TOKYO – Japan will tighten its permanent residency requirements by introducing stricter income, pension and Japanese-language criteria, with some of the new rules applying to applications submitted as early as April this year.
The revised guidelines, unveiled on August 4, establish clearer benchmarks for permanent residency eligibility for the first time as the government seeks to ensure applicants can support themselves financially and contribute to Japanese society over the long term, The Japan Times reported.
Under the proposed rules, applicants will generally be required to maintain a household income above the national average for households of a similar size throughout the previous five years.
Immigration authorities said the assessment will be based on several government income surveys rather than a single fixed figure, although Japan's average annual household income stood at ¥5.75 million in 2024.
Applicants will also be assessed on their projected pension benefits to determine whether they are likely to remain financially independent after retirement. Financial assets may be considered to offset pension shortfalls, although real estate and similar assets will not be included in the assessment.
The new income and financial self-sufficiency requirements are expected to take effect around October 1 and will also apply to permanent residency applications submitted from April this year that are still under review.
From April 2027, applicants will also generally need Japanese-language proficiency equivalent to CEFR B1, or the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) N2 level.
Immigration officials said the language requirement was introduced after local governments reported cases where permanent residents struggled to understand official notices, resulting in unpaid taxes and increased administrative burdens.
Authorities will also consider applicants' understanding of Japanese laws, taxation and social security systems, as well as whether their school-age children are attending school.
The revised guidelines also tighten residency conditions for spouses of Japanese citizens and permanent residents. Applicants will generally be required to have been married for five years and lived in Japan for at least three years, compared with the current requirement of three years of marriage and one year of residence.
In addition, the government released new guidelines expanding the grounds for revoking permanent residency.
From April 2027, authorities will be able to revoke permanent residency for individuals who deliberately fail to pay taxes, pension or health insurance contributions, repeatedly violate immigration obligations, or are convicted of specified intentional crimes.
Officials said residency would generally not be revoked if non-payment resulted from circumstances such as illness, unemployment or natural disasters, or if individuals cooperated with repayment arrangements.
Immigration Services Agency official Kentaro Ando said permanent residency carries long-term responsibilities and requires careful assessment before any decision to revoke the status is made.
“A person granted (permanent residency) status is expected to make Japan the base of his or her life for the remainder of that life.
“For that reason, particularly careful examination is required when deciding whether to revoke permission,” Ando said.
Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi said the reforms are intended to promote an orderly society where Japanese citizens and foreign residents can coexist.
“We consider all of these measures necessary to realize an orderly society in which Japanese and foreign nationals coexist,” he said.
However, the changes have drawn criticism from legal experts and immigration advocates, who argued that the stricter requirements could discourage long-term foreign residents from settling in Japan despite the country's ageing population and labour shortages.
Lawyer Shoichi Ibusuki said the policy treats foreign nationals as temporary labour rather than members of society.
“Foreign nationals are not objects. They are not a means to an end.
“When people come to Japan, work here and build their lives here, we must welcome them as colleagues and as individual human beings, including accepting responsibility for their futures,” he said.
