Key facts
- Nearly 1,000 foreign nationals on business manager visas departed Japan in the first half of 2026.
- This figure is nearly four times higher than the number of departures in the same period last year.
- Stricter visa requirements, including a higher capital threshold and the need to employ permanent workers, took effect in autumn 2025.
- Entrepreneurs like Ray Hoe have been unable to meet the new criteria, leading to visa denials and departures.
- Proposed changes to permanent residency requirements are expected to further accelerate the trend of foreigners leaving Japan.
Japan has seen a significant increase in foreign business owners leaving the country following the implementation of stricter requirements for the business manager visa in October 2025. In the first half of 2026, nearly 1,000 foreign nationals on these visas departed, a near fourfold increase from the previous year. The tightened criteria include a higher capital threshold and the necessity of employing permanent workers, measures aimed at curbing misuse of the visa status.
One such individual, Ray Hoe, a Singaporean entrepreneur, was forced to leave Japan after failing to renew his visa. He had planned to open a new hotel business in Toyama but struggled to meet the new revenue requirements and faced bureaucratic hurdles in obtaining a hotel license before his visa expired. His experience highlights the difficulties faced by foreign entrepreneurs under the new regulations, with Hoe expressing that the changes were not well-thought-out and have made Japan less attractive for foreign business establishment.
Experts like Junko Watabe, an administrative scrivener, believe that proposed changes to permanent residency requirements will further accelerate this trend. The Immigration Services Agency has cited concerns about some permanent residents receiving public assistance as a reason for tightening rules. Meanwhile, a petition with over 53,000 signatures calling for a revision to the business manager visa eligibility requirements was presented in Tokyo, indicating growing opposition to the stringent measures.