返納)	(Application, notification and return by representative)
第十五条　外国人が十四歳に満たない場合又は疾病その他身体の故障に因り自ら申請、届出若しくは返納をすることができない場合には、第三条第一項、第七条第一項若しくは第五項、第八条第一項、第二項若しくは第六項、第十条第一項、第十一条第二項又は第十二条第一項若しくは第二項の申請、請求、届出又は返納は、当該外国人と同居する左の各号に掲げる者が、当該各号列記の順位により、当該外国人に代つてしなければならない。一　配偶者二　子（十四歳に満たない者を除く。）三　父又は母四　前各号に掲げる者以外の親族五　その他の同居者	Article 15
(登録原票等の記載の書換)	(Changing entries on registration master cards)
第十六条市町村の長は、第八条第四項若しくは第七項、第九条第二項又は第十条第二項の規定により登録原票の記載の書換をした場合には、都道府県知事及び都道府県知事を経由して入国管理庁長官にその旨を通知しなければならない。２　都道府県知事は、前項の規定により通知を受けた場合には、登録原票の写票の記載事項の書換をしなければならない。	Article 16
(申請等の手続及び申請書等の様式)	(Formats for application and other procedures and application and other forms)
第十七条登録証明書の交付、引替交付、再交付及び書換の申請、登録証明書の交付、引替交付及び再交付、登録証明書の返納並びに居住地変更の届出の手続並びに登録証明書交付申請書、登録原票、登録原票の写票、登録証明書、登録証明書引替交付申請書、登録証明書返納命令書、登録証明書再交付申請書、再交付申請理由書、居住地変更届書、居住地書換申請書、書換申請書並びに第四条第七項及び第十三条第三項に定める地方公共団体の職員の身分証明書の様式は、外務省令で定める。	Article 17
(罰則)	(Punishments)
第十八条左の各号の一に該当する者は、一年以下の懲役若しくは禁こ又は三万円以下の罰金に処する。一　第三条第一項、第七条第一項、第八条第二項若しくは第六項、第十条第一項又は第十一条第二項の規定に違反して登録証明書の交付、再交付又は書換の申請をしないでこれらの項に規定する期間をこえて本邦に在留する者二　第三条第一項、第七条第一項、第八条第二項若しくは第六項、第十条第一項又は第十一条第二項の規定に違反して登録証明書の交付、再交付又は書換の申請に関し虚偽の申請をした者三　第三条第一項、第七条第一項、第八条第二項若しくは第六項、第十条第一項又は第十一条第二項の規定による登録証明書の交付、再交付又は書換の申請を妨げた者四　第三条第六項又は第十一条第五項において準用する第三条第六項の規定に違反した者五　第六条第四項の規定による命令に従わなかつた者六　第七条第五項又は第十二条第一項若しくは第二項の規定に違反した者七　第十三条第一項又は第二項の規定に違反して登録証明書を携帯せず、又はその呈示を拒んだ者八　第十四条の規定に違反して指紋の押なつをせず、又はこれを妨げた者九　他人名義の登録証明書を行使した者十　行使の目的をもつて、登録証明書を他人に譲り渡し、若しくは貸与し、又は他人名義の登録証明書の譲渡若しくは貸与を受けた者２　前項の罪を犯した者には、懲役又は禁こ及び罰金を併科することができる。	Article 18 [ Provided penal servitude or imprisonment for one year or less, or a fine of 30,000 yen or less, for the following persons, who committed the stated offenses. ] 7. A person who has not carried [one's] Alien Registration Certificate, or who has refused to present it [to a competent official], in violation of Article 13 Paragraph 1 and Paragraph 2. 8. A person who has not impressed [one's] fingerprints, or has impeded [their impression], in violation of the provisions of Article 14.
第十九条第十五条に規定する場合において、同条第一項各号に掲げる者が、第三条第一項、第七条第一項、第八条第二項若しくは第六項、第十条第一項若しくは第十一条第二項の規定に違反して登録証明書の交付、再交付若しくは書換の申請をしなかつたとき、又は第七条第五項若しくは第十二条第一項若しくは第二項の規定に違反して返納をしなかつたときは、五千円以下の過料に処する。第三条第四項の規定に違反して申請をしなかつた父又は母、同条第五項の規定に違反して申請をしなかつた者及び第十二条第三項本文の規定に違反して返納しなかつた者も、また、同様とする。	Article 19
(過料の裁判の管轄)	(Jurisdiction of courts for [misdemeanor] fines)
第二十条過料の裁判は、簡易裁判所が行う。	Article 20 As for the court for [misdemeanor] fines, a summary court shall carry out [provisions for such fines].
(附則)	(Supplementary provisions)
１　この法律は、日本国との平和条約の最初の効力発生の日から施行する。但し、第十四条及び第十八条第一項第八号の規定は、この法律施行の日から一年以内において政令で定める日から施行する。２　外国人登録令（昭和二十二年勅令第二百七号）は、廃止する。３　この法律施行前にした行為に対する罰則の適用については、なお、従前の例による。４　この法律施行前にした行為に対する旧外国人登録令第十四条から第十六条までの適用については、なお、従前の例による。５　旧外国人登録令の規定による登録証明書及び外国人登録簿は、それぞれこの法律の規定による外国人登録証明書及び外国人登録原票とみなす。この場合において、旧外国人登録令の規定による登録証明書の有効期間は、この法律施行の日から六月とす。６　旧外国人登録令第十一条第一項に規定する者で同令の規定による登録証明書を所持するものは、第三条第一項の規定にかかわらず、この法律の規定に基いて登録証明書の交付を受けた外国人とみなす。７　旧外国人登録令の規定による登録の申請でこの法律施行の際当該申請に対する処分がされていないものは、この法律中の相当する規定に基いてされた申請とみなす。８　旧外国人登録令の規定による登録証明書を有する外国人は、第五項後段に規定する当該登録証明書の有効期間の満了前三十日以内に、第十一条第二項の規定により、新たに登録証明書の交付を申請しなければならない。９　住民登録法（昭和二十六年法律第二百十八号）の一部を次のように改正する。第二十七条中「外国人登録令（昭和二十二年勅令第二百七号）」を「外国人登録法（昭和二十七年法律第百二十五号）」に改める。	Article 14 and Article 18-1(8) to be enforced by law to enforced from day determined by cabinet order to be determined within in one year of this law's enforcement.
(法務総裁・外務・内閣総理大臣署名)	(Signatures of Attorney General, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Prime Minister of the Cabinet)

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Alien Fingerprinting Regulations

Fingerprinting of aliens, as a matter of alien registration, began in 1955 and was abolished in 2000.

During the Occupation of Japan between 1945 and 1952, some Chosenese, and other Japanese who were considered aliens by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP), were fingerprinted as a measure for controlling migration within "Japan" as defined by SCAP, as well as "repatriation" between the prefectures and other parts of the former empire.

For an overview of laws and regulations related to fingerprinting, in connection with alien registration, see Alien control laws in Japan: The regulation of entry, stay, and residence.

See below for details on selected provisions related to fingerprinting in the Alien Registration Law.

Forthcoming.

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Fingerprint abolishment orders

The system of fingerprinting aliens in connection with residence registration, which was introduced in 1955, began to undergo radial change in the late 1980s, and was phased out between 1993 and 2000.

For an overview of laws and regulations related to the abolishment of fingerprinting in connection with alien registration, see Alien control laws in Japan: The regulation of entry, stay, and residence.

See below for details on selected provisions related to the abolishment of fingerprinting in the Alien Registration Law.

Forthcoming.

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Immigration control laws

"Immigration" is somewhat of a misnomer as an English tag for what is called "enter-the-country" (入国 nyūkoku) or more fully "exit-and-enter-the-country" (出入国 shutsunyūkoku) in Japanese. Such laws govern the entry and exit of all persons, regardless of their nationality -- and, in the case of aliens, regardless of their status of residence if permitted to sojourn or reside in Japan.

Japan as a state, and local authorities in earlier times, have to some extent -- at times strictly -- controlled migration across the borders of the country and local territories. Only after World War II, however, did Japan -- under the influence of the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers (SCAP) --enact specific laws to control immigration.

During the Occupation and for several months after Japan regained its sovereignty, immigration control was overseen by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Immigration control, and alien registration, were placed under the Ministry of Justice from 1 August 1952.

For an overview of immigration control laws, see Alien control laws in Japan: The regulation of entry, stay, and residence.

For below for details on selected provisions in the Immigration Control Law.

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Order Concerning the Control of Immigration

10 August 1949

Promulgated by Cabinet Order No. 299 of 10 August 1949

Came into force from day of promulgation.

出入国の管理に関する政令
Shutsunyūkoku no kanri ni kan suru seirei
Cabinet Order Concerning Control of Exit-entry-country [Immigration]
Cabinet Order No. 299 of 1949
Promulgated on and enforced from 10 August 1949
Abolished by 1951 Immigration Control Order (Order No. 319)

Amendments

Government order revising parts of Government order concerning control of immigration
Cabinet Order No. 24 of 28 February 1950
Promulgated on and enforced from 28 February 1950
Applied from 25 February 1950

Law revising parts of Foreign Affairs Ministry establishment law
Law No. 80 of 1 April 1950
Promulgated on and enforced from 1 April 1950)

Immigration Control Agency establishment order
Cabinet Order No. 295 of 30 September 1950
Enforced from 1 October 1950

Purpose of order

This order was mainly concerned with setting up the bureaucratic infrastructure for overseeing the entry and departure of all persons into and from Japan -- other than official Occupation personnel and their families.

Morphed metaphors

The received English version appears to reflect terminology that was used in the GHQ/SCAP draft that was then translated and reworked into a Japanese version. Presumably there were some adjustments back and forth before GHQ/SCAP and the Cabinet before the Cabinet promulgated the order.

As with the differences in the English and Japanese versions of the Constitution, and of of other laws and measures that were initially drafted in English, the English version of this order appears to have retained English (American) metaphors even after they were morphed into sometimes rather different Japanese metaphors. By this I do not mean that their essential meanings are different -- but, words being what they are, readers of the received English version may at times get different impressions than readers of the official Japanese version.

Of course translators strove for accuracy, but accuracy is often an illusion when there is not enough time to discuss intentions and nuances. Even under the best conditions, some English metaphors, such as those inspired by American "immigration" laws, were very likely to be incompatible with the metaphors of Japanese law, in which American-style "immigration" had no place.

"exit-entry-country" versus "immigration"

The English draft would often reflect usage both familiar and favorable to the GHQ/SCAP officials who wrote the drafts, mostly American bureaucrats and legalists. Here we see "immigration" used in the English draft to oddly cover both "exit of country" (出国 shutsukoku) and "entry of country" (入国 nyūkoku) as simple acts of crossing a border out of and into a country.

While "immigration" is may be intended as bureaucratic shorthand, its nuances to many readers of English are likely to lead them to think of only "aliens entering a country" possibly in order to stay and settle. But this cabinet order, and subsequent orders and laws, have applied aliens and Japanese like when exiting or entering Japan.

"control" versus "surveillance"

I have not yet been able to determine if the GHQ/SCAP draft from which the Cabinet Order No. 299 evolved used the term "surveillance" -- but, supposing it did, it was translated into a Japanese that would more likely be taken to mean "control" (管理 kanri) in the sense of "management" or "overseeing". Whereas "surveillance" has overtones of "watching" and "keeping an eye on" someone.

"restriction" versus "prevention"

Law enforcement officials everywhere would probably agree that, ideally, "illegal entrance" is something to be "prevented". However, what Immigration Inspectors are actually charged with doing is to "restrict" (取締 torishimari) illegal entry through tighter controls -- closer vigilance, stricter vetting.

"return" versus "deportation"

The term "deport" is closer to "expel" (追放 tsukyū) than "return" or "send back" (送還 sōkan), the word used in the Japanese order. Here, too, the law as written in Japanese seems somewhat less ominous than the English version.

As with other so-called "immigration" laws and regulations, this one does not mention any particular nationalities. While later laws do differentiate aliens and Japanese, and provide for the status of residence of aliens, this law makes no mention of either category.

Immigration Control Department

This law set up an "Immigration Control Department" (officially "Immigration Department") under the Control Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).

This department became a separate "Emigration and Immigration Agency" [Officially called "Immigration Control Agency"] of the same ministry from 1 October 1950, in accordance with the Immigration Control Agency Establishment Order (Cabinet Order No. 295 of 30 September 1950), which came into force from 1 October 1950. The MOFA agency became simply the "Immigration Control Agency" (Immigration Agency" on 1 November 1951.

From 1 August 1952, all immigration and alien business was placed under the jurisdiction of the new Ministry of Justice (MOJ). On this date, the MOFA agency became the MOJ bureau is remains today -- officially called the "Immigration Bureau" in English rather than "Immigration Control Bureau" or "Emigration and Immigration Control Bureau" -- or "Exit-and-entry-of-country Control Bureau".

1949 Order Concerning the Control of Immigration
All persons entering and exiting this country
except Occupation personnel and their families

Japanese text

The Japanese text is of the original, unamended order.

English versions

The structural English translations of selected articles are mine.

I have also shown an English version amended through 1 October 1950 (Cabinet Order No. 295), published as "Cabinet Order concerning Immigration Surveillance" in the following yearbook, which was "Made in Occupied Japan" (Appendix, pages 224-225). By the time of this version, Articles 2 through 5 have been deleted.

The Japan Year Book, 1949-52
Tokyo: The Foreign Affairs Association of Japan, 1952
Foreword dated August 1952
xvii, 778 (main text), 555 (appendix and index), foldout map of Japan, unnumbered advert

See The Japan Year Book: Forty years of rise, then fall for a look at how the Empire of Japan appeared in half a century of English language yearbooks.

The bold emphasis and underscoring are mine.

出入國の管理に関する政令

Order Concerning the Control of Exit-entry-country

出入國の管理に関する政令をここに公布する。

御名御璽 [裕仁]

昭和二十四年八月十日

内閣総理大臣　吉田茂

政令第二百九十九号

[I] hereby promulgate the Cabinet Order Concerning the Control of Enter-exit-country.

Imperial seal [Hirohito]

Showa 24-8-10 [10 August 1949]

Prime Minister of the Cabinet Yoshida Shigeru

Cabinet Order No. 299

政令第二百九十九号

出入國の管理に関する政令

内閣は、ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件（昭和二十年勅令第五百四十二号）に基き、この政令を制定する。

Cabinet Order No. 299

Order Concerning the Control of Exit-entry-country

The Cabinet establishes [enacts] this order pursuant to Matters concerning ordinances issued in conjunction with the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration (Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945).

(目的)

(Purpose)

第一條

この政令は、連合國最高司令官の許可を得て本邦に入國し、又は本邦から出國するすべての人（公務のため出入國する占領軍の軍人及び軍属並びにこれらの家族を除く。）の出入國（以下「出入國」という。）の管理、不法入國の取締及び不法入國者等の送還に関する関係行政機関の事務の連絡調整並びにこれらの実施に必要な行政機関及び職員について規定することを目的とする。

Article 1

This order has the aim of providing for [1] the control [management, overseeing] of all persons (Except military personnel and civilian personnel of the Occupying Army who exit-or-enter-country for the purpose of civil service and their families.) who -- with the permission of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers -- enter-country [entering] into this country or exit-country [exiting] from this country (hereafter called "exit-and-entry-of-the-country"); [2] the liaison and coordination of work [business, tasks] related government organs concerning the restriction [control] of illegal entrance and the return [sending back, repatriation, deportation] of illegal entrants and others; and [3] the government organs and personnel required for the implementation of these [matters].

