The latest data released by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan (ISA) shows that as of the end of June 2026, the number of foreign residents living in Japan has reached a record high of 4,281,026 people, an increase of approximately 155,000 people (3.8%) from the end of 2025, further raising the proportion of foreign residents to Japan’s total population to 3.48%. Among them, Chinese residents continue to top the list, maintaining their position as the largest foreign community in Japan.
This data reflects the continuous significant growth in the number of grassroots and professional foreign workers in Japan, against the backdrop of a declining birth rate and severe labor shortages.
Among all foreign groups, Chinese nationals remain the largest community with 941,031 people, followed by Vietnamese nationals (693,750 people) and Korean nationals (408,682 people). However, it is worth noting that compared to the explosive growth of Southeast Asian groups like Indonesia, the growth rate of Chinese residents in Japan has shown a significant slowdown trend.
Media and economic experts analyze that this is mainly due to the impact of China’s domestic economic downturn, shrinking assets, and intensified foreign exchange controls, which have led to disruptions in the financial chains of the middle class moving overseas.
Meanwhile, in recent years, the Japanese government has significantly tightened the threshold for the so-called investor visa, increasing the minimum capital requirement from 5 million yen to 30 million yen, and eliminating the loophole of being able to substitute capital with hired employees, requiring at least one Japanese or permanent resident employee.
Citing data from parliamentary questioning, it is pointed out that this combination has directly led to a 96% drop in the monthly application volume of this visa. The channels that previously enabled immigrants to Japan through setting up shell companies or buying guesthouses have been completely shut down, with the number of foreigners holding this visa who directly relinquished their status and left the country in the first half of 2026 increasing by 3.9 times compared to the same period last year.
In terms of the overall distribution of foreign residents, Tokyo attracts nearly one-fifth of Japan’s foreign population, with a total of 824,000 people, accounting for 5.76% of the total population of the capital. Following Tokyo are Osaka Prefecture, Aichi Prefecture, and Kanagawa Prefecture. Among the top ten source countries, Indonesian residents showed the most significant growth, increasing by over 41,000 people within six months, surpassing the 300,000 mark.
In terms of residence status, permanent residents are still the largest category, with a total of 961,342 people. The “Specified Skills” visa introduced in 2019, aimed at filling gaps in fields such as nursing, agriculture, and catering, has seen a significant increase of nearly 54,000 people within six months, totaling 444,256 people. The number of holders of the “Technical Intern Training” visa covering white-collar and professional technical personnel has also increased to 516,000. Additionally, the number of overstaying (illegal) foreign residents has decreased by 4.8% from the beginning of the year, dropping to 65,229 people.
Despite the Japanese government’s comprehensive implementation of a policy of “qualitative tightening” in recent years, the overall scale of “importing labor” has reached a new high. In addition to significantly raising the thresholds for permanent residency and naturalization applications (such as adding Japanese language and income requirements, increasing the fee for permanent residency applications), new regulations also empower the government to revoke the permanent residency of those who intentionally evade taxes or fail to pay social insurance, demonstrating Japan’s dual-track approach of “expanding labor supply” while vigorously “strictly managing long-term immigrants and permanent residents.”
With changes in the structure of visitors to Japan, the long-standing issue of “overtourism” in Japanese society has unexpectedly seen a turning point and positive voices. According to the “2026 Tourism White Paper” approved by the Japanese Cabinet, due to political friction and restrictions on travel to Japan by China, the number of Chinese tourists has sharply declined by over 50% this year. However, the Japanese tourism industry has not suffered as anticipated. Instead, with strong replacements from diverse sources such as South Korea, Taiwan, the United States, and Hong Kong, overall tourism consumption has continued to maintain at historically high levels.
According to reports by “Nikkei Shimbun” and others, for local residents in tourist-heavy areas such as Kyoto and Tokyo’s Asakusa, the significant decrease in specific large tourist groups has led to a marked reduction in uncivilized behaviors like taking unauthorized photos and making loud noises at attractions. Positive voices have emerged in Japanese society, with many expressing gratitude that “the original quality of life quietly returned.”
Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Japanese government has increased the demonstration areas for addressing overtourism from 47 to 100, vigorously promoting upgrading plans to alleviate traffic congestion and guide tourists deeper into local towns. This aims to shift Japanese tourism from “blindly pursuing quantity” towards a beneficial transformation of “balancing quality of life for local residents.”