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Fixing immigration without sparking xenophobia

Release Date
2025-11-18
Media
Japan Times
Summary
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has launched a new Cabinet-level panel to address urgent issues involving foreign nationals. Initially, tourists, nonresident investors, and long-term residents appeared to be grouped together, raising concerns about xenophobia. However, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party has now formed three specialized task forces to support the panel and create targeted, cross-ministerial policies.

Task Force 1 will strengthen screening of new long-term residents and improve compliance among current foreign residents, including denying extensions to those who repeatedly avoid paying pension or health-insurance premiums.
Task Force 2 will address tourists who exploit loopholes, such as abusing driver’s-license rules or skipping medical bills, and tighten access to national health insurance.
Task Force 3 will examine security concerns related to unregulated real-estate purchases by foreign nationals.

The author stresses the need for clear government communication so that long-term foreign residents—who share Japanese citizens’ concerns about overtourism and unregulated property buyers—are not unnecessarily alarmed.

Japan does not have an “immigration problem” in the sense of mass naturalization. Compared to the United States, Japan’s naturalization and permanent-resident numbers remain extremely low. Claims that it is “too easy” to become a citizen or permanent resident are not supported by data: naturalizations remain under 10,000 per year, and new permanent-residency approvals have grown only modestly with a 50% approval rate and wait times of over 18 months.

Given rapid growth in certain visa categories — specified skilled workers, students, engineers/humanities/international services, and technical interns — the author argues that government resources should focus on these groups and ensure newcomers properly understand Japan’s pension and health-insurance obligations.

A key factor in rising anxiety among long-term foreign residents is the contrast between earlier, well-assimilated arrivals and some recent arrivals who are wealthier, less interested in integrating, and sometimes display behavior that older foreign residents fear could reflect poorly on them. This generational divide, the author suggests, explains why many long-term expatriates feel they are being unfairly pulled into debates that do not concern them and perceive a growing sense of xenophobia directed at foreign residents as a whole.
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Immigration Policy

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