An estate division agreement when an heir lives in Taiwan: Taiwan has a seal registration system

When one of the heirs lives in Taiwan, what matters in practice for an estate division agreement is the fact that Taiwan has a seal registration system. A Taiwanese heir can use a seal certificate issued by a household registration office, and within the Tokyo Legal Affairs Bureau's jurisdiction, since 24 March 2015 (Heisei 27), it can in principle be used for registration without the former three-step authentication if a Japanese translation is attached (treatment may differ by jurisdiction). A Japanese national living in Taiwan uses the signature certification route at the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association.

This article is for family members and heirs carrying out inheritance procedures in Japan. For obtaining Taiwanese family registers and removed family registers, see Where to obtain a Taiwanese removed family register. For the agreement itself, see Can you prepare an estate division agreement yourself?. For the whole picture of an inheritance involving Taiwan, see Cross-border inheritance with Taiwan.

Why do procedures stop when an heir lives in Taiwan?

In Japanese practice, the standard for an estate division agreement is for all heirs to affix their registered seals and attach seal certificates. However, a seal certificate cannot be obtained without a residence record in Japan.

When an heir lives overseas, the common alternative is a signature certification obtained at a Japanese embassy or consulate. The heir signs the agreement in front of a consular official, who certifies that the signature is the person's own. This means the original agreement has to be sent overseas and the person has to go to the diplomatic mission, creating a round trip.

Here, Taiwan has a feature that few other countries or regions have.

What is a Taiwanese "seal certificate"?

Taiwan has a seal registration system similar to Japan's. Most countries and regions do not have a seal registration system, so this is unusual.

A Taiwanese national can register a seal at the household registration office in their place of residence, and obtain a seal certificate. In Japanese real estate registration procedures, this Taiwanese seal certificate is treated as being usable as the seal certificate for the seal affixed to an estate division agreement.

In other words, if the heir is Taiwanese, it may be possible to prepare the agreement in the same way as a Japanese heir — "affix the registered seal and attach the seal certificate" — without the round trip of signature certification.

It used to be difficult: the three-step authentication and the 2015 change

There is a background to this treatment.

Because Japan has no diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Taiwanese official documents were not treated in the same way as those of other countries. In the former practice, to use Taiwanese family register certificates or seal certificates for Japanese registration, the following three-step authentication was required.

Step	Authenticating institution
1	Authentication by a notary of a Taiwanese district court
2	Authentication by the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs
3	Endorsement by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan

Taiwanese family registers and removed family registers often exceed 20 pages merely to prove the inheritance relationship, and applying this three-step authentication to all of them cost considerable money and time.

This changed on 24 March 2015 (Heisei 27). Within the Tokyo Legal Affairs Bureau's jurisdiction, family register certificates, removed register certificates and seal certificates issued by Taiwanese household registration offices became in principle acceptable for registration without the three-step authentication if a translation is attached.

However, an important caution applies. This was a change in handling within the Tokyo Legal Affairs Bureau's jurisdiction, not a change made uniformly nationwide. While the same treatment is said to have spread to many jurisdictions such as Osaka, Fukuoka, Kanagawa and Sapporo, there are also reports of cases in which the former three-step authentication was still required. It is safest to confirm in advance with the registry office having jurisdiction over the registration.

Routes by heir category

Even among "heirs living in Taiwan", the route differs depending on nationality.

Heir category	Document to use	Where to obtain it
Taiwanese national living in Taiwan	A Taiwanese seal certificate plus a translation	A Taiwanese household registration office
Japanese national living in Taiwan	A signature certification. A certificate of residence may also be required	Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, Taipei Office and Kaohsiung Office (the office handling consular functions)
Taiwanese national living in Japan (with a residence record)	A Japanese municipal seal certificate	The municipality of residence

Pay attention to the second category. Because Taiwan has no Japanese embassy or consulate, the Taipei and Kaohsiung offices of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, a public interest incorporated foundation, handle certification such as signature certification and certificates of residence. For a Japanese heir living in Taiwan, obtaining a signature certification for the agreement at one of these offices is the standard route.

Another option is an affidavit by a Taiwanese notary (certification of the signature or address). Which arrangement to use depends on what the addressee (registry office or financial institution) will accept.

In what order should the steps be carried out?

An estate division involving Taiwan takes time because of the round trips of documents. Getting the order wrong causes rework.

