About 590 Filipino women have come to Japan to work in the nursing care industry but are in dire financial straits and ineligible for public support under the Japan-Philippines economic partnership agreement.

These people do not receive public assistance in Japan for their language studies or nursing care training, and often arrive in debt due to travel expenses and put up with severe working conditions to pay it off, according to a survey conducted by Kyodo News.

Japan is accepting prospective nurses and caregivers from Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam under separate free trade agreements, but many struggle to pass the tough national language test.