The number of foreign nationals employed in Japan is expected to top 1 million for the first time this year as the nation grows more reliant on overseas workers to meet labor demands, government sources said Saturday.

The Japanese government basically does not allow immigration for permanent settlement, but the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been promoting an increase in workers from overseas on the back of calls from the business community to make it easier to hire foreign nationals amid a declining population and the globalization of business.

The projection compares with some 910,000 that were reported at the end of last October.