"Leaving Without Knowing Foreign Languages"... Japanese People Escaping Due to Economic Uncertainty

Over 570,000 Overseas Permanent Residents... Record High
90% of Migrants Say "Leaving Due to Economic Instability"

Japanese people, who had previously avoided overseas travel due to difficulties in acquiring foreign languages and other reasons, have reportedly begun emigrating abroad in large numbers as the economic downturn prolongs. Amid an already severe labor shortage, the Japanese government is struggling to find ways to reverse this trend as the number of those obtaining overseas permanent residency reaches an all-time high.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 17th, Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) cited statistics from the 2023 Ministry of Foreign Affairs survey on Japanese residents abroad, reporting that the number of Japanese who acquired permanent residency in their countries of residence reached 574,727, an increase of more than 3% compared to the previous year, marking a record high. This breaks the previous record for permanent residents abroad set last year. Nikkei analyzed, "The number of permanent residency holders has been steadily increasing over the past 20 years," adding, "It has continued to rise despite the COVID-19 pandemic."

The majority of permanent residents answered that they decided to emigrate due to concerns about the Japanese economy. In a survey conducted by Associate Professor Nana Ooishi of the Sociology Department at the University of Melbourne, 90% of respondents said, "We see continuing to live in Japan as a risk due to concerns about the sustainability of social security systems such as healthcare and pensions."

More women than men decided to 'leave Japan.' It was found that 62% of permanent residency holders are women. This appears to be influenced by Japan's conservative social atmosphere. Professor Ooishi stated, "Among Japanese people who marry internationally abroad, 70% are women," and added, "Many single women also emigrate thinking that there are fewer restrictions on women and that they can build better careers." Additionally, the proportion of child-rearing generations emigrating for their children's education is also increasing.

In Japan, which suffers from chronic labor shortages due to low birth rates and an aging population, concerns about the outflow of population overseas are growing. Previously, Asahi Shimbun reported this exodus from Japan as a 'quiet overseas outflow,' stating, "More people feel relatively attracted to North America or Europe in terms of wages, working conditions, and social diversity compared to Japan," and criticized, "If Japan's closed atmosphere is not resolved, the trend of increasing permanent residency holders will continue."

Nikkei also pointed out, "Criticism is emerging that the background of overseas migration is the long-term insecurity of living in Japan, where social security reforms and gender equality have not progressed."