"Immigration"

Note that Article 1 creates the shorthand "Exit-entry-country" for the longer "entering into this country and/or exiting from this country". The shorthand is also used in the name of the law because the law involved people moving either way across the country's border.

The received English version of the law, however, reduces this "in-migration" (immigration) AND "e-migration" (emigration) distinction to just "immigration".

Received translation Cabinet Order concerning Immigration Surveillance (Cabinet Order No. 299, Aug. 10, 1949, as amended by Cabinet Order No. 24, Feb. 28, 1950, Law No. 80, Apr. 1, 1950 and Cabinet Order No. 295, Sep. 30, 1960) (Purpose) Article 1. The purpose of this Cabinet Order is to provide for surveillance of the entry into and departure from Japan (hereinafter referred to as "immigration") of all individuals (except Occupation Forces personnel assigned to diplomatic missions accredited to the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers and their dependents, travelling under official orders.) authorized by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers to enter into or depart from Japan; for liaison and coordination among the functions of the administrative organs concerned with respect to the prevention of illegal entry and the deportation of illegal entrants, etc.; and for the administrative organs and their personnel necessary for the performance of these services.

(入國管理部の設置)

(Establishment of Enter-country Control Department)

第二條

外務省管理局に、入國管理部を置く。

Article 2

[This order] sets up an Enter-country [Immigration] Control Department in the Control Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Immigration Control Department

Note that Article 2 (above) appears to create a bureau concerning only "enter-country" hence "immigration" matters -- yet Article 3 (below) describes the scope of its mission as including exit-and-entry matters, immigration inspectors, and deportation, among other business.

The received English version reflects revisions that have deleted Articles 2 to 5. However, Article 2 of the Supplementary Provisions of English version concerns an amendment to "The National Government Organization Law (Law No. 120 of 1948), to include in "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs "The Controls Bureau", and in this bureau "The Immigration Service Division".

(入國管理部の事務)

(Work of Enter-country Control Department)

第三條

入國管理部においては、左の事務をつかさどる。

一　出入國の記録を整備すること

二　入國監理官の行う事務に関すること

三　前二号に掲げるものの外、出入國の管理に関すること。

四　不法入國の取締及び不法入國者等の送還に関する関係行政機関の事務の連絡調整を行うこと。

五　前各号に掲げる事務に関し連合國官憲と連絡すること。

Article 3

The Enter-country [Immigration] control department shall be in charge of [oversee] the work [business, tasks] to the left [below].

(1) Maintaining records of exit and entry of the country.

(2) Matters concerning work [business, tasks] carried out by Enter-country [Immigration] Inspectors.

(3) In addition to things cited in the previous two items, matters concerning the control of exit and entry of the country.

(4) Carrying out liaison and coordination of the work [business, tasks] related government organs concerning the restriction [control] of illegal entrance and the return of illegal entrants and others.

(5) Concerning the work [business, tasks] cited in each of the previous items, liaisoning with the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers.

(入國監理官)

(Enter-country Inspector)

第四條

出入國に際し、権限のある公的機関の発行する旅券又はこれに代わるべき書類に証印させるため、税関に、入國監理官を置く。

２　外務大臣は、入國監理官の行う事務について税関長を指揮監督する。

３　入國監理官が置かれる税関は、大藏大臣が外務大臣と協議して定める。

Article 4

Forthcoming.

(出入國管理連絡協議会)

(Exit-enter-country Control Liaison Council)

第五條

出入國の管理並びに不法入國の取締及び不法入國者等の送還に関する関係行政機関の事務の連絡調整を図るため、外務省の附属機関として出入國管理連絡協議会を置く。

２　出入國管理連絡協議会の組織、所掌事務及び委員その他の職員については、政令で定める。

Article 5

Forthcoming.

附則

Supplementary provisions

１　この政令は、公布の日から施行する。

[ 省略 ]

1. This order shall come into force from the day of promulgation.

[ Other supplementary provisions omitted. ]

外務大臣　吉田茂

大藏大臣　池田勇人

内閣総理大臣　吉田茂

Minister of Foreign Affairs Yoshida Shigeru

Minister of Finance Ikeda Hayato

Prime Minister of the Cabinet Yoshida Shigeru

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Illegal Entrant Deportation Procedure Order

28 February 1951

Government Ordinance No. 33 of 1951

不法入国者等退去強制手続令
Fuhō nyūkokusha taikyo kyōsei tetsuzuki rei
Order concerning procedures for compelling the departure of illegal entrants and others
Government Ordinance No. 33 of 1951
Promulgated 28 February 1951
Some articles came into effect from 28 February 1951
Most articles came into effect from 1 April 1951
Order was abolished seven months later.

The main body of this law never actually came into force. The law was partly integrated into, and abolished by, the Immigration Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319 of 4 October 1951), which came into force on 1 November 1951. This order, still in force, is now known as the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law.

The deportation order is unusually long and convoluted because it is not just a measure outlining general rules, but is also a specification of procedures to be followed when applying the rules. Most measures of this kind are divided into a rather short and simple "law" and then an "enforcement regulations" that cover procedures.

In any event, the order reflects all the warps and woofs of what out of necessity had to be a complex measure. It shows the hands of legal bureaucrats who know their way around Occupation era law -- and, of course, the policies that laws were intended to facilitate.

Scope of applicability

My main interest in this order lies in how it defines the scope of its applicability in terms of borders and people. The scope of its geographical applicability was the same as that of Alien Registration Order (Imperial Ordinance No. 207 of 2 May 1947), but the scope of its demographic applicability transcended that "alien" as defined in the registration order (see above).

Here I will introduce here only the first three articles of the order, concerning its purpose (Article 1), its terminology (Article 2), and the demographic scope of its applicability (Article 3). I have made comments below each of the received Japanese and English versions of the articles.

1951 Deportation order (Cabinet Order No. 33) Purpose, definitions, applicable persons
Received Japanese text The Japanese text is a slightly reformatted version of parts selected from a Wikisource copy which retains the contemporary characters. The content of this copy, while apparently accurate, has not been confirmed. Received English version The English version is a slightly reformatted transcription from "Cabinet Order concerning Procedure to Deport Illegal Entrants, etc." in the following yearbook (Appendix, pages 215-223). The Japan Year Book, 1949-52 Tokyo: The Foreign Affairs Association of Japan, 1952 Foreword dated August 1952 xvii, 778 (main text), 555 (appendix and index), foldout map of Japan, unnumbered advert See The Japan Year Book: Forty years of rise, then fall for a look at how the Empire of Japan appeared in half a century of English language yearbooks. The bold emphasis and the underscoring in both the Japanese text and the received English version are mine, and the comments following the articles are mine
不法入国者等退去強制手続令	Cabinet Order concerning Procedure to Deport Illegal Entrants, etc.
"Deportation" versus "compelling departure" Structurally, the name of the order is "Illegal entrant et cetera departure compelling procedures order" -- in other words "Order concerning procedures for compelling the departure of illegal entrants and others".
昭和二十六年政令第三十三号	Government Ordinance No. 33 of 1951
内閣は、ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件（昭和二十年勅令第五百四十二号）に基き、この政令を制定する。	In accordance with the Ordinance concerning the Orders to be Issued in Consequence of the Acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration (Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945), the Cabinet establishes this Cabinet Order.
Potsdam Declaration Article 1 was boilerplate for all measures taken by the government of Japan in the name of complying with directives issued by Occupation Authorities. The statement does not mean that the content of the deportation order is based on provisions of the Potsdam Declaration. It merely grounds the legitimacy of the order in Imperial Ordinance No. 542, promulgated on 20 September 1945, and enforced from this date until it was abolished on 28 April 1952. Imperial Ordinance No. 542 -- coming as it roughly three weeks after the formal start of the Occupation of Japan on 2 September 1945 -- empowered the Japanese government to facilitate actions taken by SCAP regarding the disposition of the Empire of Japan under the terms of the 1945 Potsdam Declaration, which included also the terms of the 1943 Cairo Declaration. References to this order in Occupation measures undertaken by the Japanese government is the clearest evidence of two very important facts: (1) SCAP, representing the Allied Powers, allowed the Japanese government to function as a constitutional parliamentary system, and (2) The Japanese government continued to essentially operate under the laws of the land, meaning first and foremost the Meiji Constitution. SCAP, of course, had become the sovereign, and as such SCAP determined the parameters of the powers that would continue to be exercised by the government. But formally, the cabinet and the parliament continued to be bound by rules which included the Emperor's continued participation in Imperial Cabinet and Imperial Diet actions.
(目的)	(Purpose)
第一条この政令は、外国人登録令（昭和二十二年勅令第二百七号。以下「登録令」という。）、北緯三十度以南の南西諸島に本籍を有する者の渡航制限に関する臨時措置令（昭和二十五年政令第二百二十七号。以下「臨時措置令」という。）に規定する退去強制等に関する公正な手続を定め、もつて人権の保障を確保することを目的とする。二　この政令の規定は、いかなる場合においても、人身保護法（昭和二十三年法律第百九十九号）の規定に基いて救済を請求する権利を否認するものと解釈してはならない。三　この政令に基いて収容されている者には、収容所の保安上支障がない範囲内においてできる限りの自由が与えられなければならない。	Article 1 The purpose of this Cabinet Order is to clarify and define equitable deportation procedure etc. pursuant to the Ordinance for Registration of Aliens (Imperial Ordinance No. 207 of 1947; hereinafter referred to as the "Ordinance for Registration") or the Cabinet Order for Temporary Measures concerning the Restriction on Sailing of those Person [sic = Persons] having Permanent Domicile in Nanseishoto South of 30° North Latitude (Cabinet Order No. 227 of 1950; hereinafter referred to as the "Cabinet Order for Temporary Measures") thereby to insure the guarantee of human rights of aliens. 2. Nothing in this Cabinet Order shall be construed to deny the right of any person concerned at any time to apply for a writ of habeas corpus under the Habeas Corpus Law (Law No. 199 of 1948). 3. Persons detained under this Cabinet Order shall be given the maximum liberty consistent with security requirements.
Aliens and Nansei islanders There is a basic conflict between the Japanese and English versions of the first paragraph of Article 2. 1947 Alien Registration Order The overarching definition of "aliens" in the 1947 Alien Registration Order is "persons who do not possess the nationality of Japan" (Article 2, my translation). For purposes of this order, Article 2 excluded certain categories of aliens from its application -- mainly people affiliated with Allied Forces, SCAP, and foreigners SCAP in Japan on business related to a foreign government. However, also for purposes of this order, Article 11 included certain people had Japanese nationality as persons who "for the present shall be regarded [looked upon] as aliens" (my translation) -- specifically designated Taiwanese, and all Chosenese. While earlier SCAP directives had included Nansei islanders (mostly Ryukyuans) and a few other Japanese nationals as "non-nationals" for purposes of repatriation, et cetera, such people -- so long as they were domiciled in Japan were generally not excluded from laws that applied to people with Naichi (Interior, i.e., prefectural) registers. This is a very important distinction -- one which was carefully made by Japanese legal bureaucrats as a matter of course. There was nothing sinister about the line drawn between Naichi registers on the one hand, and Chōsen and Taiwan registers on the other. And the legal bureaucrats, who must have had a hand in creating the Japanese version, understood that Nansei islanders were not aliens under the Alien Registration Law. Hence the need to specify them in the present immigration order as a distinct cohort to which the order would apply. Hence the absence in the received Japanese text (if correct) of the term 外国人 (gaikokujin) or "alien" in the assurance of "human rights" (人権 jinken). Whereas the received English version (if correct) appears to lump Nansei islanders together with aliens in its reference to the "human rights of aliens". Honseki Note that the term used to describe Nansei islanders, in relation to the designated territory south of the 30th parallel north latitude, is "honseki" (本籍). This term has at times been dubbed to mean "permanent domicile" -- but it is really a "principle register [affiliation]" associated with nationality. Such registers are territorial in that they belong to the local polities having jurisdiction over their addresses. The so-called "Nansei islands" (including, here, mainly Okinawa prefecture, but also parts of Kagoshima and Tokyo prefectures), were affiliated with the larger Naichi (Interior) territorial jurisdiction, which was distinct from the larger Taiwan and Chōsen territorial jurisdictions. A person affiliated with a register in Naha, Okinawa might be domiciled (legally residing) in, say, a town in Chiba prefecture -- but, still, their "honseki" would be in Naha, Okinawa, or just Okinawa -- which was then in an American-controlled legal jurisdiction distinct from SCAP's jurisdiction in Occupied Japan. Most Taiwanese and Chosenese in Japan were also legally domiciled in Japan, but their "principle registers" (honseki) were affiliated with Taiwan and Chōsen. Their "honseki" were their "permanent domiciles" but their "primary territorial affiliations". Honseki affiliations translated into nationality, and the nationality associated with a honseki was was subject to change when the territory having jurisdiction over a honseki was ceded from one state to another. Japan, in accepting the terms of the surrender, had not abandoned its sovereignty over Okinawa or the other territories included in the so-called "Nansei islands". It had, however, abandoned not only its control and jurisdiction, but also its sovereignty, over Taiwan and Chōsen. The problem was that there had not yet been any treaty settlements between Japan and the states by then (in 1951) already formally governing Taiwan (ROC from late 1945) and Chōsen (ROK and DPRK from 1948). Hence Taiwanese and Chosenese, especially those domiciled in Occupied Japan, retained Japanese nationality -- albeit, for the time being, they were treated as "aliens" for certain Occupation purposes.
(定義)	(Definition) [sic = Definitions]
第二条この政令において「退去強制」とは、登録令第十六条及び臨時措置令第五条の規定により退去を強制することをいう。二　この政令において「当該職員」とは、入国警備官、警察官、警察吏員、海上保安官その他の司法警察職員をいう。三　この政令において「本邦」とは、登録令第三条に規定する本邦をいう。四　この政令において「長官」とは、出入国管理庁長官をいう。五　この政令において「中央審査会」及び「地方審査会」とは、それぞれ出入国管理庁設置令（昭和二十五年政令第二百九十五号）第十一条に規定する「中央審査会」及び「地方審査会」をいう。六　この政令において「外国人」とは、登録令に規定する外国人をいう。	Article 2 The term "Deportation" as used in this Cabinet Order is defined to mean the deportation in accordance with the provision of Article 16 of the Ordinance for Registration or Article 5 of the Cabinet Order for Temporary Measures. 2. The term "Law Enforcement Official" as used in this Cabinet Order is defined to mean the Immigration Guard, National Rural Police, Municipal Police Official, Maritime Safety Official and any other official having judicial police power. 3. The term "Japan" as used in this Cabinet Order is defined to mean Japan as provided for in Article 3 of the Ordinance for Registration. 4. The term "Director" as used in this Cabinet Order is defined to mean the Director of the Immigration Agency. 5. The Term "Central Review Committee" and "Local Review Committee" as used in this Cabinet Order are defined to mean the "Central Review Committee" and "Local Review Committee" provided for in Article 11 of the Immigration Agency Establishment Order (Cabinet Order No. 295 of 1950) respectively. 6. The term "Alien" as used in this cabinet Order is defined to mean Aliens as provided for in the Ordinance for Registration.
"Japan" and "Aliens" "Japan" is reflected in the Japanese text as "this country" (本邦 honpō), which is defined by other measures as the territory under SCAP jurisdiction which is considered the downsized entity of "Japan" as occupied by the Allied Powers. It is this "Japan" that will soon regain its sovereignty. Today this "Japan" also includes the territories later returned to its jurisdiction, including of course Okinawa, then part of the Nansei islands. "Aliens" for the purpose of this law therefore included broadly two categories of people, which I would call (1) "true aliens" defined as people who did not possess Japanese nationality, and (2) "presumptive aliens" or "quasi-aliens" -- meaning people affiliated with Taiwan (Formosa), then under ROC jurisdiction, or Korea (Chōsen), then under divided and contested ROK and DPRK jurisdictions. By "presumptive" or "quasi" I mean the interim measures initiated by GHQ/SCAP, and facilitated by the Japanese government, which treated Taiwanese and Chosenese as "aliens" for the purpose of certain Occupation policies. By "divided and contested" I mean not only that ROK and DPRK claimed sovereignty over the same territory of Korea (Chōsen) that the Allied Powers had "liberated" from the Empire of Japan -- but also that the two states were bogged down in a civil war. As former Japanese territories, Taiwan and its associated islands, too, were "contested" in the sense that PRC also claimed to be their rightful successor state, and ROK and PRC also were essentially still engaged in a civil war though one that by 1951 had become "cold".
(この政令の適用を受ける者)	(Persons Falling under this Cabinet Order)
第三条この政令は、左の各号の一に該当する者に適用する。一　登録令第十六条各号に該当する者又は臨時措置令第五条の適用を受ける者二　連合国最高司令官の許可を受けて本邦の港又は飛行場に入る船舶又は航空機に乗つていた外国人又は北緯三十度以南の南西諸島（口之島を含む。）に本籍を有する者（以下「南西諸島人」という。）で、出入国監理官の許可を受けないで、その船舶若しくは航空機から降り、又は港若しくは飛行場の区域外に出たもの三　連合国最高司令官の許可を受けて本邦の港又は飛行場に入る船舶又は航空機に乗つていた外国人又は南西諸島人で、出入国監理官が発給する一時上陸許可書又は通過上陸許可書に記載された期限を経過して本邦に残留するもの四　連合国最高司令官の許可を受けて本邦に入つた外国人又は南西諸島人で、本邦内における滞在許可期限又は滞在延期許可期限を経過して本邦を出国しないもの	Article 3 This Cabinet Order shall apply to any person who falls under any of the following items: (1) Persons falling under any item of Article 16 of the Ordinance for Registration or Article 5 of the Cabinet Order for Temporary Measures; (2) Any alien or person having permanent domicile in Nanseishoto South of 30° North Latitude (including Kuchinoshima) (hereinafter referred to as "Nanseishotojin") aboard a vessel or aircraft which enters a port or airfield in Japan with permission of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, and who disembarks from the vessel or aircraft or oversteps bounds of port or airfield of entry without permission of the Immigration Official; (3) Any alien or Nanseishotojin aboard a vessel or aircraft which enters a port or airfield in Japan with permission of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, and who remains in Japan after the expiration of the time specified by the intransit clearance or shore pass issued by the Immigration Official; (4) Any alien or Nanseishotojin who has entered Japan with permission of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers that fails to leave Japan before the expiry of terms of validity of the permit for his stay or of the permit for extension of his stay in Japan.
Nansei islanders Here, again, we see a clear distinction between the status of "aliens" (外国人 gaikokujin) on the one hand and "Nansei islanders" (南西諸島人 Nanseishotōjin) on the other. Entered the legal jurisdiction of Occupied Japan as persons affiliated with other legal jurisdiction.

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Immigration Control Order

1 November 1951

Government Ordinance No. 319 of 1951

Original title

Immigration Control Order
(出入国管理令 Shutsunyūkoku kanri rei)

Promulgated on 4 October 1951.

Most parts came into force from 1 November 1951. Parts related to issuing visas could not be enforced until 28 April 1952, when Japan recovered its sovereignty and, with it, the right to directly control its own borders and foreign affairs.

Though Cabinet Order No. 319 was promulgated as a cabinet order, Law No. 126 of 28 April 1952 gave it the efficacy of law on this date, when the San Francisco Peace Treaty came into force.

Signed by Prime Minister of the Cabinet Yoshida Shigeru. Established by the cabinet pursuant to Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945, "Matters concerning ordinances issued in conjunction with the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration" (ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件 Potsudamu Sengen no judaku ni tomonai hassuru meirei ni kan suru ken).

Enforcement

Article 1 of the supplementary provisions of Cabinet Order No. 319 stated that the order would come into force from 1 October 1951 -- but that Article 2 Item 4 (concerning Japanese consular officer et cetera), and Article 6 Paragraph 1 (concerning the need for a visa issued by a Japanese consular officer, or the need for a re-entry permit) would not come into force until a day to be determined by another cabinet order. This was to be 28 April 1928, the day from which Japan retained its sovereignty.

From this day, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs would have the authority to to appoint Japanese consular officers, who would have the authority to issue visas to aliens overseas. Also from this day, immigration officers in Japan would have the authority to govern the exit and entry of aliens, including the issuing of re-entry permits to qualified aliens already in Japan.

Present title

Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law
(出入国管理及び難民認定法 Shutsunyūkoku kanri oyobi nanmin nintei hō)

This 1981 revision of the 1951 Immigration Control Order came into force from 1982. The order, which had been recognized as a law from 28 April 1952, was now renamed as a law, with the longer name to reflect its incorporation of measures concerning refugee recognition.

The 1951 order was revised by Law No. 85 of 12 June 1981, "Law revising part of the Immigration Control Order" (出入国管理令の一部を改正する法律 Shutsunyūkoku kanri rei no ichibu o kaisei suru hōritsu).

The 1951 order was given its current name as a law (with the same "Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951" designation) by Law No. 86 of 1981, "Law concerning the provisioning of the Immigration Control Order and other related laws associated with acceding to inter alia the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees" (難民の地位に関する条約等への加入に伴う出入国管理令その他関係法律の整備に関する法律 Nanmin no chii ni kan suru jōyaku tō e no kanyū ni tomonau Shutsunyūkoku kanri rei sono ta kankei hōritsu no seibi ni kan suru hōritsu).

The 1981 revisions of the 1951 law came into effect from 1 January 1982 according to Ministry of Justice Order No. 54 of 28 October 1981.

1951 Immigration Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319) Definitions of "this country" and "alien" as of 1 November 1951
Japanese text The Japanese text comes from a copy of the 1951 Immigration Control Order posted on www.nakazatolaw.com. English version The structural English translations of selected articles are mine. The bold emphasis is also mine.
出入国管理令	Immigration control ordinance
昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号	Government Ordinance No. 319 of 1951
(目的)	(Purpose)
第一條この政令は、本邦に入国し、又は本邦から出国するすべての人の出入国の公正な管理について規定することを目的とする。	Article 1 The purpose of this government order is to provide for the impartial [fair] control of the exit-and-entry-of-the-country of all persons who enter-country into this country, or who exit-country from this country.
(定義)	(Definitions)
第二條この政令において、左の各号に掲げる用語の意義は、それぞれ当該各号に定めるところによる。一本邦　本州、北海道、四国及び九州並びにこれらに附属する島で外務省令で定めるものをいう。二外国人　日本の国籍を有しない者のうち、左に掲げる者の一に該当する者以外の者をいう。イ　連合国の軍隊の将兵ロ　連合国占領軍に公に附属する者又は連合国占領軍に随伴してその要務に服する者ハ　連合国人であつて連合国の公務を帶びて本邦に入る者ニ　イ、ロ及びハに掲げる者に随伴するその配偶者、直系血族、兄弟姉妹及びその他の被扶養者三乗員　船舶又は航空機（以下「船舶等」という。）の乗組員をいう。四日本国領事官等　外国に駐在する日本国の大使、公使又は領事官をいう。五旅券　日本国政府、日本国政府の承認した外国政府又は権限のある国際機関の発行した旅券又はこれに代る証明書（日本国領事官等の発行した渡航証明書を含む。）をいう。 [ 省略 ]	Article 2 In this government order, the definitions of the terms noted in each of the items to the left [below] shall be as determined in each of the said items. (1) this country refers to Honshu, Hokkaido, Shikoku and Kyushu and what are determined by Minister of Foreign Affairs ordinances to be islands affiliated with these. (2) alien refers to, among those who do not possess the nationality of Japan, those other than those who fall under one of those cited to the left [below]. (a) Officers and men of the military forces of the Allied Powers (b) Those officially affiliated with the Occupation Forces of the Allied Powers and those accompanying Occupation Forces and performing its essential business (c) Those who are Allied Powers persons and enter this country on official business of the Allied Powers (d) The spouses, lineal blood relatives, siblings, and other dependents accompanying those cited in (a), (b), and (c) (3) crew person refers to a crew member of a vessel or an aircraft (hereafter called "vessels et cetera"). (4) Japanese consular officer et cetera refers to an ambassador, minister, or consular officer of Japan who is resident [stationed] in a foreign country. (5) passport refers to a passport issued by the Japanese government, a foreign government recognized by the Japanese government, or an international organ with [such] authority, or a certificate in lieu of this (including a transit certificate issued by a Japanese consular officer et cetera). [ Other items omitted. ]
"this country" and "alien" (1951 ICO) Article 2 (Definitions) of the 1951 Immigration Control Order (ICO) defined sixteen terms, beginning with "this country" and "alien" (see above). I have shown only the definitions of "this country" and "alien" because their meanings in the 1951 order reflect contemporary conditions -- i.e., the postwar Occupation which nominally ended in 1952 when the San Francisco Peace Treaty came into effect, and other postwar territorial arrangements which continued for two more decades. Both "this country" and "alien" were also defined, though somewhat differently, in the 1947 Alien Registration Order (see above). this country The 1951 definition of "this country" (Item 1) accounted for the fact that Okinawa prefecture, and parts of Kagoshima and Tokyo prefectures, were under direct US administration. Though "this country" continues to be the term used in the present revision of the law, Item 1 now stands empty, as its definition was deleted in [forthcoming]. The Kagoshima islands were returned in the early 1950s -- Tokara Archipelago on 10 February 1952, and Awami Islands on 25 December 1953. The Ogasawara Islands (Bonin Islands) and the Kazan Archipelago (Volcano Islands, Iwojima) were returned on 26 June 1968. Okinawa was returned on 15 May 1972. Though "Japan" no longer needs definition, it continues to have territorial conflicts Russia, the Republic of Korea, and the People's Republic of China. alien The 1951 definition of "alien" (Item 2) excepted non-Japanese who were in Japan in some connection with the Allied Powers, and their families. The 1952 revision of the 1951 law reduced the definition to simply those who are not nationals of Japan, and Item 2 continues to give this general definition. passport The definition of "passport" in the 1982 Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act includes refugee travel documents among certificates acceptable in lieu of a passport, and more broadly any documents equivalent to a passport issued by any authorized regional organization designated by cabinet order.
(在留資格)	(Status [qualification] of residence)
第四條外国人（乗員を除く。以下この條において同じ。）は、この政令中に特別の規定がある場合を除く外、左に掲げる者のいずれか一に該当する者としての在留資格（外国人が本邦に在留するについて本邦において左に掲げる者のいずれか一に該当する者としての活動を行うことができる当該外国人の資格をいう。以下同じ。）を有しなければ本邦に上陸することができない。一外交官若しくは領事官又はこれらの者の随員 [ 省略 ] 八本邦で音楽、美術、文学、科学その他の芸術上又は学術上の活動を行おうとする者 [ 省略 ] 十四本邦で永住しようとする者十五第五号から第十三号までの各号の一に該当する者の配偶者及び未成年の子で配偶者のないもの十六前各号に規定する者を除く外、外務省令で特に定める者 [ 省略 ]	Article 4 An alien (Excluding a crew person. Hereafter in this article the same.), except in a case where there is a special provision in this Cabinet Order, who does not possess a status of residence (Refers to, regarding an alien residing in this country, the status [qualification] of the said alien who is able in this country to conduct activities as a person who falls under one of the persons cited to the left [below]. Hereafter the same.) as a person who falls under one of the persons cited to the left [below], shall not be able to land in this country. 1. Diplomats or consuls or personnel accompanying these persons [ Items 2-7 omitted. ] 8. Persons who would carry out [engage in, conduct] music, fine arts, literature, science or other artistic or academic activities [ Items 9-13 omitted. ] 14. Persons who would permanently reside in this country 15. The spouse, and those who are minor children who have no spouse, of a person who falls under any item from Item 5 to Item 13. 16. Persons other than persons provided in all preceding items, as specially determined by Ministry of Foreign Affairs orders. [ Paragraphs 2-6 omitted. ]
(上陸の拒否)	(Denial of landing)
第五條左の各号の一に該当する外国人は、本邦に上陸することができない。 [ 省略 ] 十四前各号に掲げる者を除く外、外務大臣において日本国の利益又は公安を害する行為を行う虞があると認めるに足りる相当の理由がある者 2 外務大臣は、本邦に上陸しようとする外国人が前項各号のいずれにも該当しない場合でも、その者の国籍又は市民権を有する国が同項各号以外の事由により日本人の上陸を拒否するときは、同一の事由により当該外国人の上陸を拒否することができる。	Article 5 An alien who falls under any item to the left [below] will not be able to land in this country. [ Omitted. ] (14) A person, other than a person cited in one of the preceding items, for whom the Minister of Justice has adequate reason sufficient to recognize there is fear [the person] will commit an act that would be harmful to the interests or the public security of Japan. 2. The Ministry of Justice, even in the event an alien who would land in this country does not fall under any of the preceding items, when the country whose nationality or citizenship the person possesses denies the landing of Japanese on grounds other than the items in the same paragraph, can deny the landing of the said alien on the same grounds.
(上陸の申請)	(Application for landing)
第六條本邦に上陸しようとする外国人（乗員を除く。以下この節において同じ。）は、有効な旅券で日本国領事官等の査証を受けたものを所持しなければならない。但し、日本人の旅券に当該国官憲の査証を必要としない国の国籍若しくは市民権を有する外国人の旅券又は第二十六條の規定による再入国許可書を所持している者の旅券には、日本国領事官等の査証を必要としない。 2 前項本文の外国人は、その者が上陸しようとする出入国港において、外務省令で定める手続により、入国審査官に対し上陸の申請をして、上陸のための審査を受けなければならない。	Article 6 Aliens (Excluding crew persons. Hereafter in this section the same.) who would land in this country must be in possession of something which is a valid passport and has received a visa of a consular officer et cetera of Japan. However, a visa of a Japanese consular officer et cetera will not be required in the passport of a person who possess the nationality or citizenship of a country which does not require a visa of an authority of the said country in the passport of a Japanese, or in the passport of someone who possesses a re-entry permit in accordance with the provisions of Article 26. 2. An alien in the principal clause of the preceding paragraph, at the exit-and-entry-of-the-country port where the person would land, in accordance with procedures determined by Ministry of Foreign Affairs ordinances, must apply for landing to an Immigration Inspector, and receive an examination for the purpose of landing.
"Japanese consular officers et cetera" Paragraph 1 of the above Article 6 -- and Item 4 of Article 2 of this order -- were not enforceable until the effectuation of the San Francisco Peace Treaty from 28 April 1952. Until then, Japanese consular officers did not have the authority to issue visas or otherwise permit or deny entry to Japan. This may seem contrary to the fact that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) had first a department and then an agency which existed for the sole purpose of controlling entrance to, and departure from, Japan. However, until Japan regained its sovereignty on 28 April 1952, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Forces -- not MOFA -- had final say in all movements of people to and from Japan, and their status in Japan. Today, both the Immigration Bureau, and the overseeing of alien registration, are under the Ministry of Justice (MOJ). Outside Japan, MOFA consular officials continue to issue provisional visas, which are subject to the approval or not of MOJ Immigration Inspectors at ports of entry in Japan. This division of bureaucratic roles, between foreign affairs and border control, is common in other countries, including the United States.

