A government panel of experts is recommending that Japan create a mandatory integration program for foreign residents and collect data on real estate ownership by non-citizens, in a report submitted to “immigration minister” Kimi Onoda on Wednesday.
The report was submitted by the panel’s chair, Reiko Hayashi, the director-general of the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.
The meeting between economic security minister Onoda — who is also “minister in charge of a society of well-ordered and harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals” — and Hayashi took place as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s administration moves to reset Japan’s direction for policies related to foreign nationals, including by conducting better language programs and implementing new restrictions on real estate purchases on national and economic security grounds.
The panel, in its report, underscored Japan’s lack of a national program for educating immigrants on the country’s language, culture, customs and legal framework.
“As a result, some foreigners are having a hard time adjusting to Japanese society,” the panel said. “It is the government’s responsibility to provide foreign residents with a program to continually learn Japanese language and social norms.”
The panel proposes an integration program that takes into account the needs of not only individuals, but also their family members as a unit. In the program, which foreign nationals intending to live in Japan would be required to take part in before and after entering the country, participants would gain basic knowledge about Japanese society and administrative procedures. The panel suggests that participation in the program be made a condition of residence.
As for integration programs provided in the private sector, the report noted that while big firms are well organized, mid- to small-size companies lack the capital and human resources to establish support systems for foreign employees.
To close the gap between companies’ levels of support for foreign employees, the report said that local municipalities and businesses must coordinate to provide consultation services and Japanese language education.
On the topic of land ownership by foreign nationals, which is on the rise, the report praised the government’s plan to require new property owners to disclose their nationality in a real estate registry starting in fiscal 2026.
It also underscored the importance of creating a standardized way to collect data on the usage of groundwater amid growing concern over foreign nationals’ use of the resource.
In December, the government released data on foreign national-owned land near important facilities, including those of the Self-Defense Forces and nuclear power plants, as well as islands near Japan’s maritime borders. In fiscal 2024, 3.1% of 113,827 acquisitions were made by foreign nationals and companies.
Another government survey on property acquisitions by foreign nationals found…