Japan Moving Fast to Tighten Regulations on Foreigners

Tokyo, Aug. 13 (Jiji Press)–The administration of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is moving fast to tighten regulations on foreign residents in the country, as it seeks to ease concerns among some Japanese people about a sharp increase in foreigners. The government last month announced a plan to significantly increase fees for residence status applications. Earlier this month, it unveiled a plan to tighten conditions for obtaining permanent residence. Under the immigration control and refugee recognition law, obtaining permanent residence requires good behavior, having sufficient assets and skills to support independent living and it being in the national interest. The Immigration Services Agency earlier this month announced a plan to revise guidelines for permanent residence, adding a requirement that applicants have annual income levels exceeding the average in Japan and projected pension benefits equivalent to those after 30 years of participation in the “kosei nenkin” public pension program for employees. The revised guidelines also require applicants to make active and tangible contributions to Japan. The agency plans to begin applying these changes in stages starting in October. The revision comes amid concerns about the failure by some foreign residents to pay taxes and social insurance premiums. “We will ensure that granting permanent residence will not place a burden on the public,” Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi said of the revised guidelines at a press conference on Aug. 4. Some experts expressed worries about the revised guidelines. “Imposing strict requirements equivalent to laws (under guidelines) infringes on the authority of parliament,” said Shoichi Ibusuki, a lawyer familiar with foreign resident issues. The Takaichi administration also tightened conditions for obtaining Japanese nationality, extending necessary residence terms from five years or more to 10 years or more in principle. The country will raise permanent residence fees by 20-fold to 200,000 yen in October. An advisory panel to the government has started discussing the possibility of controlling the ratio of foreign residents to the country’s total population. The number of foreign residents in Japan hit a record high of 4,125,395 as of the end of 2025. “A rapid increase in foreign residents could cause social anxiety and stir up xenophobic sentiment,” a former cabinet minister in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party said. “Strict conditions are necessary to accept foreigners.” But an increase in foreigners in Japan is partly because of a decline in the working-age population in the country. Japan faces competition with countries such as South Korea in obtaining foreign talent. “Japan will become less attractive if no measures are taken,” a lawmaker in the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan said. “Economic activity would shrink and communities could not be sustained if foreigners do not come to live in Japan.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]