Food Sector Strains Under Foreign Worker Limit

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According to the Immigration Services Agency, the number of foreign residents working in food service had reached around 46,000 by the end of February. The figure was expected to exceed the government-set cap by around May, forcing companies across the sector to rethink their foreign hiring plans.

The category also covers companies that provide meals for hospitals and nursing care facilities. One major Tokyo-based meal service provider had accepted around 2,200 foreign workers as of the end of February. It had planned to bring in about 1,000 more in fiscal 2025 and roughly the same number this fiscal year.

A company official said "food service" can sound like a nonessential industry centered on restaurants and leisure. "But it also includes meal services that are essential to the daily lives of patients and elderly people," the official said. "In regional hospitals and nursing care facilities, even when jobs are advertised, Japanese workers simply don't apply."

As emergency measures, the company is looking at ways to reduce staff turnover. It is also considering introducing prepared meals that can be served after heating or thawing.

Balancing Labor Needs and Political Pressure

The specified skilled worker program allows foreign nationals to work in industries facing severe labor shortages. It covers 16 sectors and is divided into two categories: Type 1, which allows workers to stay for up to five years, and Type 2, which applies to 11 sectors that require more advanced skills.

Workers who move into the Type 2 category can bring family members to Japan and are no longer subject to a fixed upper limit on their period of stay.

According to the Immigration Services Agency, around 390,000 people were living in Japan under the system at the end of 2025, an increase of more than 100,000 from a year earlier. In fiscal 2026, three more sectors were added to the Type 1 category, bringing the total to 19 sectors.

The cap on acceptance is not based on simply totaling requests from each industry. Instead, the government estimates labor shortages by sector, subtracts the number of positions that could be filled through productivity gains and recruitment of domestic workers, and then treats the remaining shortfall as the shortfall to be covered by foreign labor.

In January, the Cabinet approved a combined acceptance cap of about 1.23 million people by the end of fiscal 2028 for the specified skilled worker program and the new Employment for Skill Development system, which is set to replace the technical intern training program in April 2027. According to a Liberal Democratic Party source, the cap could initially have been even higher. "I hear political pressure kept it down somewhat," the source said.

A senior government official stressed that foreign workers are meant to fill gaps only after other options have been tried. "The aim is to have Japanese workers fill these roles first, while also encouraging companies to pursue labor-saving measures," the official said. "Foreign workers are brought in only when shortages remain despite those efforts."

Even so, once the figure of 1.23 million was reported, conservatives reacted sharply, arguing that Japan had "already exceeded its capacity."

There is little sign that the administration of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, which draws support from those conservative voters, will move quickly to raise the cap.

Ishin Calls for 'Quantitative Management'

Kikuko Nagayoshi, a University of Tokyo sociology professor who studies foreign-resident policy, warns that Japan could end up entrenching a structure in which foreign nationals are relegated to low-wage jobs.

"Understandably, the government would urge ministries and industries not to rely too readily on foreign labor, but to make real efforts to save labor and raise wages," she said.

At the same time, some within the ruling bloc are questioning the current approach, which begins with each industry's labor shortages. A mid-ranking lawmaker from Nippon Ishin no Kai, the LDP's coalition partner, argues that Japan should first decide how many foreign workers the country as a whole can realistically accept, and then address labor shortages within that limit.

Ishin regards "quantitative management" as the core of foreign resident policy, including the setting of a nationwide numerical cap. It also ensured that the concept was included in its coalition agreement with the LDP.

In April, the government increased staffing in the relevant section of the Cabinet Secretariat. The office will analyze how the acceptance of foreign nationals affects Japan's population, social security system, education, and local communities. It will also work to improve Japanese-language ability, which is essential for helping foreign residents integrate into local society.