This figure was presented at a meeting of the expert council on December 23, combining the current Specialized Skills Workers' (SSW) type 1 program with a new residential area called Employment skills development (ESD). The ESD program is expected to replace the Technical Internship Program from 2027.
According to the plan, the number of workers granted SSW type 1 visas will be limited to 805,700 people, down from the ceiling of 820,000 people issued in March last year. Meanwhile, the new ESD will be applied to 426,200 people, bringing the total number of foreign workers under the two programs to about 1.23 million people.
These ceilings are calculated based on the estimate of the labor shortage at the end of the 2028 fiscal year, then deducting compensation from productivity improvement, automation, digital transformation as well as from domestic labor sources such as women and the elderly participating in the labor market more.
Japanese authorities said that promoting digitalization and automation will help reduce labor demand in some fields, thereby creating a basis for lowering the ceiling on type 1 SSW.
The new system is expected to start receiving workers from March 2027, which means it will apply a ceiling mechanism for 2 years, lasting until the end of fiscal year 2028. Only sectors that are still seriously lacking in labor after adjusting the above factors are allowed to receive foreign labor. The Japanese government aims to submit the plan to the cabinet for approval around January 2026.
The SSW framework will be expanded to 19 industrial sectors, adding sectors such as logistics logistics, fabric supply and resource recycling. The list of tasks will also be expanded in areas such as manufacturing and transportation.
According to the basic policy approved in March, the Japanese government announced the foreign labor receipt target for each 5-year cycle, and at the same time proved that these figures are commensurate with the actual needs of the labor market. For the current SSW fields, the adjusted ceiling will be applied in the current 5-year period, ending in fiscal year 2028; while the new fields will be calculated from fiscal year 2026.
Government data shows that as of the end of June, Japan had 333,1003 type 1 SSW workers and 449,432 trainees working in the country.
Meanwhile, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has also completed a draft interim report on foreign policy, expected to be submitted to the government in January. Mr. Yoshitaka Shindo - Director of the Foreign Policy Department of the Liberal Democratic Party emphasized that this policy is "a national issue, the foundation for maintaining and developing an orderly local society in Japan".
The LDP has established 3 working groups to strengthen coordination between ministries, branches, the Central Government and local governments in managing foreigners.
The first group focuses on immigration and residence management, including the implementation of the JESTA electronic travel authorization system expected in fiscal 2028, while tightening supervision of entry and stay procedures.
The second group focuses on reforming the administrative system and data connectivity, including a plan to integrate My Number cards with residence cards, to improve the ability to share information between ministries, branches and unify data management of foreigners living in Japan. Another major focus is Japanese language education for foreigners.
The third group focuses on national security and land issues, including the proposal to clearly identify nationality when registering real estate and increase transparency on the owner of the last beneficiary.
