Japan's population has declined for sixteen consecutive years. In 2024 alone, it fell by more than 900,000 people. By 2040, the country could face a shortage of 11 million workers. Japan needs foreign workers to come, and it needs them to stay. But new rules for permanent residency may make that harder.
In February 2026, Japan's Immigration Services Agency announced stricter requirements for permanent residency, known as PR. The changes include tougher checks on past tax and insurance payments, and a possible Japanese language test. Application fees may also rise to around 100,000 yen. That is nearly twenty times the current amount.
Under the new rules, applicants must hold a five-year visa before applying for PR. Many long-term residents never received a five-year visa, even after decades in Japan, because renewals are often only one or three years and depend on the judgment of individual immigration officers with no clear standard. There is a grace period: three-year visas still qualify if held through March 31, 2027 (one time only), but from April 1, 2027, applicants must have a five-year visa—no more acceptance of three-year visas.
Some of the new standards have support. Several long-term foreign residents interviewed for this article said a language requirement makes sense. One resident with thirty-three years in Japan said it may even be necessary.
"There are far too many people who live here for decades without ever trying to learn the language," he said.
But many residents say the new rules go too far. The goals may be reasonable. The methods are not. The longest stay period requirement is perhaps the clearest example of this.
Visa categories such as Specialist in Humanities are often renewed at one or three-year intervals. The rules for receiving a five-year stay are not clearly written in any official document. The decision depends on the judgment of individual immigration officers. There is no clear standard.
One resident holding a Highly Skilled Professional visa said switching to that visa category is straightforward. But getting a five-year stay through the standard humanities route is very different.
"To some people, it feels like flipping a coin and hoping you get the right expiry date," he said.
An English teacher with fifteen years in Japan has never received a five-year stay. Under the new rules, he cannot begin the PR process at all.
"I've never even smelled a five-year visa," he said.
A resident with thirteen years in Japan once held a five-year stay but is currently on a one-year visa. He consulted a lawyer, who said he would almost certainly be rejected if he applied now. The longest stay rule not only blocks people who have never held one. It also affects people whose visa length has changed over time.
The longest stay requirement is not the only concern. The new rules also look closely at past tax and social insurance payment records. Even one late payment can disqualify an applicant. This is true even if all amounts have been fully paid by the time of application.
Some financial screening is reasonable. Most countries require it. But several residents say the penalty is too strong.
The Highly Skilled Professional visa holder put it simply. "A simple fine should be enough. That is how Japan treats Japanese citizens who miss payments," he said.
An eighteen-year resident who applied for PR in February 2025 raised a different concern. Her employer told her that pension payments were not required. That information was wrong. She is now concerned that it will affect her application.
"They need to focus on companies with questionable practices. Not individuals," she said.
These concerns are also changing how long-term residents live and plan for the future.
Several residents said they would not buy property in Japan without PR. One resident put it directly. "I definitely don't think I can ever buy a house here now because getting PR seems like a pipe dream," she said. Another said, “I wouldn't change jobs while applying for PR as immigration considers it an instability.” One long-term resident applied for PR in December 2025 after hearing that the rules might change. This resident rushed to apply before the stricter rules took effect.
A thirteen-year resident received a request to organize a university event later this year. He was not sure he could commit. "I don't know if I'll still be here," he said.
Another long-term resident described the change in atmosphere as unlike anything he’s felt before.
"For the first time in fifteen years, I feel more fear for my position in this country than I did during the Tohoku earthquake or Covid," he said.
Some residents have even said they are thinking about leaving Japan. They suppose other countries offer a faster path to permanent residency. But there are drawbacks everywhere.
For example, in Australia, since December 2024, the new Skills in Demand visa offers a faster two-year path to permanent residency for high-earning workers. However, if your salary does not meet the government's strict new minimum, your path to staying permanently is now blocked.
And in Canada, over the last two years, the country has moved from "open growth" to "strict control." As of 2026, the government is cutting the number of new residents to focus on people who are already in the country.
The U.S. is moving toward much stricter background checks and deeper security reviews. As of 2026, the government is slowing down the process to investigate applicants more closely while favoring high-paid workers over the traditional visa lottery.
So there are PR challenges all over. But among developed nations, Japan's path to permanent residency remains one of the longest.
Japan's Highly Skilled Professional points system offers a faster route, sometimes within one to three years. One HSP visa holder described it as “clear, fair, and easy to understand.” This is a real advantage. But it is not available to many long-term residents. The HSP pathway requires a specific level of income, education, and age. For residents who have spent many years working in humanities, education, or lower-wage fields, these requirements are hard to meet.
One resident with twenty-seven years in Japan explained the problem directly. "Based on my age, education, and income level, I do not believe I am qualified," she said. "I have already resided in Japan for twenty-seven years, so the reduction in the year requirement does not help me personally."
Long-term foreign residents are not asking Japan to lower its standards. They are asking for standards that are clear, fair, and applied the same way for everyone.
One resident who spent twenty-seven years in Japan as a foreign resident before becoming a citizen gave a direct assessment.
"It looks to me like they want to milk the foreign workers while they are young and then send them packing before they have to pay pension and retirement," she said.
One resident made the point simply: "If people live and work here for decades until they retire, they should be able to get PR and continue to live here since they've paid into the pension system throughout their working lives," he said. "Sending them back to their home country once they can't work anymore is basically the same as sending them off to their death if they no longer have ties to their home country."
Japan says it wants foreign workers to stay. These residents have stayed for decades. The question is whether the rules will allow them to finish their lives here.
