Overview

• The Immigration Services Agency’s draft ministerial ordinance won approval from the ruling LDP’s special committee and now heads to a public-comment phase.
• Proposals include lifting the minimum capital from ¥5 million to ¥30 million, requiring at least one full-time employee, and mandating either three years of managerial experience or a relevant master’s degree.
• Authorities plan to solicit comments through Sept. 24, with implementation to follow after the review period; local reports say the changes could take effect as early as October.
• Screenings found cases of firms with no real operations, and the agency says it benchmarked systems in the United States and South Korea when setting the tougher threshold.
• As of end-2024, 41,615 people held the status—led by Chinese nationals at 21,740—while Kyodo reported only about 4% would meet the proposed ¥30 million capital minimum.