The West wants newcomers on its own terms. So does Japan.

COMMENTARY / Japan

The West wants newcomers on its own terms. So does Japan.

Foreign workers can fill labor shortages, but only a select few can stay

A Filipino care worker assists an elderly resident at a hospital in Tokyo. The nation's increasingly selective immigration rules make attracting such workers harder. | Bloomberg

By Waka Ikeda
Contributing writer

Oct 8, 2026

Having lived in the United States and Japan for many years and now in Hungary, I have felt the societal rules most sharply in Japan, where origin, schooling and manners are read and weighed, even among Japanese.

But that is only part of the story. Japan is widening the door for temporary foreign workers while narrowing the path to permanent residency. For all the talk of anti-immigrant sentiment, there were a record 2.57 million foreign workers in Japan at the end of October 2025, up 11.7% in a year.

That is not simply exclusion. It is selection, and it is happening across the rich world. The question is whether a country that guards its way of life through strict rules can still attract the workers and talent it increasingly needs.