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recently, the reporter took advantage of the annual leave to travel to japan and noticed a phenomenon: in addition to those who travel to japan for sightseeing, the number of foreigners working in japan is increasing, especially in the service industry. many of them are obviously from southeast asia, and there are also many practitioners from other east asian countries working in japanese supermarkets and retail stores. the latest population data released by the ministry of internal affairs and communications of japan in july showed that the total number of foreigners living in japan exceeded 3.32 million, an increase of nearly 330,000 over the same period last year, and the first time that the number has exceeded 3 million since the survey data was available. among them, the proportion of working-age population to the total number of foreigners is as high as 85.22%. it can be seen that overseas labor has become an important supplement to fill the labor gap in japan.

as japan's birth rate continues to decline (the total fertility rate has fallen to a historical low of 1.26) and aging becomes increasingly serious (the proportion of people over 65 years old in japan will reach 29.38% in 2023), labor shortages are hindering japan's economic development. according to japanese media reports, as of july 2024, 51.0% of companies in all industries in japan believe that there is a shortage of labor, especially in the data information industry, where the shortage rate of system engineers is as high as 71.9%, which can be described as a hard-hit area; followed by 65.1% in the retail industry and 58.6% in the professional agency industry. according to the survey results of the imperial database, more than two-thirds of japan's small and medium-sized enterprises are facing labor shortages, which has led to a record high number of companies going bankrupt due to labor shortages in 2023. it must be pointed out that due to their traditional and historical mentality, the japanese people are quite cautious and even xenophobic to foreign immigrants. as a result, japan has not yet issued a clear immigration policy, but has only formulated a series of policies and systems for foreigners' qualifications to stay in japan.

although japan does not encourage immigration in terms of policy, it is in urgent need of more labor for economic development. previously, the japanese government had tried to relax restrictions on foreign workers, trying to alleviate the country's labor shortage problem to a certain extent by introducing a large number of young foreign workers for short and medium terms. in 1993, japan established the "skills internship system" to recruit foreigners to work in japan. however, foreign workers who come to japan under this system have poor working conditions, exploited wages, no guarantee of personal freedom, and limited working periods. moreover, no matter how hard or excellent they work, they cannot work in japan for a long time (up to 3 years). in view of the various drawbacks in the actual operation of the "skills internship system", the japanese government made revisions in 2017, not only extending the working period to 5 years, but also allowing outstanding workers who have obtained "skills qualification certificates" to apply for work visas and allow them to bring their families to japan.

data from japan's ministry of health, labour and welfare in 2018 showed that the number of foreign workers grew rapidly in the four years from 2014 to 2018, reaching approximately 1.084 million, an increase of approximately 400,000 in four years. this has alleviated the labor shortage in various industries to a certain extent.

the increase in foreign workers has benefited to a certain extent from institutional reforms, but it is still not an effective and long-term solution to absorb foreign workers.

for example, although japan abolished the relevant provisions that prohibited foreign teachers from being hired in public schools in 1991, many foreign teachers are still only allowed to work as full-time lecturers and are not allowed to hold senior positions. in addition, many local governments do not allow foreigners to take employment examinations, and even in local governments that can hire foreigners, they can only work in certain fields.

in april 2019, japan further relaxed restrictions on foreign workers entering japan. in april 2023, japan launched the "future creation talent system" and the "special high talent system" to launch a global talent-grabbing plan; from april 1 this year, the "digital nomad" visa system was implemented to facilitate the attraction of foreigners engaged in international remote work. people holding this visa can stay in japan for up to six months with their spouse and children. the residence condition is that the applicant must submit proof of annual income of at least 10 million yen and purchase private medical insurance of at least 10 million yen to ensure the quality of life and health protection during their stay in japan. about 50 countries and regions meet the requirements, including the united states, australia, germany, france, south korea, hong kong, china, and taiwan, china.

on june 14 this year, the japanese parliament reviewed and passed the amendment to the immigration control and refugee recognition act, which completely abolished the "skills internship system" that was no longer suitable for national conditions and established a "cultivation and labor system". the main purpose of the new system is to actively recruit technicians with certain technical skills to replace the low-level "interns" of the past. the new system stipulates that foreign workers who have mastered a certain skill during their three years of work in japan can apply for a "specific skill no. 1" visa and enjoy the same pay for equal work and social security and medical insurance as japanese employees; on this basis, they are eligible to apply for a "specific skill no. 2" visa and can bring their families to japan.

the number of foreign workers in japan has exceeded 2 million, an increase of 12.4% from 2022. it can be said that foreign workers are slowly changing the face of japan's mono-ethnic population. as the reporter noticed, more and more foreigners have appeared on the streets and in the workplace. some industry insiders estimate that by 2040, japan will need at least 647,000 foreign immigrants each year to fill its labor shortage of 11 million. the head of a human resources company called saikaikyo said that japan is entering an era that requires the large-scale introduction of foreign immigrants, and the current minor regulations are far from meeting the needs of the labor market.

□ our reporter lu hong