The number of foreign residents in Japan as of the end of June rose 5% from the end of 2024 to a record high of 3,956,619, Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki said Friday.
Foreign residents accounted for 3.21% of the country's total population.
According to the Immigration Services Agency, the number of foreign residents is expected to stand at 4.15 million at the end of this year.
In the first half of 2025, the number of foreigners entering Japan climbed 20% from a year before to 21,376,170, growing at a pace that could bring the annual total for this year to a record 45 million.
Also at a news conference, Suzuki explained the progress that has been made on a plan compiled in May to reduce the number of those staying illegally in the country to zero.
The minister said that the number of individuals deported at government expense in June-August doubled to 119 from 58 in the same period last year.
The total number of deportees in the latest reporting period stood at 2,120, almost unchanged.
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