Revised Imperial House Law Takes Effect

Oct 24, 2026 | News On Japan

TOKYO - Japan's revised Imperial House Law took effect on October 24, allowing female members of the Imperial Family to retain their royal status after marriage and permitting the adoption of male descendants from former imperial family branches, marking the first substantive amendment to the law's main provisions since its enactment in 1947.

The legislation, passed during the recent extraordinary session of the Diet, is intended to address the declining number of Imperial Family members by introducing two measures aimed at maintaining and expanding the royal household.

Under the revised law, female members of the Imperial Family will be able to retain their imperial status after marriage, reversing the previous requirement that they leave the royal household upon marrying a commoner.

The legislation also allows male descendants in the paternal line of former imperial family branches to be adopted into the Imperial Family, creating another avenue for increasing the number of male royal members.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara emphasized the importance of both measures, describing the retention of female royals' status as a key step toward preventing a further decline in Imperial Family membership.

"Allowing female members of the Imperial Family to retain their status is an important measure to prevent the number of royal family members from decreasing," Kihara said.

He also stressed that adoption would play an essential role in expanding the Imperial Family and securing male members who could not be added through the retention of female royals alone.

"Adoption into the Imperial Family is an indispensable measure for increasing its membership and is also meaningful in securing male royal family members who cannot be obtained simply by allowing female members to retain their status," Kihara said.

The changes represent a historic revision of Japan's Imperial House Law, which has governed the structure and membership of the Imperial Family since 1947. Although the law has undergone amendments in the past, this is the first time its main provisions have been substantively revised since its establishment.

Source: TBS

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