Filipino migrants in Japan to be impacted by new child custody policy

A JAPANESE policy allowing joint custody of children for divorcees will put Filipinos in Japan under stricter monitoring on tax, insurance, financial compliance, and language proficiency, the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) said on Tuesday.

The joint child custody, which will take effect in April, may pose challenges to foreign residents in Japan due to stricter immigration standards which may lead to deportation or ban from re-entry if violated.

“JFBA [Japan Federation of Bar Association] representative Atty. Keiko Kato warned that navigating the new legal landscape remains a massive hurdle for Filipinos due to severe language barriers among local Japanese lawyers,” the CFO statement read. “Because of the high volume of cross-border unions, Filipino migrants are disproportionately affected by shifts in Japanese family and civil law, particularly when those marriages dissolve.”

To address the looming challenges, the CFO said it has also proposed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the JFBA to protect Filipinos from the repercussions of changes in Japanese laws.

The MoU will provide legal aid for Filipinos in Japan, including information and legal rights campaigns and improvement of the CFO’s pre-departure orientation and guidance and counseling program.

According to the CFO, there are about 300,000 Filipino migrants in Japan as reported by the government.

The CFO noted that this population was initially composed of overseas Filipino workers, until it evolved into a community of permanent residents, second-generation youth, and marriages between Filipinos and the Japanese people. — Kaela Patricia B. Gabriel