Japanese for Reporting a Lost Passport: Saying 'I've Lost My Passport' and Taking the Right Steps
Learn to say you've lost your passport in Japanese, explain when and where it happened, and understand the police report and embassy steps using natural intermediate-level phrasing.
By SofiaGetting around · Yapr Learn
Losing a passport abroad is stressful, and doing it in Japan means handling two separate systems: the police (for a loss report, called 紛失届, funshitsu-todoke) and your embassy or consulate (for a replacement travel document). This lesson gives you the exact Japanese you need to state the problem clearly, answer the questions staff will ask, and move through the process without freezing. You will practice the key sentence パスポートをなくしました (pasupōto o nakushimashita) and build on it with time, place, and request patterns. The focus is on polite, neutral です・ます forms, which are appropriate for police officers, embassy staff, and hotel personnel you do not know well.
By the end, you can…
- state clearly that I have lost my passport.
- say when and where I think I lost it.
- ask where to file a police loss report and what to bring.
- explain at an embassy or consulate that I need a replacement travel document.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
パスポートをなくしました。
I've lost my passport.
pa-su-pō-to o na-ku-shi-ma-shi-ta
The core sentence. なくしました is the polite past tense of なくす (to lose). Use it as your opening line at a police box (交番, kōban), a station office, or your embassy.
昨日、電車の中に置き忘れたかもしれません。
I may have left it on the train yesterday.
ki-nō, den-sha no na-ka ni o-ki-wa-su-re-ta ka-mo shi-re-ma-sen
Use かもしれません to soften a guess. Replace 昨日 (yesterday) and 電車 (train) with your actual time and place. This helps staff narrow the search.
紛失届を出したいのですが、どこで手続きすればいいですか。
I'd like to file a loss report; where should I do the procedure?
fun-shi-tsu-to-do-ke o da-shi-tai no desu ga, do-ko de te-tsu-zu-ki su-re-ba ii desu ka
紛失届 (funshitsu-todoke) is the police loss report. The 〜たいのですが… pattern politely introduces a request and invites guidance.
再発行に必要なものは何ですか。
What is needed for reissuance?
sai-hak-kō ni hi-tsu-yō na mo-no wa nan desu ka
再発行 (sai hakō) means reissuance. At an embassy this usually means a replacement passport or an emergency travel document; staff may ask for photos, ID copies, or a police report.
警察で受理した紛失届の控えはあります。こちらです。
I have a copy of the loss report accepted by the police. Here it is.
ke-i-sa-tsu de u-ke-tsu-ke-shi-ta fun-shi-tsu-to-do-ke no hi-ka-e wa a-ri-ma-su. ko-chi-ra de-su
控え (hikae) is a copy or receipt. Showing it speeds things up. 受理しました (accepted/received) is the term police use when the report is officially taken.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The pattern 〜をなくしました (〜 o nakushimashita) reports a lost item, while 〜に置き忘れました (〜 ni okiwasuremashita) reports leaving something behind. Compare: 財布をなくしました (saifu o nakushimashita, I lost my wallet) versus スマホを電車に置き忘れました (sumaho o densha ni okiwasuremashita, I left my phone on the train). If you are unsure which happened, use 〜かもしれません (kamo shiremasen, may/might): パスポートをなくしたかもしれません (pasupōto o nakushita kamo shiremasen, I may have lost my passport). To ask what to do, use どうすればいいですか (dō sureba ii desu ka, what should I do?).
When to use it
Start with パスポートをなくしました at a 交番 (kōban, police box) or police station, then add time and place: 昨日の午後、新宿駅でなくしました (kinō no gogo, Shinjuku-eki de nakushimashita, I lost it yesterday afternoon at Shinjuku Station). Police will ask for your name, address in Japan, and contact details, and will issue a 紛失届受理証明書 (funshitsu-todoke juri shōmeisho, certificate of acceptance of loss report). Take that document to your embassy or consulate, where you say パスポートの再発行をお願いしたいのですが (pasupōto no saihakō o onegai shitai no desu ga, I'd like to request reissuance of my passport). Keep copies of everything.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
すみません、パスポートをなくしました。
Excuse me, I've lost my passport.su-mi-ma-sen, pa-su-pō-to o na-ku-shi-ma-shi-taいつ、どこでなくしましたか。
When and where did you lose it?i-tsu, do-ko de na-ku-shi-ma-shi-ta ka昨日の夜、たぶんタクシーの中だと思います。
Last night, I think probably in a taxi.ki-nō no yo-ru, ta-bun ta-ku-shī no na-ka da to o-mo-i-ma-suでは、紛失届を書いてください。受理証明書をお渡しします。
Then please fill out a loss report. We will give you a certificate of acceptance.de-wa, fun-shi-tsu-to-do-ke o ka-i-te ku-da-sai. ju-ri shō-mee-sho o o-wa-ta-shi shi-ma-suA little context goes a long way
In Japan, a police loss report (紛失届) is generally required before an embassy or consulate will reissue a passport or issue an emergency travel document, so do the police step first. Officers at a 交番 are used to helping residents and visitors and will usually speak simple Japanese; if you need help, you can ask 英語のできる方はいますか (eigo no dekiru kata wa imasu ka, is there someone who can speak English?). Keep the 受理証明書 safe, as it may also help with insurance claims and immigration questions when you leave the country.
One thing to watch for
Saying パスポートを落としました (pasupōto o otoshimashita) to mean 'I lost my passport.'
Try this instead: 落としました means you physically dropped it, which suggests it fell somewhere nearby. For a lost item you cannot find, use なくしました: パスポートをなくしました (pasupōto o nakushimashita). If you actually dropped it and saw it fall, then 落としました is fine: 駅でパスポートを落としました (eki de pasupōto o otoshimashita, I dropped my passport at the station).
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you tell a police officer that you lost your passport yesterday?
Show a sample answer
昨日、パスポートをなくしました。
The time phrase 昨日 comes first, then the object パスポート marked by を, then the polite past verb なくしました. Adding 昨日 is optional but helpful; パスポートをなくしました alone is also correct.
2You are not sure whether you lost your wallet or left it on the bus. What sentence expresses this uncertainty?
Show a sample answer
財布をバスに置き忘れたかもしれません。
置き忘れた (okiwasureta) is the plain past form of 置き忘れる, and かもしれません adds 'might have.' You could also say 財布をなくしたかもしれません if you suspect loss rather than leaving it behind; both are valid depending on what you think happened.
3At the embassy, how do you ask what is needed to reissue your passport?
Show a sample answer
パスポートの再発行に必要なものは何ですか。
The pattern 〜に必要なものは何ですか asks what is necessary for an action. 再発行 (sai hakō) is the standard term for reissuance. A slightly softer alternative is 何が必要ですか (nani ga hitsuyō desu ka), which is also natural.
Say パスポートをなくしました first, then add time and place, file a 紛失届 at a police box, and bring the 受理証明書 to your embassy for reissuance.
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