Japanese letter of authority (委任状)
The form a Japanese office asks for when somebody goes in your place.
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Example
Example: a colleague collects your 住民票 while you are at work
Daniel Brooks (fictitious), a foreign resident in Tokyo, needs a copy of his residence record for a new rental contract but cannot get to the ward office during its opening hours. His colleague Hanako Yamada, who lives elsewhere, goes instead, with her own ID and this letter sealed by Daniel.
- What is being delegated: 住民票の写し. The line between 記 and 以上 is filled in for you: 一、住民票の写しの交付申請及び受領に関する一切の件.
- The person acting for you, one line each: her address, her name 山田 花子, and her date of birth.
- You: your address, your name as it is on your residence card (BROOKS DANIEL), your phone number.
- Date 6 April 2026, written as Japanese era: 令和8年4月6日. Western years would give 2026年4月6日.
| On the sheet | What it says |
|---|---|
| 委 任 状 | the title: letter of authority |
| 令和8年4月6日 | the date, top right |
| 【受任者（代理人）】 | the person acting for you: Hanako’s address, name and date of birth |
| 私は、上記の者を代理人と定め、下記の事項に関する一切の権限を委任します。 | I appoint the person above as my agent and give them full authority for the matter below. |
| 記 … 以上 | the matter: applying for and receiving a copy of the residence record |
| 【委任者】 … 印 | you: address, name and phone, with a box for your seal beside them |
委任状.pdf on A4. Daniel seals it in the 印 box beside his name, and Hanako takes it to the counter with her own ID. Many ward offices have their own form or also want the reason for the request, so he checks the office’s website first.
How it works
- Choose the errand. The wording councils and registries expect is filled in for you, and can be rewritten.
- Fill in the person acting for you — their address and name as they appear on their identification.
- Fill in your own address, name and telephone number at the foot.
- Print it, seal it beside your name, and send it with them along with their identification.
Frequently asked questions
- Will the office accept this form?
- Many will: it carries what a 委任状 has to carry — who is acting, for whom, what for, the date, and your name and seal. But plenty of councils, registries and banks have their own form and insist on it, and some want the reason for the request as well. Check their website or ring them before you send somebody in.
- Does it need a seal?
- Usually yes, and a box is drawn where it goes. For anything involving a registered seal — a car transfer, property — the seal must be the registered one, and a seal registration certificate is normally wanted with it.
- Can a family member collect a 住民票 without one?
- Somebody in the same household can often collect it without a letter of authority; somebody outside it generally cannot. The rules differ by council, so check.
- Can I fill it in if I am not Japanese?
- Yes. The form on this page is in English and the sheet is printed in Japanese; what you type is printed as you type it. Write your name as it appears on your residence card and on the record you are asking for, since the office checks it against that record, and your address as it appears on your 住民票.
- What if I do not have a seal (hanko)?
- The sheet has a box marked 印 beside your name. Whether a signature there is accepted instead of a seal is up to the office, so ask when you check their form. For a car transfer or anything else that calls for your registered seal, it is the registered one that is needed.
- Is this legal advice?
- No. It is a form. What may be delegated, and how, is a matter for the office concerned — and for a lawyer where something substantial turns on it.