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• 1. Confirm the heirs, nationalities and places of residence: start by obtaining Taiwanese family registers and removed family registers (the three methods of obtaining them). Taiwan's Civil Code differs from Japan's in the order of succession, and confirming who the heirs are itself requires Taiwanese documents.
• 2. Confirm with the addressee in advance: confirm with the registry office having jurisdiction over the registration and with the financial institution holding the deposits whether a Taiwanese seal certificate plus a translation is sufficient or authentication is required.
• 3. Agree on the division: this is the same as for a domestic inheritance. Move documents only after agreement is reached.
• 4. Prepare the agreement and design the signature/seal structure: design the number of copies and the format (a signature field or a seal field) according to who will obtain certification by which route.
• 5. Prepare translations: a Japanese translation must be attached to Taiwanese documents.
• 6. Registration, account closure and other procedures: applying for registration as an agent is the work of a judicial scrivener.

An administrative scrivener can help with items 1, 3, 4 and 5 — the heir investigation, preparation of the agreement, and arrangement of documents and translations. Applying for registration as an agent is the work of a judicial scrivener, filing inheritance tax is the work of a tax accountant, and disputes among heirs are the work of an attorney; we refer each to the relevant specialist.

Whom should I consult?

What you want to discuss	Contact
Heir investigation, preparation of an estate division agreement, obtaining and translating Taiwanese documents	An administrative scrivener (Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener Office)
Applying for inheritance registration as an agent, enquiries to the registry office	A judicial scrivener
Japanese and Taiwanese tax	A tax accountant
Disputes among heirs	An attorney
Sale, management and use of inherited real estate	A licensed real estate broker (Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd., under a separate contract)

Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener Office, in Kohinata, Bunkyo, handles document preparation for inheritance involving Taiwan. Its representative, Uramatsu, was stationed in Taiwan as a former Mainichi Shimbun China Bureau Chief and can handle traditional Chinese. Correspondence with relatives in Taiwan can proceed without going through a translation company.

The sale and management of inherited real estate is handled by the related Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd. under a separate contract (for family members in Taiwan, there is a traditional Chinese guide). Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd., Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener Office and Yotsuba Labour and Social Security Attorney Office (scheduled to open in September 2026) each accept work as independent businesses, and our office receives no referral fee.

FAQ

Q. If a Taiwanese heir obtains a seal certificate, is a visit to Japan unnecessary?
A. In many cases the procedure can be completed by sending the agreement, the seal certificate and a translation by post. However, the required documents differ depending on the addressee (the registry office having jurisdiction or the financial institution), so it is safest to confirm in advance before moving documents.

Q. Does a Taiwanese seal certificate have an expiry date?
A. In Japanese registration practice, a seal certificate attached to an estate division agreement is said to have no limit on its date of issue, while financial institutions commonly require one issued within three or six months. Confirm for each use.

Q. May anyone prepare the translation?
A. Registration practice does not limit translators to specific qualified professionals, but it is common to require the translator's name. Our office handles the whole process from obtaining documents to preparing translations (translation is not the exclusive work of administrative scriveners).

Q. At what stage should I tell a specialist that there is an heir in Taiwan?
A. Please tell them at the beginning. Obtaining Taiwanese documents takes time, and inheritance registration has a three-year application obligation (effective 1 April 2024). The whole schedule changes, so the earlier you tell them, the more options remain.

Sources

• Handling in registration practice of Taiwanese family register certificates, removed register certificates and seal certificates issued by household registration offices — within the Tokyo Legal Affairs Bureau's jurisdiction, since 24 March 2015 (Heisei 27), they are in principle accepted with a translation without the three-step authentication (notarisation by a Taiwanese district court notary, the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan). This was not a uniform nationwide change, and there are reports of cases in which the former authentication was still required by some jurisdictions (based on registration practice commentary, including Greenwing Judicial Scrivener Corporation, "Taiwan family register certificates and seal certificates").
• Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, Certification Services — the Taipei Office and Kaohsiung Office handle signature certification, certificates of residence and other certification.
• Real Property Registration Act, Article 76-2, paragraph 1 (effective 1 April 2024) — the obligation to apply for inheritance registration (in principle within three years).
• The succession order and shares under Taiwanese civil law are summarised in Where to obtain a Taiwanese removed family register.

This article is general information and does not give individual legal judgement. Whether Taiwanese documents are accepted differs depending on the addressee (the registry office having jurisdiction or the financial institution). Please confirm in advance. Applying for registration as an agent is the work of a judicial scrivener; tax is a tax accountant; and disputed matters are an attorney.