Japanese Academic Certificates Explained: Graduation Certificate, Transcript, and Degree Certificate | Apostille and Legalization

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Last reviewed: 2026-09-09 | Supervised by: Masakazu Sugita, Principal Administrative Scrivener, Immigration Lawyer SUGITA International Office

A Japanese academic certificate is often required when applying to a university, seeking professional licensing, or completing an employment or immigration procedure overseas.

However, Japanese schools issue several different academic documents — a Certificate of Graduation, an Academic Transcript, and a Diploma or Certificate of Degree Conferral — and it is not always clear which one should be obtained and authenticated for a given purpose. If the wrong document is prepared, it may be rejected, and you may need to obtain and authenticate the correct document again.

This page explains the different types of Japanese academic certificates, how to obtain them, and how to properly authenticate them for use overseas, based on practical experience with Apostille and Embassy Legalization procedures.

Which Japanese Academic Document Do You Need?
Certificate of Graduation, Transcript, and Degree Certificate

Which Japanese Academic Document Do You Need?
Certificate of Graduation, Transcript, and Degree Certificate

・Certificate of Graduation (卒業証明書)
　This is the simplest academic document, certifying only that a person graduated (or completed) from a school on a given date. In most cases, this document alone is sufficient to prove graduation.

・Academic Transcript / Certificate of Academic Record (成績証明書)
　This document lists the courses taken and grades or credits earned during enrollment. It is often required together with a Certificate of Graduation for credit recognition, professional licensing, or detailed academic screening.

・Diploma (学位記) and Certificate of Degree Conferral (学位授与証明書)
　This is the point most often misunderstood. A Diploma (Gakuiki) is a one-time original document handed to the student at the graduation ceremony, and most Japanese universities do not reissue it if it is lost. For this reason, when an additional copy is needed for Apostille or Consular Legalization purposes, universities generally issue a Certificate of Degree Conferral instead — a reissuable certificate that certifies the same information as the diploma. Requesting the university to "reissue the diploma" without knowing this distinction is a common source of confusion in practice.

In practice, a Certificate of Graduation is sufficient for most overseas procedures. However, for procedures requiring detailed academic screening, an Academic Transcript is also commonly required, and for procedures specifically requiring proof of a conferred degree, a Certificate of Degree Conferral is used in place of the original diploma.

The appropriate combination of documents depends entirely on the requirements of the authority requesting them. For this reason, we strongly recommend confirming the required documents with the receiving authority before obtaining and authenticating any Japanese academic certificate.

How to Obtain Japanese Academic Certificates
How to Obtain Academic Certificates in Japan

How to Obtain Japanese Academic Certificates
How to Obtain Academic Certificates in Japan

When preparing Japanese academic certificates for overseas use, it is important not only to obtain the required document, but also to understand where and how each certificate can be requested.

1. Confirm which document is required by the receiving authority
   Whether a Certificate of Graduation is sufficient, or whether an Academic Transcript or Certificate of Degree Conferral is also required, depends on the requirements of the receiving authority. The required combination should be confirmed before starting the preparation process.
2. Request the certificate from the graduating school
   Certificates are generally requested from the registrar’s office (kyoumu-ka) of the school you graduated from. For graduate school degrees, requests are typically handled by the relevant graduate school office rather than the general registrar’s office.

An increasing number of universities offer online request systems for alumni, in addition to in-person and mail requests. However, when requesting certificates by mail from Japan, the fee is often paid using a fixed-amount postal money order purchased at a Japanese post office, which can be difficult to arrange for those living overseas.

If the school you graduated from has closed, merged with another institution, or been reorganized, certificate issuance is usually taken over by a successor institution, or in some cases by the relevant prefectural board of education. The correct contact point depends on the specific school and the timing of the closure or merger.

Because the request process and required forms can differ significantly between schools, it is important to confirm the correct procedure in advance, particularly when requesting from overseas.

When you request a certificate from a school, it may be sent to you in a sealed envelope marked as invalid if opened (genpu, 厳封). However, since procedures such as translation and authentication generally require the envelope to be opened, in practice the envelope is usually opened on the Japan side, and the certificate inside is then used for the required procedures. That said, this can vary depending on the receiving authority, so we recommend confirming in advance whether a sealed envelope is specifically required.

How to Obtain an Apostille or Embassy Legalization for a Japanese Academic Certificate
Authentication Process for Academic Certificates in Japan

How to Obtain an Apostille or Embassy Legalization for a Japanese Academic Certificate
Authentication Process for Academic Certificates in Japan

・Whether an Apostille Can Be Obtained Depends on the Issuing School

Whether a Certification of Official Seal or a direct Apostille can be obtained depends heavily on the type of institution that issued the certificate. The table below shows representative examples.