(退去強制)	(Deportation) [Leave compulsion]
第二十四條左の各号の一に該当する外国人については、第五章に規定する手続により、本邦からの退去を強制することができる。一　第三條の規定に違反して本邦に入つた者二　第九條第五項の規定に違反して本邦に上陸した者三　前二号に該当する者を除く外、寄港地上陸の許可、観光のための通過上陸の許可、転船上陸の許可、緊急上陸の許可又は水難による上陸の許可を受けないで本邦に上陸した者四　本邦に在留する外国人（仮上陸の許可、寄港地上陸の許可、観光のための通過上陸の許可、転船上陸の許可又は水難による上陸の許可を受けた者を除く。）で左に掲げるものの一に該当するものイ　旅券に記載された在留資格の変更を受けないで当該在留資格以外の在留資格に属する者の行うべき活動をもつぱら行つていると明らかに認められる者ロ　旅券に記載された在留期間を経過して本邦に残留する者ハ　癩予防法の適用を受けている癩患者ニ　精神衞生法に定める精神障害者で同法に定める精神病院又は指定病院に收容されているものホ　貧困者、放浪者、身体障害者等で生活上国又は地方公共団体の負担になつているものヘ　外国人登録令の規定に違反して禁こ以上の刑に処せられた者。但し、執行猶予の言渡を受けた者を除く。ト　少年法（昭和二十三年法律第百六十八号）に規定する少年でこの政令施行後に長期三年をこえる懲役又は禁こに処せられたものチ　この政令施行後に麻薬取締法、大麻取締法又は刑法（明治四十年法律第四十五号）第十四章の規定に違反して有罪の判決を受けた者リ　ヘからチまでに規定する者を除く外、この政令施行後に無期又は一年をこえる懲役若しくは禁こに処せられた者。但し、執行猶予の言渡を受けた者を除くヌ　売いん又はそのあつ旋、勧誘、その場所の提供その他売いんに直接に関係がある業務に従事する者ル　他の外国人で不法に本邦に入り、又は上陸することをあおり、そそのかし、又は助けた者オ　日本国憲法又はその下に成立した政府を暴力で破壞することを企て、若しくは主張し、又はこれを企て若しくは主張する政党その他の団体を結成し、若しくはこれに加入している者ワ　左に掲げる政党その他の団体を結成し、若しくはこれに加入し、又はこれと密接な関係を有する者 (1)　公務員であるという理由に因り、公務員に暴行を加え、又は公務員を殺傷することを勧奬する政党その他の団体 (2)　公共の施設を不法に損傷し、又は破壞することを勧奬する政党その他の団体 (3)　工場事業場における安全保持の施設の正常な維持又は運行を停廃し、又は妨げるよう争議行為を勧奬する政党その他の団体カ　オ又はワに規定する政党その他の団体の目的を達するため、印刷物、映画その他の文書図画を作成し、頒布し、又は展示した者ヨ　イからカまでに掲げる者を除く外、外務大臣が日本国の利益又は公安を害する行為を行つたと認定する者五　仮上陸の許可を受けた者で、第十三條第三項の規定に基き附された條件に違反して、逃亡し、又は正当な理由がなくて呼出に応じないもの六　寄港地上陸の許可、観光のための通過上陸の許可、転船上陸の許可、緊急上陸の許可又は水難による上陸の許可を受けた者で、当該許可書に記載された期間を経過して本邦に残留するもの２　外務大臣は、前項第四号ヨに規定する認定をしようとするときは、あらかじめ法務総裁と協議しなければならない。	Article 24 Regarding an alien who falls under one of any of the items to the left [below], [the Minister of Justice], in accordance with the procedures stipulated in Chapter 5, can compel the leave [withdrawal] of [the person] from this country. 1. A person who has entered this country in violation of the provisions of Article 3 2. A person who has landed in this country in violation of the provisions in Paragraph 5 of Article 9 3. Other than a person who falls under the preceding 2 items, a person who has landed in this country without receiving permission for port-of-call landing, permission for transit landing for purpose of sightseeing, permission for change-of-vessel landing, permission for emergency landing, or permission for landing due to water disaster [disaster at sea] 4. A person who is an alien who stays in this country (Except a person who has received permission for provisional landing, permission for port-of-call landing, permission for transit landing for purpose of sightseeing, permission for change-of-vessel landing, or permission for landing due to water disaster [disaster at sea].) and who falls under [corresponds to, classifies as] one of the persons cited [listed] to the left [below] a. [i] A person who is clearly recognized to be wholeheartedly engaged in an activity that is to be engaged in by a person belonging to a status of stay [residence] other than the concerned [said] [applicable] status of stay [residence] without receiving a change in the status of stay [residence] recorded in [one's] passport b. [ro] A person who stayed in this country exceeding the period of stay recorded in [one's] passport c. [ha] A leprosy-afflicted-person [Leper] subject to the application of the Leprosy Prevention Law d. [ni] One who is a person with a mental disorder determined by the Mental Hygiene Law, and is confined to a mental hospital or designated hospital determined in the same law e. [ho] One who is an indigent person, a vagrant, a person with a physical disorder, or other [person], and for purposes of living are dependent on the state or a regional public body [local government] f. [e]　A person who has violated a provision in the Alien Registration Order and been punished by imprisonment or greater punishment. However, this excepts a person who has received a stay of execution. g. [to] One who is a person is a juvenile as stipulated in the Juvenile Law (Law No. 168 of 1948), and [who] after the enforcement of this government order has been punished by penal servitude or imprisonment exceeding 3 years h. [chi] A person who, after the execution of this government order, violates a provision in the Cannabis Control Law or in Chapter 14 of the Penal Code (Law No. 45 of 1907), and receives a judgment of guilty i. [ri] Others, excepting persons stipulated in f. [e] through h. [chi], who have been punished by penal servitude or imprisonment for an indefinite period or exceeding 1 year, after the enforcement of this government order. However, this excepts a person who has received a stay of execution. j. [nu] A person who engages in a business that directly has a connection with prostitution, inter alia [the] mediation, solicitation, or providing a place [for prostitution] k. [ru] A person who has incited, enticed, or helped another alien enter, or land in, this country illegally l. [o] A person who attempts, or advocates, or forms or joins a political party or other group which attempts or advocates, the overthrow with violence of the Constitution of Japan or the government established thereunder m. [wa] A person who forms, or joins, or has an intimate relationship with, a political party or other group cited [listed] to the left [below] (1) A political party or other group that promotes or encourages the use of violence against a public official, or the killing of a public official, for the reason that the person is a public official, (2) A political party or other group that promotes or encourages the damage, or destruction, unlawfully of a public facility (3) A political party or other group that promotes or encourages the [labor] dispute action that would prevent, or obstruct, the normal maintenance or operation of facilities for maintaining safety at a factory or workplace n. [ka] A persons who engages in the production, distribution, or display of publications, films, or other literature and images for the purpose of achieving the goals of a political party or group cited in l. [o] or m. [wa]. o. [yo] Others, excluding persons cited in a. [i] through n. [ka], who the Minister of Foreign Affairs determines [recognizes] has committed an act that harms the interests or security of Japan 5. A person who has received permission for provisional landing, and who in violation of the conditions based on and imposed by the provisions of Paragraph 3 of Article 3, fled, or without justifiable reason did not respond to a call [summons] 6. A person has been permitted permission for port-of-call landing, permission for transit landing for purpose of sightseeing, permission for change-of-vessel landing, permission for emergency landing, or permission for landing due to water disaster [disaster at sea], but have stayed exceeding the period recorded on the concerned [said] permission document [permit]. 2. As for the Minister of Foreign Affairs, as for the when [at which time] [he] would effect the determination [recognition] stipulated [provided] in Item o. [yo] of Subparagraph 4 of the preceding paragraph, must beforehand deliberate with the Attorney Genneral.
"stays . . . status of stay . . . period of stay" To conform with the Japanese metaphors, I am translating 在留 (zairyū) as "stay" in all instances of occurrence. Hence "honpō ni zairyū suru gaikokujin" (本邦に在留する外国人) is "an alien who stays in this country" -- "stays" in the general sense of "remains" or "sojourns" and not in the specific sense of "resides" (居住する kyojū suru). English versions of Immigration Control Bureau forms and related literature show "period of stay" (在留期間 zairyū kikan) and "status of residence" (在留資格 zairyū shikaku). The former is metaphorically correct. The latter is actually status [qualification] of "stay" and not "residence" -- a different matter, hence a different metaphor. "Minister of Foreign Affairs . . . Attorney General" At the time, exit-enter-country control [border control, emigration and immigration control], and alien registration, were under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. These functions, and their related laws, would not be under the Ministry of Justice until 1 August 1952, when the Attorney General's Office was restablished as the Ministry of Justice.
(送還先)	(Destination of deportation)
第五十三條退去強制を受ける者は、その者の国籍又は市民権を有する国に送還されるものとする。２前項の国に送還することができないときは、本人の希望により、左に掲げる国のいずれかに送還されるものとする。一本邦に入国する直前に居住していた国二本邦に入国する前に居住していたことのある国三本邦に向けて船舶等に乗つた港の属する国四出生地の属する国五出生時にその出生地の属していた国六その他の国	Article 53 A person who is to receive [be subject to] deportation [compulsory leave] shall be returned to the country in which the person possesses nationality or citizenship. 2. When it is not possible to return [the person] to the country in the preceding paragraph, in accordance with the person's wishes, [the person] shall be returned to one of the countries cited to the left [below]. (1) The country in which [the person] had been residing immediately before entering this country (2) A country in which [the person] had resided before entering this country (3) The country with which the port where [the person] heading for this country boarded the vessel et cetera is affiliated (4) The country with which the person's place of birth is affiliated (5) The country with which the [person's] place of birth had been affiliated at the time of birth (6) Another country
"nationality or citizenship" Paragraph 14 of Article 5 (Denial of landing), Article 6 (Application for landing), and Article 53 (Destination of deportation) contain the only mentions in basic Japanese laws of what was at the time intended to reflect the term "citizenship" in English as a term for status in the domestic laws of certain other countries. The terms "nationality or citizenship" are paired because, though only "nationality" is defined in international private law and in Japanese domestic law, some states use metaphors for one term, the other, or both -- and states which use both may use them synonymously or with different meanings. The term "citizenship" (市民権 shiminken) continues to be used exactly twice -- in the same two articles of the operating "Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act" of 1982. When speaking people in terms of affiliation, whether Japanese or aliens (including stateless people), only the term "nationality" (国籍 kokuseki) is used -- as in the definition of "alien" in Article 2. The Immigration Control Order was written to facilitate the need to cover contingencies in translation. Those who drafted the order needed to accommodate the propensity of especially Americans to view a passport as proof of "citizenship" and confuse "nationality" with "national origin", which in American usage connotes "race" or "ethnicity". See the Nationality glossary feature in the "Nationality" section for more about why the term "citizenship" has no currency in Japanese law.
附則	Supplementary provisions
(施行期日) １この政令は、昭和二十六年十一月一日から施行する。但し、第二條第四号及び第六條第一項の規定は、政令で定める日から施行する。 (廃止する政令) ２左の政令は、廃止する。出入国の管理に関する政令（昭和二十四年政令第二百九十九号）不法入国者等退去強制手続令（昭和二十六年政令第三十三号） [ 省略 ]	(Enforcement date) 1. This cabinet order shall come into force from 1 October 1951. However, the provisions of Article 2 Item 4 and Article 6 Paragraph 1 shall come into force from the day to be determined by a cabinet order. (Cabinet orders to be abolished) 2. The cabinet orders to the left [below] are abolished. Cabinet order concerning the control of the exit-and-entry-of-the-country (Cabinet Order No. 299 of 1949) Order for procedures for deportation [compulsory leave] of illegal entrants and others (Cabinet Order No. 33 of 1951) [ Rest omitted. ]
Precursor laws abolished This law incorporated and abolished the 1947 "Cabinet order concerning the control of the exit-and-entry-of-the-country" (CO 299 of 1949), which had been promulgated on and came into force on 10 August 1949. It also incorporated and abolished the 1951 "Order for procedures for deportation [compulsory leave] of illegal entrants and others" (CO 33 of 1951), promulgated on 28 February 1951, some parts of which were enforced from that date, others from 1 April 1951 (though in this order was abolished before some parts could be enforced).

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Civil Affairs A No. 438 notification

28 April 1952

Civil Affairs A No. 438
Notification of the Director-General
Civil Affairs Bureau, Attorney General's Office (Ministry of Justice from 1 August 1952)
dated 19 April 1952
Concerning the disposition of nationality and family register matters regarding Chosenese, Taiwanese, and others, associated with the effectuation of the Treaty of Peace

This notification informed registrars and other concerned parties, in addition to the public, that effective from the day of the enforcement of the San Francisco Peace Treaty, owing to the separation of Chōsen (Korea) and Taiwan (Formosa) from Japan's national territory confirmed by the terms of the treaty, Chosenese and Taiwanese, having reverted to the nationalities associated with these territories before they became part of Japan, would lose the nationality of Japan.

On account of having lost Japanese nationality pursuant to the interpretation of the effects of the Peace Treaty reflected in this notification, Taiwanese and Chosenese became categorically aliens under the 1951 Immigration Control Order and the 1952 Alien Registration Law.

For a full transcription and structural translation of this notification, and commentary on its credibility as an interpretation of the effects of the Peace Treaty, see Separation and choice.

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Anti-terrorist measures at ports of entry

20 November 2007

Promulgated by Law No. 43 of 24 May 2006.

Fingerprint and photograph rules enforced from 20 November 2007.

Parts of the law automatically came into force 20 days after promulgation (13 June 2006) or six months later (24 November 2006). Other parts came into force by cabinet order within one year (1 February 2007, by Cabinet Order No. 391 of 20 December 2006) or within one year and six months (20 November 2007, Cabinet Order No. 301 of 11 October 2007).

The 2006 law made provisions in the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law to (1) prevent terrorism, (2) streamline control of entering and leaving the country, and (3) implement throughout the country special measures in accordance with the "Special zones for structural reforms law" (構造改革特別区域法), which concerned deregulation, and called for attracting and accommodating aliens engaging in specific research activities.

