The Pros and Cons of Getting Married Before Studying Abroad for Women in their Late 20s: What About Using Both Old and New Surnames in the Passport?

By the way, let's talk about getting married.

At this stage before studying abroad, I find myself unable to proceed with concrete administrative tasks despite wanting to quickly complete the procedures, as obtaining a student visa for Malaysia seems to take time.

Originally, we had planned to get married within this year, but due to the decision to study abroad, we decided to advance the wedding date. Specifically, we are planning to proceed with the marriage procedures before obtaining the student visa, which involves linking it with the name on my passport.

The benefits of getting married before studying abroad

Generally, the advantages of getting married before studying abroad include not having to worry if your partner will wait for you until after the study abroad period and the possibility of leaving your belongings in your current home if someone (such as family) remains in Japan.

In addition to these, personally, I consider it advantageous to have my spouse as the designated emergency contact required for various procedures. While studying abroad is an individual endeavor in choosing a school, it has been revealed that there have already been several instances where providing emergency contact information for unforeseen circumstances, similar to when submitting documents to schools or workplaces in Japan, is necessary.

If your family can provide contact information, that would be fine, and it may even be acceptable to ask your family to relay messages to your spouse. However, I thought it would be worrisome if there was no communication between myself and my significant other, who is important to me, especially considering that our families have not yet begun to establish a relationship before the marriage.

The drawbacks of getting married before studying abroad

Regarding my case, neither my partner nor my relatives oppose my decision to study abroad immediately after marriage. They have been supportive as I have always expressed my desire to study abroad and live overseas.

However, if you are the one changing your surname due to marriage, the most troublesome aspect is dealing with the name change procedures.

In my case, since I am planning to change my name, I will need to update my passport with the new name, as well as change the name on credit cards that are likely to be used abroad. Each of these processes will take a few weeks.

Furthermore, although I plan to complete the procedures with the certificates that can be obtained using the new surname for now, there are certain documents, such as university transcripts, that can only be obtained using the maiden name. Therefore, I had to extensively research methods to prove that the maiden name and the new name belong to the same person, just to be safe.

Procedures to prove the same person with the new and maiden surnames

Note that you should conduct your own research for the latest information when proceeding with these procedures. However, it is likely that the following steps will be involved:

While in Japan, translate the family register extract into English and have it notarized at the local ward office. Then, obtain authentication from the Embassy of Japan in Malaysia.

Once in Malaysia, request a family register extract and issue an English version of it at the Embassy of Japan in Malaysia.

Issuance of various certificates.www.my.emb-japan.go.jp

The procedures in Japan would require taking time off on weekdays, and it seems quite cumbersome. However, these are the procedures that need to be done, and if necessary, I can only say that I will do my best.

Passport: Keep the maiden name, change it to the new name, or use both?

In the case of a honeymoon trip, if changing your name and not being able to obtain a new passport in time, it is possible to travel with both the old surname on the passport and the tickets.

It feels somewhat odd to be called by a recently changed name, and I wondered if there was a way to study abroad using the maiden name in a similar way to a honeymoon trip. However, as Japanese certificates to prove my identity will be issued with the new surname from now on, and I also plan to change the name on credit cards, I decided to have consistency and use the new surname in my passport.

If it doesn't work out in time, the worst-case scenario would be to travel to the study abroad destination (in my case, Malaysia) and then proceed with the procedures at the Embassy of Japan in Malaysia.

As for using both the maiden and new surnames, although I personally would like to do so, I have decided not to (i.e., the passport will only have the new surname) because explaining this at immigration checkpoints during travel, not only in Malaysia but also in any future overseas travels, seems to be a hassle.

Considering that in Malaysia, not only having different surnames for married couples but also having no surname at all is quite common, I am concerned about the potential complications in explaining this.

Advice for those contemplating marriage before studying abroad

In my case, I simply accelerated my originally planned marriage before studying abroad, but there may be opinions suggesting that it's unnecessary to get married before studying abroad. As alternatives, you could prepare the documents and have one of the partners submit them, or perhaps there is no rush to get married.

While I decided to get married, I became unsure about the necessary procedures before studying abroad. If there are others who are also struggling with the decision of getting married before studying abroad and the associated procedures, I hope this discussion can be helpful, and I plan to write further articles on this topic in the future.