Using the Latin Alphabet in Registering Employee Names in Japan

August 2, 2019

Question:

I understand that we can use the Latin alphabet in registering our trade name. Does this also hold true when registering the names of our employees?

Answer:

The use of the Roman alphabet is not allowed when registering names of employees.

Explanation:

The Roman alphabet is allowed for trade names and company title. However, when registering names of foreigners, as well as and names and foreign addresses of foreign companies, foreign languages and characters (including the Roman alphabet) cannot be used. In this case, foreign words and phrases are to be expressed in kanji or katakana.

Registering Using Kanji

In cases such as Chinese, Taiwanese and Korean where Chinese characters are used, generally, names and such as registered the way they are, given such characters are included in the Ministry of Justice’s Touki Touitsu Moji character set.

However, if the simplified or traditional Chinese characters differ from that which is used in Japan, even if evidence with the original characters is provided during registration, it cannot be used. In this case, simplified or traditional Chinese characters are substituted their counterpart characters that are in the Touki Touitsu Moji.

For example, “广” is registered as “広”.

Registering Using Katakana

When registering foreign names for those that do not use Chinese characters, katanaka is used instead. There is no specific rule that stipulates the order in which names are registered (surname then given name or otherwise). The order varies on a case-by-case basis, especially for those who have middle names.