2007 Individual identification information procedures Fingerprint and facial scans required of most alien entrants
Japanese text The following Japanese text is a reformatted version of the text retrieved from the Laws and regulations data provision system (法令データ提供システム Hōrei deeta teikyō shisutemu), a law database on the e-Government server of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. English translation The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).
出入国管理及び難民認定法の一部を改正する法律 Law revising parts of Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law 平成十八年五月二十四日法律第四十三号 Law No. 43 of 24 May 2006
出入国管理及び難民認定法（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）の一部を次のように改正する。 [ 省略 ]	[This law] shall revise parts of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law (Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951) as follows. [ Most parts omitted. ]
第六条の次に次の一項を加える。	Add the following single paragraph following Article 6.
第四條３　前項の申請をしようとする外国人は、入国審査官に対し、申請者の個人の識別のために用いられる法務省令で定める電子計算機の用に供するため、法務省令で定めるところにより、電磁的方式（電子的方式、磁気的方式その他人の知覚によつては認識することができない方式をいう。以下同じ。）によつて個人識別情報（指紋、写真その他の個人を識別することができる情報として法務省令で定めるものをいう。以下同じ。）を提供しなければならない。ただし、次の各号のいずれかに該当する者については、この限りでない。一　日本国との平和条約に基づき日本の国籍を離脱した者等の出入国管理に関する特例法（平成三年法律第七十一号）に定める特別永住者（以下「特別永住者」という。）二　十六歳に満たない者三　本邦において別表第一の一の表の外交の項又は公用の項の下欄に掲げる活動を行おうとする者四　国の行政機関の長が招へいする者五　前二号に掲げる者に準ずる者として法務省令で定めるもの	Article 4 3. Aliens who would apply under the preceding paragraph will, to an Immigration Inspector, in order to facilitate the use of electronic computers as determined by Ministry of Justice ordinance which are to be used for identification of individual applicants, in accordance with what is determined by Ministry of Justice ordinance, must provide individual identification information (Refers to fingerprints, photographs and other things as determined by Ministry of Justice ordinance as information that can identify individuals. Hereafter the same.) by means of electromagnetic format (Refers to electronic format, magnetic format and other formats that cannot be discerned by sensory perception. Hereafter the same.). However, regarding persons who fall under any of the following items, this shall not apply. (1) A special Permanent Resident as determined by the Special law concerning, inter alia, the exit-entry-country [immigration] control of persons who based on the Treaty of Peace with Japan separated from the nationality of Japan (Law No. 71 of 1991) (Hereafter referred to as "Special Permanent Resident".) (2) A person who is not fully 16 years of age (3) A person who in this country would conduct activities cited in the lower [right] column of the paragraph on Diplomacy or the paragraph on Official Business in Part 1 of Appended Table 1 [concerning status of residence in the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law] (4) A person who the head of a government agency of the state invites [to this country] (5) One who is determined by a Ministry of Justice ordinance as a person who is equivalent to a person cited in the preceding two items

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Treaty status laws

From practically the very beginning of the Occupation of Japan in 1945, Taiwanese and Chosenese were treated different from other Japanese. Even after the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) defined them as "non-Japanese" for purposes of the Occupation, they were also treated differently from aliens.

In other words, Taiwanese and Chosenese were at once both Japanese and Alien, and neither.

The ambiguity of status their status was partly resolved from 28 April 1952, when Taiwanese and Chosenese became aliens. As aliens, however, they were not required to have a status of residence until specific statuses were established.

Over the decades, a number of statuses were defined for different cohorts of aliens in Japan who qualified as former Japanese and their lineal descendants. Then in 1991, these statuses were subsumed under a single status called Special Permanent Resident.

For an overview of treaties and other laws related to special alien statuses of residence, see Alien control laws in Japan: The regulation of entry, stay, and residence.

See below for details on selected provisions in treaties and other laws which have established special statuses of residence for aliens in Japan who qualify as former Japanese and their descendants.

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1952 Foreign Ministry Potsdam Declaration Law

28 April 1952

Law No. 126 of 1952 (28 April)
Promulgated on and enforced from 28 April 1952

ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件に基く外務省関係諸命令の措置に関する法律

Potsudamu Sengen no judaku ni tomonai hassuru meirei ni kan suru ken ni motozuku Gaimushō kankei shomeirei no sōchi ni kan suru hōritsu

Law concerning measures for various Ministry of Foreign Affairs related ordinances based on matters concerning ordinances issued in conjunction with the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration

Law 126, Article 2, Paragraph 6

This article is important primarily because it established the right of those who had separated from Japanese nationality under the terms of the San Francisco Peace Treaty to reside to continue to reside in Japan without acquiring a status of residence until their status was determined by other laws.

Article 2, Paragraph 6 defined such aliens as those who had been residing in the prefectures on or before 2 September 1945, and descendants born in Japan on or after 3 September 1945. Accordingly, such persons are sometimes referred to as "Law 126-2-6" (法126の2の6) aliens.

Several statuses were defined over the next three decades. The first was the 4-1-16-2 status of residence established by a 1952 ministerial order pursuant to Article 4-1-16 of the 1951 Immigration Control Order. Two more statuses were defined in 1966 and 1982 laws. Some, but not all, aliens with the 126-2-6 or 4-1-16-2 statuses were able to migrate to the 1966 or 1982 status.

All these statuses were combined into a single "Special Permanent Resident" status by the 1991 "Special law concerning, inter alia, the exit-entry-country [immigration] control of persons who based on the Treaty of Peace with Japan separated from the nationality of Japan" (Law No. 71).

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

What had been the Emigration-Immigration Control Bureau (出入国管理局) under the Ministry of Justice since 1 August 1952 was, at the time this law came into effect, the Immigration Control Agency (入国管理庁) under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

An "Immigration Control Department" (入国管理部) was established in the Control Bureau (管理局) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 10 August 1949. From 1 October 1950, the department was made an external MOFA agency called "Emigration-Immigration Control Agency" (出入国管理庁). From 1 November 1951, this became simply the "Immigration Control Agency" (入国管理部).

Alien registration, which had been under the Civil Affairs Bureau (民事局) of the Attorney General's Office (法務府), was taken over by the MOFA agency from 1 October 1950.

1952 Foreign Ministry Potsdam Declaration Law Persons residing in Japan from on or before 2 September 1945, and their lineal descendants born on or after 3 September 1945
Japanese text The Japanese text was downloaded from the statutory law database on the 衆議院 (The House of Representatives) website. Only the part of the law related to the status of those in Japan who lost their Japanese nationality because of postwar treaties and agreements, and their descendants, are shown. English translation The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).
ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件に基く外務省関係諸命令の措置に関する法律 Law concerning measures for various Ministry of Foreign Affairs related ordinances based on matters concerning ordinances issued in conjunction with the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration 法律第百二十六号（昭二七・四・二八）外務・内閣総理大臣署名 Law No. 126 (28 April 1952) Signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister of the Cabinet
(出入国管理令の一部改正)	(Partial revision of Immigration Control Order)
第一条出入国管理令（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）の一部を次のように改正する。第二条第二号を次のように改める。二　外国人　日本の国籍を有しない者をいう。	Article 1 [This law] revises part of the Immigration Control Order (1951 Cabinet Order No. 319) as follows. Article 2, Item 2 is amended as follows. (2) alien refers to a person who does not possess the nationality of Japan.
(出入国管理令の一部改正に伴う経過規定)	(Transitional provisions associated with partial revisions of the Immigration Control Order)
第二条この法律施行の際現に本邦に在留する外国人で左の各号の一に該当するものが引き続き在留資格を有することなく本邦に在留することができる期間は、出入国管理令第二十二条の二第一項の規定にかかわらず、この法律施行の日から六月とする。一　連合国最高司令官の許可を得て本邦に入国した者二　昭和二十年九月二日以前から引き続き外国人として本邦に在留する者三　日本国との平和条約の規定に基き同条約の最初の効力発生の日において日本の国籍を離脱する者で、昭和二十年九月三日以後本邦に入国して引き続き在留し、且つ、外国人登録法（昭和二十七年法律第百二十五号）による外国人登録証明書を所持するもの２　前項に規定する外国人で同項の期間をこえて本邦に在留しようとするものの入国管理庁長官に対する在留資格の取得の申請の期間は、出入国管理令第二十二条の二第二項の規定にかかわらず、この法律施行の日から三月以内とする。 [ 省略 ] ６　日本国との平和条約の規定に基き同条約の最初の効力発生の日において日本の国籍を離脱する者で、昭和二十年九月二日以前からこの法律施行の日まで引き続き本邦に在留するもの（昭和二十年九月三日からこの法律施行の日までに本邦で出生したその子を含む。）は、出入国管理令第二十二条の二第一項の規定にかかわらず、別に法律で定めるところによりその者の在留資格及び在留期間が決定されるまでの間、引き続き在留資格を有することなく本邦に在留することができる。	Article 2 The period that one who is an alien residing in this country as of when this law comes into force and falls under one of the items to the left [below] will be able to continuously reside in this country without having a status of residence, not withstanding the provisions of Article 22-2, Paragraph 1 of the Immigration Control Order, shall be six months from the day this law comes into force. (1) A person who entered this country with the permission of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (2) A person who has been continuously residing in this country as an alien since on or before 2 September 1945 (3) One who is a person who based on provisions of the Treaty of Peace with Japan will separate from the nationality of Japan on the first day the same treaty comes into effect, and who entered this country on or after 3 September 1945 and has been continuously residing [in this country], and, possesses an Alien Registration Certificate in accordance with the Alien Registration Law (Law No. 125 of 1952) 2. The period of application to the Director of the Immigration Control Agency for acquisition of status of residence for one who is an alien as provided in the preceding paragraph and would live in this country exceeding the period in the same paragraph, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 22-2 Paragraph 2 of the Immigration Control Order, shall be within three months of the day this law comes into force. [ Paragraphs 3-5 omitted. ] 6. One who is a person who based on provisions of the Treaty of Peace with Japan will separate from the nationality of Japan on the first day the same treaty comes into effect, and who has been continuously residing in this country from on or before 2 September 1945 to the day this law comes into force (including a child of [such] who was born in this country from [on or after] 3 September 1945 to [and by] the day this law comes into force), notwithstanding the provisions of Article 22-2 Paragraph 1 of the Immigration Control Order, until the status of residence and the period of residence of such persons are decided in accordance with determinations of other laws, shall be able to continuously [continue to] reside in this country without having a status of residence.
"as an alien" Article 2(1)2 refers to persons who were in "this country" (i.e., "Japan" as redefined by SCAP) as aliens (i.e., persons who do not possess the nationality of Japan) as of the day of the formal surrender. It explicitly does not include persons who were then Japanese and lost their Japanese nationality on the day the peace treaty came into effect. "one who will separate from the nationality of Japan" Both Article 2(1)3 and Article 2(6) refer to those who lost their nationality as a result of the 1952 peace treaty. The later defines such persons who will be entitled to special statuses of residence. The former defines those who are to be treated as ordinary aliens.
(入国管理庁設置令の一部改正)	(Partial revision of Immigration Control Agency Establishment Order)
第三条入国管理庁設置令（昭和二十六年政令第三百二十号）の一部を次のように改正する。第三条第一項を次のように改める。入国管理庁は、出入国管理令（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）による出入国の管理及び外国人登録法（昭和二十七年法律第百二十五号）による外国人の登録に関する事務を行うことを任務とする。 [ 省略 ]	Article 3 [This law] shall revise parts of the Immigration Control Agency Establishment Order (Cabinet Order No. 320 of 1951) as follows. Amend Article 3 Paragraph 1 as follows. The Immigration Control Agency shall be responsible for carrying out work [business, tasks] concerning the control of exit-and-entry-of-country [immigration] according to the Immigration Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951) and the registration of aliens according to the Alien Registration Law (Law No. 125 of 1952). [ Rest omitted. ]
(将来存続すべき命令)	(Orders to be continued in the future)
第四条第一条及び前条に規定する命令は、この法律施行後も法律としての効力を有するものとする。	Article 4 The laws and regulations stipulated in Article 1 and in the preceding article [Article 3] shall possess the efficacy of law after the enforcement of this law.
"efficacy of law" All cabinet and other such orders issued during the Occupation, under the direction of SCAP, would automatically expire unless specifically extended as laws. Article 1 stipulated the "Immigration Control Order" of 1951 (Cabinet Order No. 319). The "preceding article" (Article 3) stipulated the "Immigration Control Agency Establishment Order" of 1951 (Cabinet Order No. 320). At the time, both immigration and alien registration were under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. See Immigration Bureau's MOFA roots for details about the development of the bureau that is now under the Ministry of Justice.
(命令の廃止)	(Abolition of orders)
第五条左の命令は、廃止する。一　朝鮮人、中華民国人、本島人及本籍を北緯三十度以南（口之島を含む）の鹿児島県又は沖縄県に有する者登録令（昭和二十一年厚生省令、内務省令、司法省令第一号）二　北緯二十九度以南の南西諸島に本籍を有する者の渡航制限に関する臨時措置令（昭和二十五年政令第二百二十七号）	Article 5 The orders to the left [below] shall be abolished. 1. Order for registration of Chosenese, Chinese [Republic of China nationals], This-island-people [Taiwanese], and persons who possess a principal register in Kagoshima prefecture south of 30 degrees north latitude (including Kuchinoshima) or Okinawa prefecture (Ministry of Welfare Order, Ministry of Interior Affairs Order, Ministry of Justice Order No. 1 of 1946). 2. Temporary measures order concerning transit restrictions of persons who possess a principal register in the Nansei Islands south of 29 degrees north latitude [Cabinet Order No. 227 of 1950].
"30 degrees" versus "29 degrees" The original title of Cabinet Order No. 227 of 1950 was "30 degrees north latitude" but it was revised shortly before this law (Law No. 126) was enacted, to reflect the return of three Kagoshima islands between 29 and 30 degrees north latitude on 5 December 1951. Presumably Joint Welfare, Interior, and Justice Order No. 1 of 1946 was not similarly revised from 30 to 29 degrees because it was already regarded as a dead law.
附則	Supplementary Provisions
１　この法律は、日本国との平和条約の最初の効力発生の日から施行する。	1. This law shall come into force from the first day the Treaty of Peace with Japan comes into effect.

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1966 Special immigration law to implement Japan-ROK status agreement

17 January 1966

Promulgated on 17 December 1965 (Law No. 146 of 1965)
Enforced from 17 January 1966

On 18 December 1965, Japan and ROK exchanged ratifications of the many treaties and agreements they had signed mostly in June, including the status agreement, which would come into effect from 17 January 1966. On 17 December 1965, the day before the exchange of ratifications, Japan promulgated the following law (Law No. 146 of 1965), which would come into force a month later to implement the status agreement.

日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法 (Nihonkoku ni kyojū suru Dai-Kan-Minkoku kokumin no hōteki chii oyobi taigū ni kan suru Nihonkoku to Dai-Kan-Minkoku to no aida no kyōtei no jissen ni tomonau shutsunyūkoku kanri tokubetsu hō)

In English, structurally translated, this becomes "Exit-and-entry-of-the country control special law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan".

This law is now sometimes referred to as the "Old Japan-ROK Special Law" (旧日韓特別法 Kyū Nik-Kan tokubetsu hō) to reflect that it has been superseded by the 1991 special provisions law (see below), which integrated its permanent residence status with the 14-1-16-2 status defined by 1952 and 1953 laws (see above) and the status provided by the 1982 special measure (see below).

