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Kathleen Benoza
Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi said the guidelines were being revised to provide more examples of positive and negative factors for evaluation in deciding whether to grant an individual special permission for residence.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 5, 2024
Japan's Immigration Agency sets new guidelines for visa overstayers
A legislative amendment will outline the new guidelines to improve transparency and allow individuals to directly apply for special permission to stay.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak deliver remarks on the AUKUS security partnership after a trilateral meeting, at Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego in March last year.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 3, 2024
AUKUS eyes defense tech collaboration with Japan, report says
Japan’s involvement in the partnership would be limited to specific projects and would exclude nuclear-powered submarines.
An earthquake measuring a shindo 4 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale that hit southern Chiba Prefecture was among several that have shaken the area in recent days.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Mar 3, 2024
Japan warns of more strong quakes as 'slow slip' phenomena hits Chiba
Three earthquakes measuring a shindo 4 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale, as well as four measuring a shindo 3, have occurred since Thursday.
Prospective foreign vocational school graduates who finish education ministry-accredited academic courses will be granted “technology, humanities and international affairs” residence status intended for white-collar workers such as engineers, interpreters and designers, even if their jobs don’t necessarily relate to what they have studied.
JAPAN
Feb 29, 2024
Japan eases residency rules for foreign graduates of vocational schools
The relaxation of rules is aimed at retaining highly skilled professionals amid a chronic labor shortage.
The Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau in 2018
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 20, 2024
Japan considers revoking permanent resident status of tax dodgers
Immigration authorities are considering revoking the residency status of foreign permanent residents who evade or repeatedly delay paying their taxes.
A road in Uchinada, Ishikawa Prefecture, is impassable as a result of what appears to be liquefaction on Feb. 4.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 16, 2024
Quake-induced liquefaction hampers Noto reconstruction
Houses are tilted or buried halfway underground, while roads have caved in or risen up — all because of the liquefaction.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida discusses a new foreign worker system, in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 9, 2024
Japan to end technical intern program and allow transfers to new jobs
A planned new system will focus on securing and developing essential workers from abroad to tackle the country's current labor shortage.
A woman offers flowers for victims of the New Year's Day earthquake near the morning market in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Thursday. Most buildings in the market were burned down in a fire that followed the quake.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2024
One month after Noto quake, challenges remain in restoration effort
About 14,000 people are still living at evacuation shelters as officials race to repair infrastructure in the region.
Vietnamese people take Japanese lessons in Hanoi in June 2023 before heading to Japan to work.
JAPAN
Jan 26, 2024
Number of foreign workers in Japan surpasses 2 million for first time
Tokyo has the largest population of foreign workers, followed by Aichi and Osaka prefectures.
Toshiya Ikehata (center) helps prepare rice balls at a community kitchen in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Jan. 7. Ikehata runs a fine-dining restaurant in the city, which was among the hardest-hit areas in the Noto Peninsula earthquake.
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2024
Shattered lives, unbroken spirits: Chefs step up to serve Noto communities
Fine-dining chefs rise to the challenge of feeding disaster victims in the hardest-hit areas of Ishikawa Prefecture.
Shu Kokaji (center) speaks with fellow volunteers on Saturday at Sunlife Plaza, an evacuation center in Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture. At the facility, he aims to bring people joy in some aspects of evacuee life.
JAPAN
Jan 10, 2024
Noto quake: 'In times of crisis, all we have is each other'
A team from Iwate Prefecture is just one of many grassroots campaigns mobilizing to support quake victims.
Authorities examine the burned wreckage of a Japan Airlines passenger plane at Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN
Jan 4, 2024
Details emerge about moments before deadly Haneda Airport collision
Key questions remain unanswered as transcript sheds light on communications between control tower and the two jets involved in the accident.
Officials examine the burned wreckage of a Japan Airlines passenger plane on the tarmac at Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jan 3, 2024
A collision, a jet on fire and a 'miracle' evacuation in Tokyo
Passengers and aviation experts are crediting the disciplined response of both staff and travelers for what’s being called a miracle evacuation.
A Japan Airlines plane burning at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Tuesday evening
JAPAN
Jan 2, 2024
Five dead after Japan Airlines jet collides with coast guard plane at Haneda Airport
All 379 people on board the JAL plane exited safely but five of the six people on the coast guard plane died, with the captain sustaining serious injuries.
The torii gate at Ono-Hiyoshi Shrine in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, collapsed after a powerful earthquake hit the area Monday.
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2024
Strong quake prompts tsunami warning for Japan's western coast
Residents were said to be trapped in collapsed buildings following the quake, which measured a 7 on Japan's intensity scale — the highest level.
Lawyers representing a consumer advocacy group speak to reporters on Wednesday after filing a cease and desist lawsuit against online travel agency Agoda.
BUSINESS
Dec 7, 2023
Saitama consumer group files lawsuit against travel agency Agoda
The group said the firm’s terms of service that limit it from being liable for compensation violate consumer protection laws.
The Lower House plenary session approves the relief bill in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 5, 2023
Bill for victims' relief in Unification Church case clears Lower House
The bill aims to prevent a religious organization's assets from being transferred overseas so that it can be set aside to provide relief.
Pro-democracy activist Agnes Chow is released in June 2021, after serving nearly seven months in prison for her role in Hong Kong's 2019 anti-government protests.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 4, 2023
Prominent Hong Kong activist Agnes Chow flees to Canada
Chow, who was jailed for months in a crackdown on pro-democracy activists, cited her physical and mental health as reasons for not returning to the city.
A view of a plaza within Shibuya Sakura Stage, what Tokyu Land Corporation is calling the final puzzle piece in its redevelopment of the area around Shibuya Station.
BUSINESS
Nov 30, 2023
Shibuya Sakura Stage to cap once-in-a-century redevelopment around station
The new complex is part of an ambitious urban renewal endeavor by Tokyu Land Corporation in the area around Shibuya Station.
Hiromichi Kikuchi was sentenced to eight months in prison on Tuesday for mediating organ transplants overseas without government approval.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 28, 2023
Japan NPO head sentenced for unauthorized organ transplants overseas
The Tokyo District Court handed an eight-month prison sentence to the executive for mediating organ transplants in Belarus without government approval.

Longform

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.
The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces