Job Discussion Forums

[Marcel]

Hello everyone,

I`m looking for advice from those who`re married to a Japanese, and have had children. My wife is pregnant and I`d like hear some of your opinions as to where we should have the baby - Canada or Japan?

I`ve heard Japan doesn`t allow dual citizenship, and so the child would have to renounce his/her citizenship once they reach 18. Besides that, I`m quite uninformed about any advantages or benefits that may exist in one place over another. Please advise...
Thanks

[Glenski]

How well does your wife speak English? Mine had our son in a Japanese hospital. It put us closer to her mother, with whom she stayed a month after the birth (quite common here), and she felt very comfortable seeing a fellow Japanese doctor and midwife.

Renouncing one citizenship takes place at 22, not 18, by the way.

I don't know what it's like being "half", but I've heard of teasing and bullying in Japan is very common, but I can imagine it is also fairly common back home, too. Maybe more so here.

Health care is good financially here. Don't know what it's like back home.

[Doglover]

[Gordon]

Are you asking about just the birth of the baby or about where to raise the child?

My wife and I have had a child born in Canada and in Japan, so am in a good position to answer your question about the actual birth. Where are you living now? In Canada, the birth is free, whereas in Japan, the average cost of having a baby is about 550,000 yen approx (Japanese gov't pays back 300,000 yen and possibly that will be raised to 350,000 yen), when you facor in all the doctor's visits and 20 odd ultrasounds. If you are in Japan now and want to have the baby born in Canada, then there is usually a 3 month waiting period before your medical coverage kicks in.
I think the care is better in Japan and your wife, being Japanese will probably feel more comfortable here. In Canada, it is like a factory, have the baby and you are out the door the next day or sometimes the same day. In Japan, you often stay 7-10 days, luckily they let my wife out after 5 days as she was climbing up the walls.

Citizenship-wise, it doesn't matter. Your child will be dual no matter where they are born.

Oh yeah, congratulations and a soon to be welcome to The Club (of Dad's).

[moot point]

you wrote

[Marcel]

[johanne]

I teach at an international school and most of my students are bilingual. However, and this is also from personal experience, the language you are educated in, especially if it is from Grade 1 on, will be your stronger language unless you really make a concerted effort to learn more sophisticated vocabulary in the other language (that is the one you may speak at home but not use regularly at school) than needed in everyday life. My mother is French Canadian and French was my first language, but I went to school in English, where I was taught new vocabulary and interesting idioms and phases, etc. In French I just chatted with my family. I liked to read, but it was easier in English so I always choose English books despite my mother's constant encouragement to read in French. I regret now that I didn't take her advice. The upshot of it is that while I'm fluent in French, I can write and express myself much better in English. This is also the case for many students in international schools who have spent their whole lives in English-meduim schools.

I've also talked to Japanese staff at my school who went to international school for all or most of their primary and secondary education and while they are all fluent in Japanese and sound native, they all say there are gaps in their vocabulary. For example, they are not always sure of proper business Japanese in their dealings with Japanese companies.

My own daughter is 4 years old and chatting away in English very fluently. In Japanese she is repeating the same phrases and vocabulary most of the time. We are planning to send her to Japanese public school from Grade 1 in the hope that she will get a strong foundation in Japanese. I will teach her English at home in hopes of building the same level of language in English. I'm not sure how this will all work out but I'm hoping for the best. In my opinion, it definately won't happen on its own, at least not if you're looking for true bilingualism.

[Nismo]

I have a similar question. My wife and I are both from different countries, neither of those countries being Japan. However, we both live here, now. If we were to have a child on Japanese soil, would the baby receive Japanese nationality?