Voters listen to a street speech in front of JR Akihabara Station following the official start of the Lower House election campaign, January 27, Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo (©Sankei by Kazuya Kamogawa).
In Japan's February 8 general election, policies to manage foreign residents, immigration, and related issues have shifted from a niche talking point to a front-line campaign issue. The number of foreign residents has climbed to roughly 3.95 million, up by more than a million over the past five years. Meanwhile, tourism and cross-border money flows have made "foreigners" newly visible in daily life.
Parties are now competing over what to do next about the increase in foreign residents — whether to tighten enforcement and consider limits, or to strengthen support and protections so communities can absorb change smoothly.
Pivoting from 'Coexistence' to 'Order'
That tension is evident in how the ruling government is repositioning its message from "coexistence" to "order." On January 23, the day the Lower House was dissolved, the government released a new basic policy. It emphasized tighter foreign residency management. In addition, it also called for stronger measures to prevent unpaid taxes and social insurance premiums, crack down on illegal overstays, and tighten requirements for naturalization.
Yet on the most controversial question, whether Japan should set a hard cap on admissions or a ceiling on the proportion of foreign residents, the policy stayed vague.
That ambiguity is now being challenged by parties arguing that the government needs to be more explicit. In a January 26 party leaders' debate hosted by the Japan National Press Club, Sanseito leader Sohei Kamiya pressed Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on whether she would adopt a "total volume cap on immigrants," and criticized what he sees as repeated avoidance of the central question.
The exchange matters because it exposes the government's dilemma. It must reassure voters who want clearer limits on the intake of foreign workers and residents and stronger adherence to the rules. At the same time, it has to manage an economy that increasingly depends on foreign labor.
Caps and Enforcement
Across the parties, policy on foreigners is splitting into two broad approaches. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Ishin no Kai, Sanseito, and several smaller conservative parties emphasize tighter immigration control. This includes tougher action against illegal overstayers, stricter screening of residence status, and, in Ishin and Sanseito's case, explicit "quantitative management" that would cap or manage the scale of foreign residents. Sanseito is proposing a ceiling of up to 5% for the foreign resident ratio at the municipal level.
On property and land, the LDP talks about creating new legal rules for land purchases, while Ishin argues for stronger restrictions and says it will submit a bill. Other parties also advocate restrictions or tax measures, such as the Democratic Party for the People, which is calling for a vacancy-related tax on non-residential purchases. The Tomorrow Party of Japan proposes higher fixed-asset taxes for foreign owners who do not live in Japan.
Coexistence and Rights
On the other side, the Centrist Reform Alliance, Japanese Communist Party (JCP), Reiwa Shinsengumi, and the Social Democratic Party frame the issue more in terms of coexistence and rights protections. The Centrist Reform Alliance stresses overtourism measures and building a society where Japanese and foreigners can live together safely with mutual respect.
Meanwhile, the JCP proposes a wider family accompaniment policy and would grant local voting rights to permanent residents. Reiwa opposes importing low-wage labor. However, it also calls for stronger rights protections and an end to so-called discrimination. The Social Democrats advocate a penalty-backed anti-discrimination law as part of a multicultural coexistence agenda.
What the Numbers Say — and What They Don't
Behind the headline pledges sits a second argument shaping this election. Whether the scale of the immigration problem matches the scale of the public anxiety, and what the data actually shows.
On BS Fuji Prime News on January 30, business executive David Atkinson warned against turning foreigners into a scapegoat for low growth, falling real wages, and anger at politics. He argued that claims that foreigners are "worsening public safety" exaggerate the facts. Citing National Police Agency data, he said foreign nationals account for "about 3%" of crimes, meaning that even if those disappeared entirely, "97% would remain."
On welfare, migration scholar Naoko Hashimoto addressed a common criticism: that foreign residents are "free-riding" on Japan's social safety net by receiving benefits without paying in. She noted that eligibility for Japan's public assistance is limited to specific residence statuses. These include special permanent residents, permanent residents, spouses of permanent residents, and long-term residents.
Hashimoto also said households headed by foreign nationals make up around "2.8%" of all public-assistance recipient households.
She added that many of the foreign welfare-recipient households she was referring to include older residents. Some, she said, were left with weaker pension coverage because of how Japan's social services treated certain groups in the past — before later reforms and international commitments.
Hashimoto also noted a broader trend: the share of welfare-recipient households headed by foreign nationals has been declining. That decline has continued even as the number of permanent and long-term foreign residents has increased.
Why Voters Still Feel Uneasy
A different counter-argument, however, is emerging from the street level: even if the foreigner statistics look broadly proportional, many voters say their daily experience has changed too rapidly. They want clearer rules, stronger enforcement, and, crucially, policies that "return" benefits to local communities.
In Tokyo's Asakusa, where foreign visitors are now highly visible, a woman in her 70s said the increase in foreigners is "a good thing." She argued that if municipalities become wealthier, residents' lives could improve.
At the same time, an 84-year-old shoe store owner near Kaminarimon said the atmosphere of the neighborhood has changed dramatically, yet "there's almost no benefit." He added that long-time customers now avoid the area and that more policies are needed to ensure tourism growth actually supports local shops and residents.
Where tensions have already surfaced, voters frame the issue less as ideology than as everyday risk management. In Saitama's Kawaguchi City, where friction involving a segment of the Kurdish community has been publicly discussed, a woman in her 30s said she has become hesitant to let her child play in parks. She urged politicians to listen to "the voices of citizens who are struggling."
Another resident stressed that policy initiatives on foreigners should not end as an election promise, but be "properly implemented."
RELATED:
- Foreign Workers Emerge as Key in Overcoming Labor Shortage
- Lower House Election Watch: Who Holds the Cards?
Author: Daniel Manning