1966 Special law to implement status agreement Treaty-based permanent residence for qualified ROK nationals
Japanese text The Japanese text was downloaded from the statutory law database on the 衆議院 (The House of Representatives) website. English translation The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall). Note, as always, that my translations are intentionally structural, which means key terms and phrases are translated the same even though English idiom and style might prefer different words or expressions. Law reflects agreement Because this law and the Japan-ROK agreement were written with each other in mind, much of the Japanese phrasing is the law is identical to the phrasing in the Japanese version of the agreement. The following structural translation can therefore be compared with equivalent parts of the received English translation of the agreement (see below).
日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法 Immigration control special provisions law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan 法律第百四十六号（昭四〇・一二・一七） Law No. 146 (17 December 1965)
(協定に基づく永住)	(Permanent residence based on Agreement)
第一条日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定（以下「協定」という。）第一条１及び２に規定する大韓民国国民は、法務大臣の許可を受けて、本邦（出入国管理令（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）に定める本邦をいう。）で永住することができる。２　法務大臣は、前項に規定する者が協定第一条１から３までに定める期間内に前項の許可の申請をしたときは、これを許可するものとする。	Article 1 Republic of Korea nationals provided in 1 and 2 of Article 1 of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan (Hereafter referred to as "Agreement".) shall, receiving the permission of the Minister of Justice, be able to permanently reside in this country (Refers to this country as determined in the Immigration Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951). 2. The Minister of Justice, when a person provided in the preceding paragraph makes an application for the permission of the preceding paragraph within the period determined in from Articles 1 to 3 of the Agreement, shall permit this.
"this country" At the time Japan and the Republic of Korea concluded the status agreement, the term "this country" was defined in Article 2 of the contemporary version of the 1951 Immigration Control Order as "Honshu, Hokkaido, Shikoku and Kyushu and what are determined by Minister of Foreign Affairs ordinances to be islands affiliated with these." Okinawa, and the Ogasawaras and some other islands, have not yet been returned to Japan. Hence any law concerning the status of aliens in Japan, including ROK nationals who are residing in Japan and qualify under the Japan-ROK Agreement for permanent residence as provided in this law, will not extend to these territories.
(申請)	(Application)
第二条前条の許可の申請は、居住地の市町村（東京都の特別区の存する区域及び地方自治法（昭和二十二年法律第六十七号）第二百五十二条の十九第一項の指定都市にあつては区。以下同じ。）の事務所に自ら出頭し、当該市町村の長に、法務省令で定めるところにより、永住許可申請書その他の書類及び写真を提出して行なわなければならない。ただし、十四歳に満たない者については、写真を提出することを要しない。２　十四歳に満たない者についての前条の許可の申請は、親権を行なう者又は後見人が代わつてしなければならない。３　第一項の場合において、申請をしようとする者が疾病その他身体の故障により出頭することができないときは、法務省令で定めるところにより、代理人を出頭させることができる。４　市町村の長は、第一項の書類及び写真の提出があつたときは、前条の許可を受けようとする者が申請に係る居住地に居住しているかどうか、及び提出された書類の成立が真正であるかどうかを審査したうえ、これらの書類（法務省令で定める書類を除く。）及び写真を、都道府県知事を経由して、法務大臣に送付しなければならない。	Article 2 3. As for the application for the permission of Paragraph 1, it must be carried out [by] personally appearing at the office of the city, town, or village of place of residence (and wards, in the areas of Tokyo prefecture where special wards exist or in the designated cities of Paragraph 1 of Article 252-19 of the Local Autonomy Law (Act No. 67 of 1947)), and submitting, to the head of the said city, town, or village, in accordance with determinations by Ministry of Justice orders, an Application for Permission for Permanent Residence and other documents, and a photograph. However, regarding a person who is not yet fourteen years of age, it shall not be necessary to submit a photograph. 2. As for the application for permission of the preceding article regarding a person who is not yet fourteen years of age, a person exercising parental rights or the guardian of [the] minor must make it in lieu of [the concerned person]. 3. In the event of Paragraph 1, when the person who would make the application cannot appear because of illness or another physical [bodily] impairment, in accordance with determinations by Ministry of Justice orders, it shall be possible for [the person] to have a representative appear. 4. The head of the city, town, or village, when there is a submission of the documents and photograph of Paragraph 1, having examined whether or not the person who would receive the permission of the preceding article is residing at the place of residence related [pertaining] to the application, and whether or not the formation of the submitted documents is accurate [true and correct], shall send these documents (Except documents determined by Ministry of Justice orders.) and the photograph to the Minister of Justice, through the prefectural governor.
(調査)	(Investigation)
第三条法務大臣は、第一条の許可を受けようとする者が同条第一項に規定する者に該当するかどうかを審査するため必要があるときは、入国審査官又は入国警備官に事実の調査をさせることができる。２　入国審査官又は入国警備官は、前項の調査のため必要があるときは、関係人に対し出頭を求め、質問をし、又は文書の提示を求めることができる。３　入国審査官又は入国警備官は、第一項の調査について、公務所又は公私の団体に照会して必要な事項の報告を求めることができる。	Article 3 The Minister of Justice, when there is need to examine whether or not the person who would receive the permission of Article 1 falls under a person provided in Paragraph 1, shall be able to have an Immigration Inspector or an Immigration Security Officer make an investigation. 2. Immigration Inspectors and Immigration Security Officers, when there is a need for the investigation of the preceding paragraph, shall be able to seek the appearance of, ask questions, and/or seek presentations of documents of the concerned person. 3. Immigration Inspectors and Immigration Security Officers, , regarding an investigation of Paragraph 1, shall be to query public offices and public and private organizations and seek reports of essential matters.
(永住許可書の交付及び外国人登録原票等への記載)	(Issuance of certificate of permission for permanent residence and recordings to Alien Registration Record et cetera)
第四条法務大臣は、第一条の許可をしたときは、永住許可書を、都道府県知事及び市町村の長を経由して、交付するものとする。２　都道府県知事又は市町村の長は、第一条の許可を受けた者については、その者に係る外国人登録法（昭和二十七年法律謨S二十五号）に定める外国人登録原票の写票又は同法に定める外国人登録原票及び登録証明書に同条の許可があつたことを記載するものとする。	Article 4 The Minister of Justice, when making the permission of Article 1, shall issue a Certificate of Permission for Permanent Residence through the prefectural governor and the head of the city, town, or village. 2. The governor of the prefecture or the head of the city, town, or village, regarding the person who received the permission of Article 1, shall record on the copy of the Alien Registration Record as determined by the Alien Registration Law (Law No. 125 of 1952) or the Alien Registration Record and the [Alien] Registration Certificate as determined by the same law, related to the person, that there was the permission of the same article.
(許可の失効)	(Loss of efficacy of permission)
第五条第一条の許可を受けている者が大韓民国の国籍を失つたときは、その許可は、効力を失う。	Article 5 When one who is receiving the permission of Article 1 has lost the nationality of the Republic Korea, that permission shall lose its efficacy.
"lost ROK nationality" Because this law implemented the Japan-ROK agreement, and since the agreement concerned the status of ROK nationals in Japan who met the agreement's residential requirements, the law could not apply to an alien who was not an ROK national, even though the alien might otherwise qualify. Most Japan-resident Chosenese would have qualified except that they were not ROK nationals. After the status agreement and this implementation law came into effect, a number of Chosenese obtained ROK nationality by the application deadline in order to qualify for permanent residence. ROK nationals residing in Japan could lose their ROK nationality any number of ways. The most likely cause for loss of nationality was naturalization in Japan. The nationality laws of both Japan and ROK occasioned the loss of one nationality in order to prevent dual nationality. ROK nationals in Japan could also lose their ROK nationality by obtaining the nationality of another country, as through marriage.
(退去強制)	(Deportation [compulsory leave])
第六条第一条の許可を受けている者については、出入国管理令第二十四条の規定による退去強制は、その者がこの法律の施行の日以後の行為により次の各号の一に該当することとなつた場合に限つて、することができる。一　刑法（明治四十年法律第四十五号）第二編第二章又は第三章に規定する罪により禁錮以上の刑に処せられた者。ただし、執行猶予の言渡しを受けた者及び同法第七十七条第一項第三号の罪により刑に処せられた者を除く。二　刑法第二編第四章に規定する罪により禁錮以上の刑に処せられた者三　外国の元首、外交使節又はその公館に対する犯罪行為により禁錮以上の刑に処せられた者で、法務大臣においてその犯罪行為により日本国の外交上の重大な利益が害されたと認定したもの四　営利の目的をもつて、麻薬取締法（昭和二十八年法律第十四号）、大麻取締法（昭和二十三年法律第百二十四号）、あへん法（昭和二十九年法律第七十一号）又は刑法第十四章に規定する罪を犯し、無期又は三年以上の懲役に処せられた者。ただし、執行猶予の言渡を受けた者を除く五　麻薬取締法、大麻取締法、あへん法又は刑法第十四章に規定する罪により三回（この法律の施行の日前の行為によりこれらの罪により三回以上刑に処せられた者については、二回）以上刑に処せられた者六　無期又は七年をこえる懲役又は禁錮に処せられた者２　法務大臣は、前項第三号の認定をしようとするときは、あらかじめ外務大臣と協議しなければならない。３　第一条の許可を受けている者に関しては、出入国管理令第二十七条、第三十一条第三項、第三十九条第一項、第四十三条第一項、第四十五条第一項、第四十七条第一項及び第二項、第六十二条第一項並びに第六十三条第一項中「第二十四条各号」とあるのは、「日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法第六条第一項各号」とする。	Article 6 Regarding a person who receives the permission of Article 1, deportation in accordance with the provisions of Article 24 of the Immigration Control Order, shall be possible, limited to cases in which the person has come to fall under any of the following items because of acts on or after the day of enforcement of this law. (1) A person who has been dealt a punishment of confinement [up to and including 30 days] or above because of a crime provided in Part 2, Chapter 2 or Chapter 3 of the Penal Code (Law No. 45 of 1907). However, [this provision] shall exclude a person who has received a rendition of a stay of execution or a person who has been dealt a punishment because of a crime of Article 77, Paragraph 1, Item 3 of the same law. (2) A person who has been dealt a punishment of confinement or more because of a crime provided in in Part 2, Chapter 4 of the Penal Code (3) A person who has been dealt a punishment of confinement or more because of a criminal act against a head of state, a diplomatic legation or its facilities, of a foreign country, and the Minister of Justice has recognized that the diplomatically vital interests of Japan have been damaged because of that act (4) A person who, with the object of gain, has committed a crime provided in the Narcotics Control Law (Law No. 14 of 1953), the Cannabis Control Law (Law No.124 of 1948) the Opium Law (Law No. 71 of 1954) or the Chapter 14 of the Penal Code, and has been dealt an imprisonment indefinite or three or more years. However, [this provision] shall exclude a person who has received a rendition of stay of execution. (5) A person who has been dealt a punishment three or more times because of a crime because of crimes provided in the Narcotics Control Law, the Cannabis Control Law, the Opium Law or the Chapter 14 of the Penal Code (two times, regarding a person who because of acts on or before the enforcement of this law has been dealt a punishment three or more times because these crimes) (6) A person has been dealt an imprisonment or a confinement indefinite or exceeding seven years 2. The Minister of Justice, when he would recognize Item 3 of the preceding paragraph, must in advance consult with the Minister of Foreign Affairs. 3. Concerning a person who is receiving the permission of Article 1, where there is [the stipulation] "any item of Article 24" in Article 27, Article 31 Paragraph 3, Article 39 Paragraph 1, Article 43 Paragraph 1, Article 45 Paragraph 1, Article 47 Paragraph 1 and Paragraph 2, Article 62 Paragraph 1 and Article 63 Paragraph 1 of the Immigration Control Order, [this] shall be "any item of Paragraph 1 of Article 6 of the Immigration control special law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan".
(出入国管理令の適用)	(Application of Immigration Control Order)
第七条第一条の許可を受けている者の出入国及び在留については、この法律に特別の規定があるもののほか、出入国管理令による。	Article 7 Regarding the exit and entry of the country and the residence [sojourn] of those who receive the permission of Article 1, other than matters for which in this law there are special provisions [in addition to what is provided for in this law], shall be in accordance with the Immigration [exit-and-entry-of-the country] Control Order.
(省令への委任)	(Delegation to ministerial ordinance)
第八条この法律の実施のための手続その他その執行について必要な事項は、法務省令で定める。	Article 8 Procedures for enforcing this law and other matters essential to its execution shall be determined by Ministry of Justice ordinances.
(罰則)	(Penalties)
第九条次の各号の一に該当する者は、一年以下の懲役又は三万円以下の罰金に処する。一　虚偽の申請をして第一条の許可を受け又は受けさせた者二　威力を用いて第一条の許可の申請を妨げた者	Article 9 One who falls under any of the following items shall be dealt an imprisonment of no more than one year or a fine of no more than 30,000 yen. (1) One who has received or has been caused to receive the permission of Article 1 making a false application (2) One who impedes an application for the permission of Article 1 using force
附則	Supplementary provisions
この法律は、協定の効力発生の日から施行する。	This law shall come into force from the day of the start of effectuation of the Agreement.
(法務・外務・内閣総理大臣署名)	(Signatures of Minister of Justice, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Prime Minister of the Cabinet)

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1982 Special measure on immigration control

1 January 1982

Provisions for "Special Measure Permanent Residence" (特例永住 tokurei eijū) were included in Law No. 85 of 12 June 1981, which revised part of the 1951 Immigration Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319) to include refugee recognition measures.

"Special Measure Permanent Residence" did not became available until 1 January 1982, when Law No. 85 came into force.

Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees

On 5 June 1981, the Japanese Diet accepted the 1951 (1954) Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 protocol concerning this convention.

On 12 June 1981 the Diet enacted two laws (Law No. 85 and Law No. 85), which incorporated refugee status provisions into the Immigration Control Order (Cabinet Order No. 319) and renamed it Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law (Cabinet Order No. 319).

Enforcement regulations for the revised and renamed immigration law were promulgated as Ministry of Justice Order No. 54 of 28 October 1981.

The treaty, the protocol, the revision laws, and the enforcement regulations all came into effect from 1 January 1982.

Law No. 85 of 1981

Law No. 85 of 1981 (昭和五十六年法律第八十五号), called "Law to revise parts of the Immigration Control Order" (出入国管理令の一部を改正する法律 Shutsunyūkoku kanri rei no ichibu o kaisei suru hō ritsu), included the "Special Measure for Permanent Residence" for residual Chosenese.

Law No. 85 had to be enforced within eight months of its promulgation by a government order. This turned out to be 1 January 1982.

Law No. 86 of 1981

Law No. 86 of 1981 (昭和五十六年法律第八十六号), called "Law concerning provisioning of the Immigration Control Ordinance and related laws associated with acceding to the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees et cetera" (難民の地位に関する条約等への加入に伴う出入国管理令その他関係法律の整備に関する法律 Nanmin no chii ni kan suru jōyaku tō e no kanyū ni tomonau Shutsunyūkoku kanri rei sono ta kankei hōritsu no seibi ni kan suru hōritsu), changed the name of the name of 1951 from "Immigration Control Order" (出入国管理令 Shutsunyūkoku kanri rei) to "Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law (出入国管理及び難民認定法 Shutsunyūkoku kanri oyobi nanmin nintei hō).

The enforcement of Law No. 86 was tied to the start of the effectuation in Japan of the treaty and protocol concerning the status of refugees. This turned out to be 1 January 1982.

Ministry of Justice Order No. 54 of 1981

The revised immigration law was enforced by Ministry of Justice Order No. 54 of 28 October 1981 (昭和五十六年十月二十八日法務省令第五十四号), called "Immigration control and refugee recognition law enforcement regulations" (出入国管理及び難民認定法施行規則).

MOJ Order No. 54 stipulated that it would come into effect from 1 January 1982. The order was able to stipulate this date because, on 3 October 1981, Japan had deposited its instrument of accession on the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, and on 15 October the promulgation and notification of treaty were made with 1 January 1982 set as the beginning of effectuation.

MOF Order No. 54 abolished the "Ministerial order determining specific statuses of residence and periods of residence" (特定の在留資格及びその在留期間を定める省令), Ministry of Foreign Affairs Order No. 14 of 12 May 1952 (昭和二十七年外務省令第十四号). The MOFA order, issued when immigration control was under the foreign ministry, had specified the statuses and periods of stay that would fall under the 4-1-16 classification of status of residence in the 1951 Immigration Control Order.

