New rules for custody, child support, parent-child interaction, etc.

※ Leaflet created by the Child and Family Agency "Future Support Guide for Single-Parent FamiliesThis is primarily created by quoting from "[...]."

Clarifying rules regarding parental responsibilities

Responsibility as a parent who is responsible for the future of our children

The rules regarding the responsibilities and obligations of raising children have been clarified, regardless of whether there is custody or marital status.　

Respect for children's individuality

We have a responsibility to raise our children so that they are healthy in mind and body. For the benefit of our children, we must listen carefully to their opinions and respect their personalities.

Child support

Parents have a responsibility to "support" their children, regardless of whether they have custody or are married. The level of support must be such that the child can live a similar standard of living.

Obligation of respect for the dignity of parents and cooperation

It is important that we respect each other and cooperate for the sake of our children. The following may violate this rule:

・Violence, frightening behavior, and frivolous lawsuits
- Unreasonably interfering with the other parent's care of the child
・Changing the place where a child lives without any particular reason and without the other party's permission.
・Refusing to carry out promised parent-child interactions without any particular reason

*It is not against the rules to run away from violence or abuse.

All for the benefit of children

Parents must fulfill their responsibilities for the benefit of their children, including caring for the children and managing their finances and belongings.

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[Q] If a parent chooses sole custody after divorce, is the non-custodial parent obligated to pay child support or other similar payments?
[A] If a parent chooses sole custody after divorce, the non-custodial parent still has a duty to support the child, so the obligation to pay child support does not disappear. Even if there is no contact between parent and child for any reason, this does not negate the obligation to pay child support.

[Q] Parents have an obligation to respect their child's personality, so do they always have to follow their child's opinion?
[A] Parents should consider the child's age and developmental stage, and think about what is in the child's best interest. When necessary, they may not be able to comply with the child's wishes. For example, it would be dangerous for a young child to go to their parents' place alone when the adults are unavailable, so it would be difficult to simply follow the child's opinion. However, even in such cases, it is important to acknowledge the child's feelings and explain to them why that decision was made.

*If one parent violates the mutual obligation to respect each other's personalities and cooperate, the nature of that violation may be taken into consideration in judgments regarding the designation or change of parental authority, or judgments regarding the loss or suspension of parental authority.

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Review of rules regarding custody after divorce

New options are expanding

In addition to sole custody, where only one parent has custody, parents can choose joint custody, where both parents have custody after divorce.

In the case of joint custody, both parents have custody

One parent makes all the decisions about daily life

Either parent can decide on things like meals, clothing, short trips, vaccinations, and extracurricular activities.

Important matters are discussed between parents

Parents can discuss and decide on matters such as changing the child's place of residence, deciding on future education, medical treatment that has a significant impact on the child's mental and physical health, and managing the child's finances. If the parents' opinions conflict, they can file a lawsuit in family court to allow one parent to make the decision alone.

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"Daily activities" refer to actions related to care and education that occur in daily life and do not have a significant impact on the child.
However, matters such as property management and adoption are not considered "related to custody and education," and therefore must be handled by both parents.

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Emergency cases where one parent can be appointed

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If the parents' consultations or family court proceedings prevent them from exercising parental rights at an appropriate time, potentially harming the child's best interests, then this can be considered an urgent situation, and the parent can exercise parental rights unilaterally.

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Either parent can make the decision alone if they need to move to escape violence or abuse, or if they need emergency medical treatment for illness or injury.

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[Regarding children's living spaces]
Frequent changes in living environment can place a significant burden on children. When making arrangements, please consider whether smooth communication is possible between parents, whether both parents can respond immediately in case of illness, whether it will cause difficulties for the child in terms of commuting to school or making friends, and the child's feelings, and make decisions from the child's best perspective.

[Regarding the surname of a child after divorce]
Even if parents divorce, a child's surname does not change. For example, if one parent reverts to their maiden name and the child wants to change their surname to the same one, they must obtain permission from the family court to change their surname. Children aged 15 and over can handle the procedure themselves, but for children under 15, the parent with custody will handle it on their behalf. If joint custody is established after divorce, it is advisable to discuss and decide on the child's surname beforehand.

*If parental rights that should be exercised jointly are exercised without the consent of the other parent, depending on the circumstances and manner in which they are exercised, this may be taken into consideration in judgments regarding the designation or change of parental rights, or judgments regarding the loss or suspension of parental rights. Furthermore, depending on the extent of the infringement on the other parent's rights, liability for damages may arise.

[Q] How is information regarding parental rights and custody communicated to schools, hospitals, and other institutions that will be the recipients of parental rights?
[A] There are no specific provisions in the Civil Code regarding how schools, hospitals, etc., which are recipients of the exercise of parental rights, can ascertain who has parental rights, who is responsible for the care of the child, or whether or not there are any arrangements for the division of care. Therefore, schools and boards of education, etc., are not in a position to know information regarding parental rights or custody rights. For this reason, if a parent with parental rights deems it necessary, the parent should report these facts to the school, etc.

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Changes to ensure child support payments

To protect children's lives

New rules have been created and existing rules have been revised to ensure that child support payments are received reliably and properly.

Increasing the effectiveness of agreements

If child support is agreed upon in writing, that document can be used to file a petition to seize one parent's property if payments are delayed.

*This applies to issues arising after the law comes into effect.

What is statutory child support?

Even if no child support arrangements are made at the time of divorce, this system allows the parent living with the children to request 20,000 yen per child per month from the other parent until an arrangement is made. This system was established to protect children's lives even after divorce. It is a temporary, supplementary measure until child support is decided.

*Legal child support is not intended to set a standard or minimum amount for child support to be agreed upon between parents.
*This applies to those who divorced after the law came into effect.