Certificates issued by public elementary, junior high, and high schools are treated as official public documents, so both a Certification of Official Seal and a direct Apostille are generally available.

Certificates issued by national or public universities, however, can receive a Certification of Official Seal, but cannot receive a direct Apostille. This is because national and public universities are operated by an educational corporate body, and an Apostille — which carries the same effect as officially declaring a document to be a public document to a foreign country — cannot be directly attached to a certificate issued by such a body. If an Apostille is required for a certificate from a national or public university, it must go through the same route as a private document (notarization at a notary office, followed by certification from the Legal Affairs Bureau, before applying to MOFA).

Certificates from private elementary, junior high, and high schools can also receive a Certification of Official Seal, but not a direct Apostille, and generally follow the same private-document route described above.

Certificates from private vocational schools (senshu gakko, koto senshu gakko) and other miscellaneous schools cannot receive either a Certification of Official Seal or a direct Apostille, and must be processed entirely through the private-document route via a notary public.

The above are representative examples only, and the actual treatment can vary by issuing institution. We recommend confirming with us directly before proceeding.

・When Obtaining an Apostille

If the academic certificate can be treated as an official document, you can generally apply directly to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan for an Apostille, without going through a notary public. If the certificate requires notarization (as may be the case for some private school documents, or when a translation must be bound together with the original), the document must first be notarized by a notary public and receive notarial seal certification before an Apostille can be obtained.

・When Obtaining Embassy Legalization

If the destination country is not a member of the Hague Apostille Convention, Embassy Legalization may be required instead of an Apostille. The document must first receive official seal certification from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (following notarization if required), after which Embassy Legalization is obtained from the embassy or consulate of the destination country in Japan.

Differences in Apostille and Embassy Legalization Procedures by Country
Requirements Vary by Destination Country

Differences in Apostille and Embassy Legalization Procedures by Country
Requirements Vary by Destination Country

When submitting a Japanese academic certificate overseas, one of the main differences between countries is how the translation is handled.

Japanese academic certificates are issued in Japanese. Therefore, depending on the receiving authority, a foreign-language translation may be required in addition to the original Japanese document.

In general, translation requirements fall into the following two patterns.

・The original document and translation are authenticated together in Japan

Some authorities require the Japanese original and a foreign-language translation to be bound together and authenticated as one set, either by Apostille or Embassy Legalization. This type of submission may be required in countries and regions where English is widely used, such as the United States, Canada, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, and the UAE.

・Only the original document is authenticated in Japan, and the translation is prepared in the destination country

In other cases, the Japanese original is first authenticated directly by Apostille or Embassy Legalization in Japan, and the document is then sent to the destination country for translation by a local translator or designated translator. This type of procedure may be required in countries such as Italy, Portugal, Russia, and Thailand.

Confirm the Requirements Before Starting the Authentication Process

As explained above, the required documents, translation requirements, and authentication procedures for Japanese academic certificates vary depending on the destination country and the authority requesting the document.

Before starting the process, you should confirm the following points with the receiving authority:

• Which document(s) are required (Certificate of Graduation, Academic Transcript, and/or Certificate of Degree Conferral).
• Whether only the original Japanese document requires an Apostille or Embassy Legalization.
• Whether the original Japanese document and its translation must be bound together and authenticated as one set.
• Whether the translation must be prepared in Japan, or by a designated translator in the destination country.

If these requirements are not confirmed in advance, the document may be rejected by the receiving authority, even after the Apostille or Embassy Legalization has already been obtained.

Japan Apostille Center (JAC) is a specialized document authentication service that handles apostille applications issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, as well as consular legalization procedures at foreign embassies and consulates in Japan.

We provide comprehensive support for the entire authentication process, including verification of country-specific procedures and application requirements, translation into English and other languages, notarization at notary offices, authentication by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, submission to embassies and consulates, and international shipment of the documents after legalization.

Our center was established based on the practical experience in international documentation gained through our administrative scrivener practice, which handles immigration and residency matters for foreign nationals in Japan.

With expertise and extensive practical experience in the field of document authentication, we have handled a wide range of cases related to international business transactions, overseas relocation, visa applications, marriage procedures, study abroad, company establishment, and other matters requiring document authentication. As a result, we have built a strong reputation as a specialized service provider for international document authentication.