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September 27, 2025
 

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TAXES

The internal affairs ministry in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. The ministry has barred four municipalities from taking part in Japan's <i>furusato nōzei</i> hometown donation program for two years due to their excessive spending on the program.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2025
Four municipalities to be banned from hometown tax program after overspending
The municipalities affected are Soja in Okayama Prefecture, Unzen in Nagasaki Prefecture, Miyaki in Saga Prefecture and Yamato in Kumamoto Prefecture.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks during an interview on Sept. 20 at parliament.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2025
LDP presidential candidate Hayashi sees need for backup of Tokyo
The idea has been championed by opposition Nippon Ishin no Kai, which is seeking to turn Osaka into a backup capital.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi has changed course on some economic issues.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 24, 2025
LDP presidential candidates get closer to opposition on some economic issues
They have to make more compromises as the ruling coalition no longer has the majority.
Agricultural minister Shinjiro Koizumi was the most favored candidate for the Liberal Democratic Party's next president, a Jiji survey found.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 18, 2025
Agriculture minister Koizumi most favored for LDP chief, poll finds
Koizumi was favored by 23.8% of respondents, while 21% backed former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi.
Sebastien Lecornu became France's fifth prime minister last week.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 18, 2025
Tax the rich or fall: French prime minister faces budget ultimatum
Sebastien Lecornu, who last week became France's fifth prime minister, is racing to draft a budget that is due to be sent to lawmakers by Oct. 7.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama (left) and his Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan counterpart, Jun Azumi, at parliament on Tuesday
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 17, 2025
LDP and CDP agree to create panel to discuss refundable tax credit
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama hinted at the possibility of launching the panel under Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's administration.
A booth from the town of Betsukai in Hokkaido at an Amazon Japan furusato nо̄zei promotion event, on Sept. 5 in Tokyo's Minato Ward.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 12, 2025
People rush to make furusato nozei donations ahead of tighter rules
Website operators are holding events and campaigns to lure customers before the government bans them from giving reward points to donors, effective next month.
Kobe Mayor Kizo Hisamoto addresses in May in Kobe a meeting of a study group discussing the idea of taxing owners of vacant units in high-rise condominiums.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Sep 10, 2025
Kobe eyes tax on vacant or underused units in high-rise condos
Since taking office, Kobe Mayor Kizo Hisamoto has highlighted problems associated with high-rise condominiums, pushing to strengthen regulations and address aging buildings.
A revamped 3D diorama of the Chiran airfield and its surroundings is displayed at the Chiran Peace Museum in Minamikyushu, Kagoshima Prefecture, on July 31.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2025
Hometown donations program used to help preserve wartime memories in Japan
Initiatives are under way in some regions to keep the tragic history of World War II from fading by using digital technology to renovate exhibition facilities.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, Komeito, will screen government agencies and ministries' requests for tax reform at their respective tax panels, aiming to draw up guidelines later this year.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 30, 2025
Government agencies draw up fiscal year 2026 tax reform requests
The ruling coalition will screen the requests, aiming to draw up late this year tax reform guidelines for the fiscal year starting next April.
The industry ministry aims to reduce tax burdens on Japanese companies making investments in facilities and equipment by expanding tax deductions and allowing lump-sum depreciation.
BUSINESS
Aug 28, 2025
Industry ministry to spur capital expenditure through tax measures
The ministry aims to reduce tax burdens on Japanese companies making investments in facilities and equipment by expanding tax deductions and allowing lump-sum depreciation.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks next to U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Terry Cole, Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), during the signing of executive orders by U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington on Monday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 26, 2025
U.S. weighing sanctions on EU officials implementing Digital Services Act
The law aims to make the online environment safer, in part by compelling tech giants to tackle illegal content such as hate speech and child sexual abuse material.
The Burj Khalifa skyscraper (center left) and the Dubai skyline on Aug. 7
BUSINESS
Aug 25, 2025
Less tax, more luxury: millionaires flock to Dubai
The tightly-policed UAE has molded itself into a magnet for the wealthy, offering economic and political stability with an easygoing business environment.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Independence Day ceremony in New Delhi on Friday
