"I hereby affirm that the above is the complete list of the members of this household," reads a typical juminhyo (resident registration form). The mayor of the issuing municipality applies the official stamp, and the family's all accounted for.

Or maybe not.

While Japanese law clearly states that "any person residing in Japan is a resident of Japan," and mandates that those people register as such, it also stipulates that "the names of foreign nationals may not appear on the juminhyo."