"4-1-16" refers to Article 4, Paragraph 1, Item 16 of the 1951 immigration law. Item 16 covered all statuses, not specified by Items 1-15, that would be specified by ministerial order.

1982 Law revising Immigration Control Law (Law No. 85) Establishment of "Special measure permanent residence"
Japanese text The Japanese text was downloaded from the statutory law database on the 衆議院 (The House of Representatives) website. Only the part of the law related to the status of those in Japan who lost their Japanese nationality because of postwar treaties and agreements, and their descendants, are shown. English translation The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).
出入国管理令の一部を改正する法律 [ Law revising parts of Immigration Control Order ] 法律第八十五号（昭五六・六・一二） Law No. 85 (12 June 1981)
出入国管理令（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）の一部を次のように改正する。	[This law] revises parts of the Immigration Control Order (1951 Cabinet Order No. 319) as follows.
第二十二条第二項中「左の」を「次の」に、「且つ」を「かつ」に改め、同項に次のただし書を加える。ただし、その者が日本人、永住許可を受けている者（日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法（昭和四十年法律第百四十六号）に基づく永住の許可を受けている者を含む。）又はポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件に基く外務省関係諸命令の措置に関する法律（昭和二十七年法律第百二十六号）第二条第六項の規定により本邦に在留する者の配偶者又は子である場合においては、次の各号に適合することを要しない。	In Article 22 Paragraph 2 change "to the left [below]" to "next" and "And" to "and", and add the following proviso to the same paragraph. However, in the event that the person is the spouse or a child of a Japanese, a person who has received permission for permanent residence (including persons who have received permission for permanent residence based on the "Immigration control special law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan" (Law No. 146 of 1965)), or a person who is residing in this country in accordance with provisions of Article 2 Paragraph 6 of the "Law concerning measures for various Ministry of Foreign Affairs related ordinances based on matters concerning ordinances issued in conjunction with the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration" (Law No. 126 of 1952), it shall not be necessary to conform to the following items.
附則第七項を次のように改める。	Supplementary Provision No. 7 is amended as follows.
(永住許可の特例) ７　法務大臣は、次の各号の一に該当する外国人が、法務省令で定める手続により、出入国管理令の一部を改正する法律（昭和五十六年法律第八十五号）の施行の日から五年を経過する日（以下「申請期間最終日」という。）までに第四条第一項第十四号に該当する者としての在留資格の取得の申請をしたときは、これを許可するものとする。　一　ポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件に基く外務省関係諸命令の措置に関する法律（昭和二十七年法律第百二十六号）第二条第六項に規定する者（以下「法律第百二十六号第二条第六項該当者」という。）で、日本国との平和条約の発効後申請の時まで引き続き本邦に在留しているもの　二　法律第百二十六号第二条第六項該当者の直系卑属として日本国との平和条約の発効の時から申請期間最終日までに本邦で出生し、その後申請の時まで引き続き本邦に在留している者	(Special measure for permission for permanent residence ) 7. The Minister of Justice, when an alien who falls under one of the following items, in accordance with procedures determined by Ministry of Justice ordinance, makes an application to acquire status of residence as a person who falls under Article 4, Paragraph 1, Item 14 [of the Immigration Control Order] by the day on which five years have passed from the day of enforcement of the Law Revising Part of the Immigration Control Order (Law No. 85 of 1981) (hereafter called "the final day of the application period"), shall permit this. (1) One who is a person provided for in Article 2, Paragraph 6 of the Law concerning measures for various Ministry of Foreign Affairs related ordinances based on matters concerning ordinances issued in conjunction with the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration (Law No. 126 of 1952) (hereafter called "person who falls under Law No. 126 Article 2 Paragraph 6"), and has been continuously residing in this country after the Peace Treaty with Japan came into effect until the time of application (2) One who as a lineal descendant of a person who falls under Law No. 126 Article 2 Paragraph 6 was born in this country from the time the Peace Treaty with Japan came into effect until the final day of the application period, and has since then continuously resided in Japan until the time of application
附則に次の三項を加える。８　前項第二号に該当する者で申請期間最終日以前三十日以内に出生したものの同項の在留資格の取得の申請期限は、同項の規定にかかわらず、その出生の日から三十日までとする。９　法務大臣は、法律第百二十六号第二条第六項該当者の子として申請期間最終日後に本邦で出生した外国人が、法務省令で定める手続により、その出生の日から三十日以内に第四条第一項第十四号に該当する者としての在留資格の取得の申請をしたときは、これを許可するものとする。１０　法務大臣は、附則第七項及び前項の許可をする場合には、入国審査官に、当該許可に係る外国人が旅券を所持しているときは当該旅券に永住許可の証印をさせ、旅券を所持していないときは永住を許可された旨を記載した在留資格証明書を交付させるものとする。この場合において、その許可は、当該証印又は交付のあつた時に、その効力を生ずる。	The following three paragraphs shall be added to the Supplementary Provision. 8. The application period for acquiring status of residence under the preceding paragraph for one who falls under Item 2 of the same paragraph and was born within thirty days on or before the final day of the application period, shall, notwithstanding the provisions of the same paragraph, be until thirty days from the day of birth. 9. The Minister of Justice, when an alien who as the child of a person who falls under Law No. 126 Article 2 Paragraph 6 was born in this country after the final day of the application period has, in accordance the procedures determined by Ministry of Justice ordinance, within thirty days from the day of their birth made an application to acquire status of residence as a person who falls under Article 4, Paragraph 1, Item 14 [of the Immigration Control Order], shall permit this. 10. The Ministry of Justice, in the event of making a permission under Paragraph 7 of the supplementary provisions and the preceding paragraph, shall have an immigration officer, when the alien concerned with the said permission possesses a passport, make a stamp of Permission for Permanent Residence in the said passport, and when [the concerned alien] does not possess a passport, issue a Certificate of Status of Residence on which has been noted to the effect that permanent residence has been permitted. In this event, the permission shall become effective [engender efficacy] at the time of the said stamp or issuance.
附則	Special provisions
(施行期日) １　この法律は、公布の日から起算して八月を超えない範囲内において政令で定める日から施行する。 [ 省略 ]	(Enforcement date) 1. This law shall come into force from the day determined by government order within a period not to exceed eight months computed from the day of promulgation. [ Rest omitted. ]

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1982 Law facilitating status of refugees (Law No. 86) Changed name to Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law
Japanese text The Japanese text was downloaded from the statutory law database on the 衆議院 (The House of Representatives) website. Only the part of the law related to the status of those in Japan who lost their Japanese nationality because of postwar treaties and agreements, and their descendants, are shown. English translation The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).
難民の地位に関する条約等への加入に伴う出入国管理令その他関係法律の整備に関する法律 Law concerning provisioning of the Immigration Control Ordinance and other related laws associated with acceding to inter alia the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees 法律第八十六号（昭五六・六・一二） Law No. 86 (12 June 1981)
(出入国管理令の一部改正)	(Partial revision of Immigration Control Order)
第一条出入国管理令（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）の一部を次のように改正する。題名を次のように改める。出入国管理及び難民認定法	Article 1 [This law] revises part of the Immigration Control Order (1951 Cabinet Order No. 319) as follows. The title is amended as follows. Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law
(日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法の一部改正)	(Partial revision of Immigration control special law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan)
８　日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法（昭和四十年法律第百四十六号）の一部を次のように改正する。第一条第一項中「（出入国管理令（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）に定める本邦をいう。）」を削る。第六条第一項中「出入国管理令」を「出入国管理及び難民認定法（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号）」に改め、同条第三項中「出入国管理令」を「出入国管理及び難民認定法」に改める。第七条（見出しを含む。）中「出入国管理令」を「出入国管理及び難民認定法」に改める。	8. [This law] revises the Immigration control special law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan (1965 Law No. 146) as follows. In Article 1, Paragraph 1, delete "(Refers to this country as determined in the Immigration Control Order (1951 Cabinet Order No. 319).) In Article 6, Paragraph 1, amend "Immigration Control Order" to "Immigration Control Order and Refugee Recognition Law (1951 Cabinet Order No. 319), and in Paragraph 3 of the same article amend "Immigration Control Order" to "Immigration Control Order and Refugee Recognition Law". In Article 7 (Including heading.) amend "Immigration Control Order" to "Immigration Control Order and Refugee Recognition Law".
附則	Special provisions
(施行期日) １　この法律は、難民の地位に関する条約又は難民の地位に関する議定書が日本国について効力を生ずる日から施行する。 [ 省略 ]	(Enforcement date) 1. This law shall come into force from the day on which the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees become effective in Japan [engender efficacy regarding Japan]. [ Rest omitted. ]

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1991 Special law concerning immigration control of
those who separated from nationality

1 November 1991

In 1991, the 1965/1966 special law associated with implementation of the Japan-ROK status agreement was replaced by the "Special law concerning, inter alia, the exit-entry-country [immigration] control of persons who based on the Treaty of Peace with Japan separated from the nationality of Japan" (日本国との平和条約に基づき日本の国籍を離脱した者等の出入国管理に関する特例法 Nihonkoku to no heiwa jōyaku ni motozuki Nihon no kokuseki o ridatsu shita mono tō no shutsunyūkoku kanri ni kan suru tokurei hō).

The 1991, called "Special Law on Immigration Control" (入管特例法 Nyūkan tokurei hō) in short, was promulgated as Law No. 71 on 10 May 1991. The enforcement regulations, called "Special law concerning, inter alia, the exit-entry-country [immigration] control of persons who based on the Treaty of Peace with Japan separated from the nationality of Japan" (日本国との平和条約に基づき日本の国籍を離脱した者等の出入国管理に関する特例法施行規則), were promulgated by Ministry of Justice Order No. 28 of 14 October 1991 (平成三年十月十四日法務省令第二十七号).

Both the 1991 special provisions law and its enforcement regulations came into force from 1 November 1991.

An English version of the "Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act" as translated in compliance with the so-called "Standard Bilingual Dictionary" renders the title of the 1991 special provisions law as follows.

Special Act on the Immigration Control of, Inter Alia, Those who have Lost Japanese Nationality Pursuant to the Treaty of Peace with Japan

"Lost Japanese Nationality" is clearly an interpretation, not a translation, of "Nihon no kokuseki o ridatsu shita" (日本の国籍を離脱した). A closer translation would be as follows.

Special law concerning the control of the exit-and-entry-of-the-country of persons who on the basis the Treaty of Peace with [the State of] Japan separated from the nationality of Japan and others

1991 Special Law on Immigration Control
Those who seceded from the nationality of Japan in peace treaty

Japanese text

The following Japanese text is a reformatted version of the text retrieved from the Laws and regulations data provision system (法令データ提供システム Hōrei deeta teikyō shisutemu), a law database on the e-Government server of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

English translation

The English translation and bold emphasis are mine (William Wetherall).

日本国との平和条約に基づき日本の国籍を離脱した者等の出入国管理に関する特例法

Special provisions law concerning the control of the exit-and-entry-of-the-country of persons who based on the Treaty of Peace with Japan separated from the nationality of Japan and others

"separated from the nationality of Japan" control of exit-and-entry-of-the-country (出入国管理 shutsunyūkoku kanri) is usually abbreviated "nyūkoku kanri" (入国管理), which otherwise means only "control of entry-of-the-country". Both expressions are shorthanded as "immigration control" in English, which distorts the purpose of the law. State of Japan (日本國 Nihonkoku) is usually conflated with "Japan" even when, as here, the two are differentiated. As here, though, such conflation results only in a loss of formality. those who separated from the nationality of Japan (日本の国籍を離脱した者 Nihon no kokuseki o ridatsu shita mono) are reduced in this law to "nationality separatees (separators, seceders)" [persons who separated (seceded) from nationality] (国籍離脱者 kokuseki ridatsu sha). I have not used "renounced" or "renouncers" because "renounce" -- as used in English representations of 離脱 (ridatsu) in Japan's Nationality Law -- means a volitional or semi-volitional act of giving up or "renouncing" one's nationality, namely, an act of "renunciation" in English. Some partial English translations of this law have conflated "separate" and "separated" with "loss" (喪失 sōshitsu) and "lost" (喪失した sōshitsu shita). However, the latter terms are not only different metaphors, but their use in this law represent their usage at a time before Japan was in a position to claim that former affiliates of former subnations of the former Empire of Japan had "separated from" their nationality. The use of "loss and "lost" in the 1991 law reflect the wording of Civil Affairs A No. 438, Notification of the Director-General, Civil Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Justice, dated 19 April 1952 (see above), "Concerning the disposition of nationality and family register matters regarding Chosenese, Taiwanese, and others, associated with the effectuation of the Treaty of Peace". This notification provided that persons concerned would "lose" or "not lose" the nationality of Japan when the San Francisco Peace Treaty (and the ordinance) came into effect on 28 April 1952. See Loss and renunciation: The fuzzy line between choice and mandate for a fuller discussion of the implications of using 離脱 (ridatsu) in the 1991 Special law concerning persons who separated from the nationality of Japan based on provisions of the peace treaty.

公布：平成三年五月十日
法律第七十一号

施行：平成三年十一月一日

最終改正：平成一六年六月二日
法律第七三号

Promulgated on 10 May 1991 (Law No. 71)

Enforced from 1 November 1991

Last revised: 2 June 2004 (Law No. 73)

(目的)

(Purpose)

第一条

この法律は、次条に規定する平和条約国籍離脱者及び平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫について、出入国管理及び難民認定法（昭和二十六年政令第三百十九号。以下「入管法」という。）の特例を定めることを目的とする。

Article 1

The purpose of this law is to establish special provisions of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law (Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951, hereafter called the "Immigration Law"), regarding Peace Treaty Nationality Separatees and Offspring of Peace Treaty Nationality Separatees as provided in the next article.

(定義)

(Definitions)

第二条

この法律において「平和条約国籍離脱者」とは、日本国との平和条約の規定に基づき同条約の最初の効力発生の日（以下「平和条約発効日」という。）において日本の国籍を離脱した者で、次の各号の一に該当するものをいう

一　昭和二十年九月二日以前から引き続き本邦に在留する者

二　昭和二十年九月三日から平和条約発効日までの間に本邦で出生し、その後引き続き本邦に在留する者であって、その実親である父又は母が、昭和二十年九月二日以前から当該出生の時（当該出生前に死亡したときは、当該死亡の時）まで引き続き本邦に在留し、かつ、次のイ又はロに該当する者であったもの

イ　日本国との平和条約の規定に基づき平和条約発効日において日本の国籍を離脱した者

ロ　平和条約発効日までに死亡し又は当該出生の時後平和条約発効日までに日本の国籍を喪失した者であって、当該死亡又は喪失がなかったとしたならば日本国との平和条約の規定に基づき平和条約発効日において日本の国籍を離脱したこととなるもの

２　この法律において「平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫」とは、平和条約国籍離脱者の直系卑属として本邦で出生しその後引き続き本邦に在留する者で、次の各号の一に該当するものをいう。

一　平和条約国籍離脱者の子

二　前号に掲げる者のほか、当該在留する者から当該平和条約国籍離脱者の孫にさかのぼるすべての世代の者（当該在留する者が当該平和条約国籍離脱者の孫であるときは、当該孫。以下この号において同じ。）について、その父又は母が、平和条約国籍離脱者の直系卑属として本邦で出生し、その後当該世代の者の出生の時（当該出生前に死亡したときは、当該死亡の時）まで引き続き本邦に在留していた者であったもの

Article 2

In this law, a "Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee" is one who is a person who, based on provisions in the Treaty of Peace with Japan, separated from the nationality of Japan on the day the same treaty first entered into force (Hereafter referred to as "peace treaty effectuation date".), and who falls under one of the following items.

