Japan’s Princess Mako to decline US$1.35 million payment to marry commoner boyfriend Kei Komuro

The government is set to agree that the princess forego the payment for royals giving up their status to marry commoners amid criticism over her fiancé

The wedding date may be announced in October and the couple plan to live in the US

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Japan’s Princess Mako with her boyfriend Kei Komuro in Tokyo. File photo: Reuters

Published: 5:55pm, 25 Sep 2021Updated: 2:47pm, 4 Oct 2021

Japan’s Princess Mako is set to forego a one-off million-dollar payment for giving up her royal status to wed a college classmate, media said on Saturday, clearing the way for a marriage delayed for years by controversy over her fiancé.

The 29-year-old granddaughter of then-Emperor Akihito and her former college classmate, Kei Komuro, announced their engagement in 2017.

But the marriage was put off after reports of a financial dispute between Komuro’s mother and her former fiancé.

The government is set to agree that the princess forego the payment, worth up to 150 million yen (US$1.35 million) for royals giving up their status to marry commoners, amid public criticism over her fiancé, public broadcaster NHK and others said.

NHK said the wedding date may be announced in October. Mako also planned to renounce the rituals and ceremonies normally associated with weddings at the imperial court.

Officials of the Imperial Household Agency were not immediately available to comment.