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 18, 2025
Modi bolsters India’s economy with tax cuts ahead of U.S. tariffs
Officials in New Delhi said the proposed changes to the goods and services tax would benefit a broad range of sectors, including consumers and small businesses.
Currently, operators of theaters and music halls can get a one-third reduction in the fixed property and city planning taxes if they carry out barrier-free renovations that meet government standards.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2025
Japan eyes tax relief for barrier-free movie theaters
The initiative aims to help people enjoy cultural and artistic activities regardless of their disability.
In the most recent regular session of parliament, problems were highlighted regarding some foreign workers leaving Japan without paying outstanding taxes.
JAPAN
Aug 9, 2025
Japan starts survey on foreign nationals' unpaid resident taxes
Some foreign workers end up leaving the country without paying outstanding taxes.
The National Tax Agency at the Ministry of Finance, Kasumigaseki, Tokyo. Japanese tax authorities can bill foreign residents in Japan for assets inherited globally.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 7, 2025
Japan's inheritance tax is high, unforgiving and sometimes avoidable
Under certain circumstances, overseas inheritance can pass tax-free to foreigners who are residents in the country.
A fireworks display in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture, on Aug. 4 last year. The show has been one of the return gifts for hometown tax donations to the city.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2025
Furusato nо̄zei hometown tax donations hit record ¥1.3 trillion in 2024
Of Japan's 47 prefectures, only Fukuoka, Saga and Kagoshima received lower donations than in fiscal 2023.
Parliamentary affairs chiefs of the ruling and opposition parties on Wednesday at the parliament building after signing an agreement to abolish the provisional add-on gasoline tax
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2025
Ruling and opposition parties agree to scrap provisional gas tax by year-end
The parties aim to enact a bill to scrap the tax at an extraordinary session of parliament expected to be convened in autumn.
The city of Kumamoto. The number of local governments that are able to operate their finances without state tax allocations has increased for the fourth consecutive year, the internal affairs ministry announced on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 29, 2025
Local governments not allocated state tax revenue increase for fourth year
In fiscal 2025, such local governments totaled 85, up by two from the previous year, reflecting the growth of local tax revenues backed by robust corporate performance.
Toyoko Kids: The lonely street children of Tokyo
Many young people who feel neglected at home flock to the Toyoko area to find a community where they can fit in.
Japan unveils new overtourism countermeasures
The majority of tourists in Japan tend to stay in Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto, resulting in overcrowding in popular tourist spots and a strain on transportation systems.
South Korea couple beat same-sex barriers to parenthood
South Korean lesbian couple Kim Kyu-jin (left) and her wife, Kim Sae-yeon, pose with a "pregnant woman" badge during an interview in Seoul last month.
Rising sex tourism exposes loopholes in Japan's anti-prostitution law
While financial misfortunes during the COVID-19 pandemic may have driven some women to work the streets, others simply want more money to spend — or want to pay off their debts — at host clubs.
Opportunities await the bold in the Year of the Wood Dragon
2024 marks the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac, with the year predicted to be a good time for fresh starts.
Japanese corporate boards have changed dramatically in recent years
Most Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime Section companies have independent directors now.
As Japan keeps buying gas, Aboriginal Australians pay the price
Paulina “Jedda” Puruntatameri with Antonia Burke and Tiwi fisher Clinton offshore of Melville Island, one of the Tiwi Islands, in Australia's Northern Territory. Together with other Tiwi, Jedda has been campaigning for years to stop Australian company Santos and its backers, including Japanese investors, from drilling for natural gas at the Barossa gas field.
Who’s who in the LDP presidential race?
(Clockwise from top left) Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi; former foreign minister Toshimitsu Motegi; Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Shinjiro Koizumi; former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi; and former minister of state for economic security Sanae Takaichi
Tax-advantaged investments no lost cause for U.S. residents of Japan
While some American taxpayers assume they are ineligible to participate in Japan’s tax-deferred savings schemes, certified public accountant Rick Gundlach says that this is no longer the case.
Aichi Triennale’s message from the world: Free Palestine
“Between Currents and Bloom,” an eye-popping crocheted seascape by Indonesian artist Mulyana, dazzles with Instagram-ready cuteness while recalling a vibrant ocean now threatened by warming seas.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

"Shake hands with Lima-chan," a statue that shares the name of the Peruvian capital looks in the direction of Peru, where a sister statue, "Sakura-chan," is located. Erected in Yokohama's Rinko Park in 1999, it commemorates Peruvian-Japanese friendship.
The journey of Peru’s Nikkei: Finding identity in Japan
By Christoph Sponsel

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