The Japanese government is set to significantly tighten the criteria for foreigners seeking citizenship, effectively doubling the residency requirement from five years to at least 10 years “in principle.”
Announced by Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi on March 27, the new policy will take effect on April 1. The move aims to resolve a legal “paradox” where the requirements for acquiring Japanese nationality were previously more lenient than those for obtaining permanent residency.
Beyond the extended stay, the Ministry of Justice is increasing the scrutiny of financial records. Applicants must now provide five years of tax history—up from just one year—and prove three years of social insurance premium payments without delinquency. The Ministry noted that while 10 years is the new baseline, exceptions remain for “exceptional contributors,” such as high-level business executives, acclaimed artists, or athletes who have resided in Japan for over five years and received prestigious international awards.
The policy change is being implemented through “operational adjustments” rather than a formal revision of the Nationality Law by the Diet (Japan’s parliament). The Ministry defended this approach, arguing that the law merely sets minimum conditions and that the Minister holds the discretion to impose stricter standards. However, this has drawn sharp criticism from legal experts. Atsushi Kondo, a professor of constitutional law at Meijo University, warned that bypassing the legislature to redefine citizenship requirements could be unconstitutional and contradicts the rule of law.
This restrictive shift places Japan at odds with several Western nations. While countries like Italy and Spain also maintain a 10-year residency rule, others like Germany recently shortened their requirement from eight years to five to better integrate immigrant populations. Critics argue that Japan’s move may hinder social integration at a time when the country is increasingly reliant on foreign labor. In 2025, over 9,200 individuals were granted Japanese citizenship, with the largest groups originating from China, South Korea, and Nepal.