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Statutory child support payments are only a temporary measure until a proper child support agreement is reached. To support the healthy development of your child, it is important that parents discuss and agree on an appropriate amount of child support (including payment method and date) based on their respective incomes, through family court proceedings.

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Court proceedings go smoothly

Family courts will be able to order the disclosure of income information to facilitate the smooth proceedings of child support cases. Also, in civil enforcement proceedings for child support, a single petition to the district court will be able to disclose assets, provide salary information, and initiate procedures for garnishing discovered wages.

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If the agreed-upon child support or statutory child support is not paid, you can file a petition to seize the other party's assets (you file the petition with the district court).

○ If no agreement has been made
If statutory child support payments are not being made, it is possible to initiate seizure procedures using the family register and the resident registration records of all household members.
○ If an agreement has been made
You can use that document to file a petition for the attachment of the other party's assets (salary, savings, etc.) for the agreed-upon amount (up to 80,000 yen per child per month). To attach any amount exceeding this limit, you will need special documents such as a mediation record prepared by the family court or a notarized document prepared by a notary public.
<Procedures for ensuring performance>
　If child support payments have been determined through mediation or a judgment by the family court, you can also use a procedure called a recommendation for compliance. You can file a petition with the family court by phone or other means, and there are no fees involved. The family court that receives the petition will recommend that the other party make payments, but this procedure does not enforcing payment.

[If you don't know the other person's workplace or assets]
　At the district court, you can utilize procedures for disclosing assets (procedures in which the debtor is required to appear in court and make a statement regarding the status of their assets) and procedures for obtaining information (procedures in which designated banks, municipalities, registry offices, etc., are required to provide information regarding the debtor's bank deposits, salary, real estate, etc.).

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Review to ensure safe and secure parent-child interactions

Children are given top priority

Rules regarding parent-child interactions and interactions with relatives other than parents have been revised.

Trial implementation of parent-child interaction

It is possible to conduct trial parent-child contact during the family court proceedings. The family court will prioritize the best interests of the child and will consider whether it is appropriate to do so and whether any investigation is necessary before encouraging it to be carried out.

Parent-child interactions during separation during marriage

It has been made clear that when parents are living separately from their children while married, parent-child interactions will be decided through consultation between the parents, with the child's best interests being the top priority, and if they cannot agree on something, it will be decided through a family court ruling, etc.

Interaction between children and relatives other than their parents

If a child has a close relationship with their grandparents, such as that of parent and child, and there is a particular need for the child, the family court can determine the child's interactions with relatives other than their parents.

Q&A

Q: If joint custody is granted, will this have any impact on the treatment of those eligible for single-parent family support?

A Support for single-parent families is available to those who are unmarried and currently raising children, regardless of whether they have custody or not, and the treatment of recipients is not affected even if both parents have custody after divorce.
* Daily life support program for single-parent families, etc., self-reliance support education and training benefit program, advanced vocational training promotion benefit program, loan program for promoting advanced vocational training for single-parent families, welfare loan program for single-parent families, etc.

Q: If we have joint custody, will this affect the payment of child allowances and child support benefits?

A When child allowances or child support allowances are paid after divorce, recipients are determined based on whether or not they are actually raising a child, regardless of whether or not there is parental authority or guardianship under the Civil Code.
Even if both parents have custody after divorce, the eligibility for the allowance will be determined based on whether they are actually raising the child.
In addition, the income limit for child support allowance is calculated based on the recipient's income, so the fact that both parents become custodial parents after divorce does not affect the calculation.

Q: If I have joint custody, will this affect childcare fees?

A: Children aged 3 to 5 who attend kindergartens, nurseries, certified childcare centers, etc. are provided free of charge to all households, so even if both parents become guardians after a divorce, the current system will not be affected.
For children aged 0 to 2 years, childcare fees are calculated by municipalities based on the municipal inhabitant tax income levy for the guardian (a person with parental authority, a guardian of a minor, or other person who currently has custody of the child) and those who belong to the same household.
Municipalities determine who qualifies as a guardian by checking the extent to which each parent is involved in caring for the child and taking into full consideration the circumstances of each family. Therefore, even if both parents become parents with custody after a divorce, this will not affect the current system of determining who qualifies as a guardian, based on the actual state of custody.

Q: Does the difference between joint and sole custody affect the application of dependent deductions under the Income Tax Act?

A: Under the Income Tax Act, if you have a dependent child, you can apply for a dependent deduction if certain conditions are met, such as the child's income being 58 yen or less and you share the same household with the child.
The application of this dependent deduction does not require the presence or absence of custody, so whether or not there is joint custody does not affect the application of the dependent deduction.

Reference/Related Pages

This page is based on the "Future Support Guide for Single-Parent Families" on the Children and Families Agency website. For more information on the Civil Code amendments and support for single-parent families, please see the links below.

Children and Families Agency

■"Portal Site for Single-Parent Families" Homepage
■"New Rules for Children's Future: Key Points of the Civil Code Revision Regarding Custody, Child Support, and Parent-Child Interactions" Leaflet
■"Future Support Guide for Single-Parent Families" pamphlet

■"Your Support" is a website supporting the lives of single mothers and single fathers.

Ministry of Justice

■"Act to amend the Civil Code (Review of Child Rearing after Divorce, etc.) [Effective April 1, 2026]"
■"Rules regarding child custody after divorce have been revised" Pamphlet PDF
■Q&A format explanatory materials (Civil Code)
■Q&A format explanatory materials (administrative procedures and support)

■Video: "Amendments to the Civil Code and Other Laws Regarding Child Rearing After Divorce: Changes to Rules Regarding Custody, Child Support, Parent-Child Interactions, and More!" (approx. 37 minutes) [Ministry of Justice YouTube Channel]