(1) A person who has been residing continuously in this country (本邦 honpō) from on or before 2 September 1945.

(2) A person who was born in this country between 3 September 1945 and the day the Treaty of Peace came into force, and has since then been continuously residing in this country, and whose father or mother who is a biological parent had been continuously residing in this country from on or before 2 September 1945 until the time of the said birth (when [the parent] died prior to the said birth, then the time of the said death), and, is a person who falls under the following (a) or (b).

(a) A person who based on provisions of the Treaty of Peace with Japan separated from the nationality of Japan on the day of effectuation of the Peace Treaty.

(b) A person who died by the day of enforcement of the Treaty of Peace or who has lost the nationality of Japan by the day of enforcement of the Treaty of Peace, and if there had not been the said death or the said loss would have based on provisions in the Treaty of Peace with Japan would have separated from the nationality of Japan on the day of enforcement of the Treaty of Peace.

2. In this law, a "Offspring of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee" is one who as a lineal descendant of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee was born in this country and has continuously resided in this country since then, and who falls under one of the following items.

(1) A child of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee.

(2) Other than [in addition to] a person noted in the preceding item, regarding one of all [any and all] generations going back from the said residing person to the grandchildren of the said Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee (when the said residing person is a grandchild of the said Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee, the said grandchild; hereafter in this item the same), one who was a person whose father or mother was born in this country as a lineal descendant of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee, and after then had been continuously residing in this country until the time of the birth of the person of the said generation (when the person [parent] died before the said birth, the time of the said death).

(法定特別永住者)

(Statutory special permanent residents)

第三条

平和条約国籍離脱者又は平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫でこの法律の施行の際次の各号の一に該当しているものは、この法律に定める特別永住者として、本邦で永住することができる。

一　次のいずれかに該当する者

イ　附則第十条の規定による改正前のポツダム宣言の受諾に伴い発する命令に関する件に基く外務省関係諸命令の措置に関する法律（昭和二十七年法律第百二十六号）（以下「旧昭和二十七年法律第百二十六号」という。）第二条第六項の規定により在留する者

ロ　附則第六条の規定による廃止前の日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法（昭和四十年法律第百四十六号）（以下「旧日韓特別法」という。）に基づく永住の許可を受けている者

ハ　附則第七条の規定による改正前の入管法（以下「旧入管法」という。）別表第二の上欄の永住者の在留資格をもって在留する者

二　旧入管法別表第二の上欄の平和条約関連国籍離脱者の子の在留資格をもって在留する者

Article 3

One who is a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee or an Offspring of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee [and] falls under one of the following items below at the time of the enforcement of this law, shall be able to permanently reside in this country, as a Special Permanent Resident determined by this law.

1. A person who falls under any of the following:

a. A person who resides [in this country] in accordance with the provisions of Article 2, Paragraph 6 of the "Law concerning measures for various Ministry of Foreign Affairs related ordinances based on matters concerning ordinances issued in conjunction with the acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration" (Law No. 126 of 1952) (Hereafter referred to as "Old Law No. 126 of 1952".)

b. A person who has received permission for permanent residence based on "Immigration control special law associated with with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan" (Law No. 146 of 1965) (Hereafter referred to as "Old Japan-ROK Special Law".)

c. A person who resides [in this country] with a status of residence as a Permanent Resident in the upper [left] column of Appended Table 2 of the Immigration Control Law before revision in accordance with provisions in Article 7 of Supplementary Provisions (Hereafter referred to as "Old Immigration control Law")

2. A person who resides [in this country] with the status of residence of a child of a Peace Treaty Related Nationality Separatee in the upper [left] column of Appended Table No. 2 of the Old Immigration Control Law

(特別永住許可)

(Permission for special permanent residence)

第四条

平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫で出生その他の事由により入管法第三章に規定する上陸の手続を経ることなく本邦に在留することとなるものは、法務大臣の許可を受けて、この法律に定める特別永住者として、本邦で永住することができる。

２　法務大臣は、前項に規定する者が、当該出生その他の事由が生じた日から六十日以内に同項の許可の申請をしたときは、これを許可するものとする。

３　第一項の許可の申請は、居住地の市町村（東京都の特別区の存する区域及び地方自治法（昭和二十二年法律第六十七号）第二百五十二条の十九第一項の指定都市にあっては、区。以下同じ。）の事務所に自ら出頭し、当該市町村の長に、法務省令で定めるところにより、特別永住許可申請書その他の書類及び写真を提出して行わなければならない。ただし、十六歳に満たない者については、写真を提出することを要しない。

４　十六歳に満たない者についての第一項の許可の申請は、親権を行う者又は未成年後見人が代わってしなければならない。

５　第三項の場合において、申請をしようとする者が疾病その他身体の故障により出頭することができないときは、法務省令で定めるところにより、代理人を出頭させることができる。

６　市町村の長は、第三項の書類及び写真の提出があったときは、第一項の許可を受けようとする者が申請に係る居住地に居住しているかどうか、及び提出された書類の成立が真正であるかどうかを審査した上、これらの書類（法務省令で定める書類を除く。）及び写真を、法務大臣に送付しなければならない。

Article 4

A person who is an Offspring of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee [and] because of birth or another reason comes to be residing in this country without undergoing procedures of landing as provided in Chapter 3 of the Immigration Control Law shall, receiving permission of the Minister of Justice, be able to permanently reside in this country, as a Special Permanent Resident as determined in this law.

2. The Minister of Justice, when the person provided in the preceding paragraph makes an application for the permission of the same paragraph within sixty days from the day that the said birth or other reason has engendered, shall permit this.

3. As for the application for the permission of Paragraph 1, it must be carried out [by] personally appearing at the office of the city, town, or village of place of residence, and submitting, to the head of the said city, town, or village, in accordance with determinations by Ministry of Justice orders, an Application for Permission for Special Permanent Residence and other documents, and a photograph. However, regarding a person who is not yet sixteen years of age, it shall not be necessary to submit a photograph.

4. As for the application for permission of Paragraph 1 regarding one who is not yet sixteen years of age, one exercising parental rights or the guardian of [the] minor must make it in lieu of [the person].

5. In the event of Paragraph 3, when the person who would make the application cannot appear because of illness or another physical [bodily] impairment, in accordance with determinations by Ministry of Justice orders, it shall be possible for [the person] to have a representative appear.

6. The head of the city, town, or village, when there is a submission of the documents and photograph of Paragraph 3, having examined whether or not the one who would receive the permission of Paragraph 1 is residing at the place of residence related [pertaining] to the application, and whether or not the formation of the submitted documents is accurate [true and correct], shall send these documents (Except documents determined by Ministry of Justice orders.) and the photograph to the Minister of Justice.

(附則抄)

(Supplementary provisions abstract)

(施行期日)

(Enforcement date)

第一条

この法律は、公布の日から起算して六月を超えない範囲内において政令で定める日から施行する。

Article 1

This law shall come into force from the day determined by government order within a period not to exceed six months computed from the day of promulgation.

(特別永住許可の申請に関する経過措置)

(Transitional measures concerning applications for permission for special permanent residence)

第二条

この法律の施行前にした旧日韓特別法第二条第一項の規定による許可の申請は、第四条の規定による許可の申請とみなす。

２　平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫でこの法律の施行前六十日以内に出生その他の事由により旧入管法第三章に規定する上陸の手続を経ることなく本邦に在留することとなったものについては、この法律の施行の日に当該出生その他の理由が生じたものとみなして、第四条の規定及び第八条によって読み替えた入管法第二十二条の二第一項の規定を適用する。

３　平和条約国籍離脱者及び平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫（第三条第二号に掲げる者を除く。）がこの法律の施行前にした旧入管法第二十二条第一項の規定による申請は、第五条の規定による許可の申請とみなす。

４　平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫がこの法律の施行前にした旧入管法第二十二条の二第二項の規定による永住者若しくは平和条約関連国籍離脱者の子の在留資格の取得の申請又は旧入管法附則第九項の規定による申請は、平和条約国籍離脱者の子孫で入管法別表第二の上欄の在留資格（永住者の在留資格を除く。）をもって在留するものがした第五条の規定による許可の申請とみなす。

Article 2

Applications for permission according to provisions of Paragraph 1, Article 2 of the Old Japan-ROK Special Law, made before the enforcement of this law, shall be viewed as applications for permission according to the provisions of Article 4 [of this law].

2. Regarding a person who is a descendant of peace treaty nationality separatee [and] because of birth or another reason has come to be residing in this country without undergoing procedures of landing as provided in Chapter 3 of the Old Immigration Control Law, [the Minister of Justice shall], viewing [the person] as a person for whom the said birth or other reason engendered on the day of enforcement of this law, apply the provisions of Paragraph 1 of Article 22-2 of the Immigration Control Law as reread according to the provisions of Article 4 [of this law], and Article 8 [of this law].

3. As for applications in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 1 of Article 22 of the Old Immigration Control Law, which Peace Treaty Nationality Separatees and descendants of peace treaty nationality separatees (Excluding those cited in Article 3, Paragraph 2.) have made before the enforcement of this law, [the Minister of Justice] shall view [them] as applications for permission in accordance with the provisions of Article 5 [of this law].

4. As for applications for acquisition of the status of residence of a child of a Permanent Resident or of a Peace Treaty Related Nationality Separatee, or applications in accordance with Paragraph 2 of Article 22-2 of the Old Immigration Control Law, which an Offspring of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee has made before the enforcement of this law, [the Minister of Justice] shall view [these] as applications for permission in accordance with the provisions of Article 5 [of this law] which has been made by a person who is an Offspring of a Peace Treaty Nationality Separatee and resides [in this country] with the status of residence in the upper [left] column of Appended Table 2 of the Immigration Control Law [Excepting the status of residence of Permanent Resident.).

(退去強制に関する経過措置)

(Transitional measures concerning deportation [compulsory leave])

第三条

第三条第一号ロに掲げる者で旧日韓特別法の施行前の行為により第九条第一項各号の一に該当することとなったものについては、当該行為を理由としては、本邦からの退去を強制することができない。

Article 3

With regard to one who is a person noted in Item 1b of Article 3 and who falls under of the items of Paragraph 1 of Article 9 [of the Old Japan-ROK Special Law] [(Penalties)] because of an act before the enforcement of the Old Japan-ROK Special Law, [the state] cannot compel [their] departure [deport them] from this country, for the reason of the said act.

(外国人登録原票の記載事項の変更登録等に関する特例)

(Special measure concerning registration of changes in registration et cetera of particulars [matters] entered [recorded] on alien registration master cards)

第四条

第三条の規定の施行により生じた外国人登録法（昭和二十七年法律第百二十五号）第四条第一項第十三号又は第十四号に掲げる事項の変更については、同法第九条第一項の規定は、適用しない。

Article 4

Regarding changes in matters [particulars] noted in Item 13 and Item 14 of Paragraph 1 of Article 4 of the Alien Registration Law (Law No. 125 of 1952) engendered [given birth to] by enforcement of the provisions of Article 3 [of this law], the provision of Paragraph 1 of Article 9 of the same [Alien Registration Law] shall not apply.

第五条

市町村の長は、当該市町村の区域内に居住地を有する第三条に掲げる外国人から外国人登録法第六条第一項、第六条の二第一項若しくは第二項、第七条第一項又は第十一条第一項若しくは第二項の申請のうちこの法律の施行の日後における最初の申請又は次項に規定する登録証明書の提出があったときは、当該外国人に係る外国人登録原票に、第三条の規定の施行により変更を生じた外国人登録法第四条第一項第十三号及び第十四号に掲げる事項の変更の登録をしなければならない

２　市町村の長は、当該市町村の区域内に居住地を有する第三条に掲げる外国人が、同条の規定の施行により外国人登録法第四条第一項第十三号に定める在留の資格又は同項第十四号に定める在留期間の記載が事実に合わなくなった登録証明書を提出したときは、法務省令で定めるところにより、当該登録証明書に在留の資格又は在留期間の変更に係る記載を行わなければならない。

３　前二項の規定により市町村が処理することとされている事務は、地方自治法第二条第九項第一号に規定する第一号法定受託事務とする。

Article 5

(Forthcoming.)

(日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法の廃止)

(Abolishment of the Immigration control special law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan)

第六条

日本国に居住する大韓民国国民の法的地位及び待遇に関する日本国と大韓民国との間の協定の実施に伴う出入国管理特別法は、廃止する。

Article 6

As for the Immigration control special law associated with the implementation of the Agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea concerning the legal status and treatment of nationals of the Republic of Korea residing in Japan, [this law] shall abolish [it].

(旧日韓特別法に基づく永住の許可を受けて在留していた者に関する特例)

(Special measure concerning persons were have been residing [in this country] having received permission for permanent residence based on the Old Japan-ROK Special Law)

第六条の二

旧日韓特別法に基づく永住の許可を受けて在留していた者で、入管法第二十六条第一項の許可を受けることなく出国し、外国人登録法の一部を改正する法律（平成十一年法律第百三十四号）の施行の日において入管法別表第二の上欄の在留資格をもって在留しているものが、同日以降、同欄の永住者の在留資格をもって在留するに至ったときは、この法律に定める特別永住者とみなす。

Article 6-2

(Forthcoming.)

Top

Alien registration and immigration

Changing statuses during and after the Occupation of Japan

By William Wetherall

American anti-subversion laws

Influence on Japan

Alien Registration Act (United States)

Alien registration laws

Chosenese, Chinese, Taiwanese, Nansei Islander registration order

Summary of related SCAP instructions

Survey results

Japanese text

English version

Terminology

Areas excluded from registration survey

Japanese text

English translation

Terminology

Osaka Chosenese registration ordinance

Bilingual card

SCAP inspiration

Alien Registration Order

Importance of order

Importance as "immigration control" measure

Importance as "alienation" measure

Revisions and abolishment

Japanese text

Note on "Ministry of Interior" as competent agency

English version

"pursuant to Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945"

Imperial Ordinance No. 542 of 1945

Law No. 82 of 1952

"this country" and "alien" (1947 Alien Registration Order)

Appended list of excluded territories

"this country" in other laws

Nansei Islanders

Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers

"Taiwanese the Minister of Interior determines"

"regarded"

Alien Registration Law

General requirements

Alien Registration Certificate

Fingerprinting

Japanese text

English version

This country, aliens, multiple nationality

Fingerprinting

Alien Fingerprinting Regulations

Fingerprint abolishment orders

Immigration control laws

Order Concerning the Control of Immigration

Amendments

Purpose of order

Morphed metaphors

"exit-entry-country" versus "immigration"

"control" versus "surveillance"

"restriction" versus "prevention"

"return" versus "deportation"

Immigration Control Department

Japanese text

English versions

"Immigration"

Received translation

Immigration Control Department

Illegal Entrant Deportation Procedure Order

Scope of applicability

Received Japanese text

Received English version

"Deportation" versus "compelling departure"

Potsdam Declaration

Aliens and Nansei islanders

1947 Alien Registration Order

Honseki

"Japan" and "Aliens"

Nansei islanders

Immigration Control Order

Original title

Enforcement

Present title

Japanese text

English version

1991 Special law concerning immigration control of
those who separated from nationality