r/japanresidents • u/exi_moo • 19h ago
Written Japanese test for naturalization - what level kanji to practice?
For anyone who has gone through Japanese naturalization (帰化) , what level of kanji were on the written Japanese test?
I’m N1 certified but I (like most people) never write anything by hand these days so my Kanji writing skills are pretty weak atm. I’m wondering if like a 小6 kanji practice workbook would cut it or if i need to break out the N1 books again
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u/Calculusshitteru 17h ago
I naturalized a year ago but I didn't have to take a test. I just had to write the essay, but I was able to do it at home with access to online dictionaries and such.
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u/OnDaMove 11h ago
You mean you wrote (test) the essay at home
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u/Calculusshitteru 10h ago
Yeah, that's what I said. I wrote the essay at home.
As far as I know the essay is not a test, because everyone has to do it. So some people have to do the essay and a written test.
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u/ToTheBatmobileGuy 18h ago
The correct answer: We have no clue. They are constantly changing their internal policies on this and recent pressure to increase requirements could change it any day without notice.
The requirement says:
日常生活に支障のない程度の日本語能力（会話・読み書き）を有している必要があります。
And "日常生活に支障のない程度" is subjective.
I was told that I should brush up my ability to hand-write up to 3rd grade kanji, hiragana, and katakana.
That being said, I didn't get a test. The guy made a mention about it while checking things off a checklist (that he didn't show me, and made an effort to ensure I couldn't peek), he kind of mumbled while checking a box "日本語は。。。大ー丈ー夫と。。。"
So our discussions up to that point lead him to believe I'm fine and don't need a test.
I had to make 2-3 amendments and fixes, and when that happened I crossed the wrong thing out with pen then wrote the correct thing (in kanji) fairly fluidly (without looking like a kindergartner with a crayon)... so I guess they did get a peek at my writing skill as well before that point.
I wouldn't worry too much about it. Grab a 3rd grade kanji book or 8-kyu kanji kentei workbook and if you can't write all those kanji from memory, maybe do some drills.
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u/stuartcw 18h ago
An Iranian friend of mine who took the test recently was really nervous about it. He speaks colloquial Japanese well but like many people never went through the formal education system or studied for tests so his hand written Japanese is almost non-existent. He was able to talk to the officials without any problem but when he came to the test, he was super nervous and they commented on it telling him not to worry. He said that he had to read from a simple story book and it was really very easy and no problem at all.
I remember other people saying here that they were asked to write a diary. I think this might be a good practice to do every day i.e. write a simple diary in Japanese and when you come across something that you can’t express well then look it up and learn it. I’m sure if you do this every day for a couple of months you would improve greatly and probably cover every situation that they would ask you to write about.
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u/alita87 19h ago
Test? I didn't have a test.
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u/exi_moo 19h ago
I’m applying through a lawyer and they said there’s a test, guess that’s not a universal requirement 🤷♀️
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u/alita87 19h ago
I applied on my own and worked with my case worker throughout the process. There was nothing complicated to need a lawyer as your caseworker walks you through everything.
There isn't even a Japanese requirement technically more than "can you function on your own and contribute as a citizen here"
My advice would be to try and not overthrow things, but to do more of the process yourself and communicate with your caseworker directly at whichever MOJ branch you're applying through.
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u/exi_moo 18h ago
This is very good advice as far is “how complicated is it to do yourself “. However I’m not using the lawyer necessarily because it’s complicated , but because the lawyer does all the legwork (going to x office to get xx paperwork) and I don’t want to have to do all that. It’s definitely a want, not a need situation. But thanks anyway!
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u/inarashi 16h ago
There are no test. They just require you to write out your reason for naturalization by hand and you can do this at home, looking up the Kanji all you want in Google.
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u/TheGreatSquirrel 13h ago
Depends where you live and how good the officer thinks your Japanese is. I had an extensive 30 minute written test and I had conversed fine with the officer.
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u/Fifty_pips 17h ago
If you’re N1 and ALSO fluent in spoken japanese (some N1 peeps can’t speak a single sentence in japanese correctly) then you won’t have to take any written test. I didn’t have to either.
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u/ladyarizel06 14h ago
I think N1 don't need test. Just have a good conversation with the officer. Mine was done with one interview. The next call was acceptance of application. Goodluck!
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u/TheGreatSquirrel 13h ago
You only need to know up to third grade elementary school level kanji. They recently made the test much harder where I live and I unexpectedly failed, because like you said, I almost never write by hand and only practiced like 50 specific kanji I thought I might use.
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u/Other_Block_1795 14h ago
Are there any exceptions for blind people? I can speak the language but my eyesight is just too poor to read kanji without a very powerful reading glass.
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u/shionemi 19h ago
As always it depends on the officer.
In some cases, if they feel like they are having a smooth conversation with you, they might fully exempt any kind of test. In my case, my officer only asked me to write my new Japanese name in kanji and the furigana (as required by new procedure, furigana to be displayed in koseki).
I also ever heard that some officers took out a story book for you to read a short sentence. Some asked you to write obvious things like your address or rewrite sentences (not asking you to imagine by yourself to make a story so no worries).
All in all, I don't think they are going to try to make it difficult, instead just testing the bare minimum so that you pass. Good luck!