Japan's Ministry of Justice Civil Affairs Bureau opened a month-long public comment period, from July 24 to August 23, 2026, on a draft ordinance amending the Commercial Registration Rules and four related registration regulations. The filing is case number 300080357, brought under Article 148 of the Commercial Registration Act and a related law on providing registry data over telecommunications lines.
Under the rule in force today, a stock company can ask that part of the home address of its representative director, representative executive officer, or representative liquidator be blanked out on registration certificates and summary documents, under Article 31-3 of the Commercial Registration Rules. The draft would extend that option to every company type, including foreign companies, and widen the list of covered individuals to add registered managers (shihainin), the on-site executives Japanese companies formally register to run branches or businesses.
The masking option would also reach organizations that are not companies at all. The ministry plans matching amendments to five separate registration regulations covering various types of legal entities, investment limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, investment corporations, and general incorporated associations, so the same address-blanking applies across those structures. The change would carry over to the Registration Information Provision Service, the paid online portal that lets investors and due-diligence teams pull filings without visiting a legal affairs bureau in person.
| Category | Current rule | Proposed rule |
|---|---|---|
| Company types eligible | Stock companies only | All companies, including foreign companies |
| People whose address can be masked | Representative directors, executive officers, liquidators | Adds registered managers (shihainin) |
| Non-company entities covered | None | Various legal entities, investment limited partnerships, LLPs, investment corporations, general incorporated associations |
| Online registry lookup service | Not covered | Same masking applied to the Registration Information Provision Service |
The ministry wants the changes in force by December 2026, though the notice labels that date a target rather than a commitment. Comments can be filed through the e-Gov online form, by post to the Civil Affairs Bureau's Commercial Affairs Division in Tokyo's Chiyoda ward, or by plain-text email; attachments and links are not accepted, and the ministry says it may publish submitters' names and comment content while not promising individual replies.
For lenders, acquirers, and compliance teams that rely on registry addresses to verify who runs a Japanese counterparty, the practical effect is more blank fields in a document that has long doubled as a default source of contact detail. Today the masking option is narrow: only stock companies use it, and only for their top representatives. If adopted, the same privacy option would sit across foreign companies, partnerships, and investment vehicles, and it would follow the record into the online lookup tool, not just the paper certificate. The comment window closes August 23, 2026, and the ministry has not disclosed how many amendments to the underlying statute the draft ordinance touches beyond the sections summarized in its own overview.