Thousands of foreign entrepreneurs in Japan face deportation as new visa rules take effect.
The move comes as a blow to small business owners who have called Japan home for years.
The new visa guidelines significantly increased the minimum investment amount required, from 5 million yen ($30,000) to 30 million yen ($185,000).
Additionally, visa holders must employ a Japanese national or permanent resident, which is difficult due to Japan’s labor shortage.
This is a result of growing fear among citizens of overtourism and exorbitant land prices due to foreign investment.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi also increased tourist visa fees five-fold and the departure tax three-fold for everyone.
More than 67,800 signatures have been collected through an online petition calling for the recently introduced laws to be suspended. The opposition says the law penalizes genuine businesses rather than fraudulent ones.
Daisuke Komori, an administrative affairs adviser, warned: “Tighter regulations are having an impact on small restaurateurs and young entrepreneurs,” even as Japan’s aging population desperately needs immigrant labor to support its economy.
