Local News

Record Numbers of International Residents in Japan

The Ministry of Justice has announced that there were 2.38 million international residents in Japan by the end of 2016. The figure was a record high and increased by about 150,000 compared to the previous year. Across Kyushu’s seven prefectures, the total was 117,801 with the rate of increase in Saga as the highest in the country. Miyazaki and Okinawa was third, while Kagoshima was ranked fifth, highlighting the rise in Kyushu’s international community.

The trend can be attributed to labor shortages and a rapid increase in Japanese language schools, which have resulted in more interns engaged in technical industries and exchange students entering the country. At the same time, statistics published in January reveal that the number of illegal residents in Japan has risen to 62,270 which meant an increase for the third consecutive year.

Among the international community, the Chinese population is the biggest with a total of 695,522 residents. South Korea is second with other 450,000, while the Philippines came in at number three with more than 360,000. In terms of the rate of increase, there has been a noticeable spike in the number of residents who originally come from Vietnam and Nepal. There is said to be 199,990 Vietnamese, equating to a 36.1% increase, and 63,470 Nepalese, which represents a 23.2% jump.

Permanent residents and special permanent residents account for more than 40% of the total international population. The figures also revealed record numbers of students and interns residing in Japan. There is said to be 273,731 international students in the country, a 12.4% rise on last year, while technical interns totaled 228,588, an 18.7% increase.

At 13,665, the highest number of illegal residents comes from Korea, followed by China at 8,846, and Thailand at 6,507. With the figure at standing at 5,137, there was a 34.9% jump across one year in the number of Vietnamese people illegally living in Japan. In 2016, there was a total of 13,361 illegal residents who were in the process of being deported, 9,003 of whom were engaged in illegal employment.


Original article from Nishinippon Shimbun (3/18/2017).

New Era of Immigration in Kyushu
The number of workers from abroad, including international students and technical interns in Japan, exceeded one million for the first time last year. This group of people form an indispensable component of the workforce, irrespective of the government’s position on immigration. Read more installments from this series here.

Category
Society
Fukuoka City
Published: Sep 1, 2017 / Last Updated: Sep 1, 2017

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