Number of Immigration Officer-Escorted Forced Deportations in Japan Hits Record

By Masanori Yamashita / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

16:13 JST, April 26, 2026

A record 318 foreign nationals were forcibly deported with an officer escort in 2025, having refused to leave Japan voluntarily after being found to be staying illegally in the country, according to data compiled by the Immigration Services Agency.

The number is believed to have increased because the agency has expressed its intention to proactively deport foreign nationals who stay illegally.

In the morning of March 11, a handcuffed man from an East Asian country yelled and fiercely expressed his dissatisfaction in a room at the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, after an agency official informed him that he would be forcibly deported to his home country.

After multiple illegal entries and stays, the man was issued a fourth deportation order in 2022. However, he refused to leave voluntarily despite repeated attempts by agency officials to persuade him, saying he wanted to stay with his Japanese wife.

The agency deemed this a “serious offense” and decided to forcibly deport him, with multiple officers escorting him.

On the day the decision was made, the man was deported from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport along with an East Asian woman who had been given a deportation order. He was surrounded by the officers inside the cabin, according to the agency.

‘Zero illegal immigrants’

Illegal immigrants are deported to their home countries or other destinations based on the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law and a total of 7,563 people were deported in 2025. The Immigration Services Agency encourages voluntary return and, according to the agency, 90% of those deported choose to return at their own expense.

Some illegal immigrants reportedly refuse to return, citing their family and other reasons. In cases when illegal immigrants refuse to accept voluntary return, the agency forcibly deports them with an escort of its officers at its expense. In 2018, the earliest when the agency’s data is available, 216 were forcibly removed from the country. This number decreased to 15 in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It reached 318 in 2025 after reaching 119 in 2023 and 249 in 2024. By nationality, Turks are the largest number at 71, followed by Filipinos at 46.

The agency has set a goal of reducing the number of illegal immigrants to zero to realize an “inclusive society” although they are estimated to be around 68,500 as of January. One of its measures to realize the goal is the forcible deportation of illegal immigrants escorted by the agency’s officers.

The agency plans to actively enforce the measure to deport individuals who commit serious crimes and plans to increase the number of forcibly deported illegal immigrants to 500 by 2027. An agency official said, “It’s only natural to take firm action against foreign nationals who don’t follow the rules.”

Human rights concerns

The Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) released a president’s statement against the agency’s zero illegal foreign residents plan in July 2025. The statement said that human rights could be violated because those who should be recognized as a refugee could also be forcibly deported. It also said the plan “is likely to cause anxiety, prejudice and discrimination against foreign nationals.”

Kazuya Namerikawa, a lawyer handling foreign residents’ human rights issues at the JFBA, said, “The agency should carefully consider whether it is necessary to forcibly deport foreign residents on a case-by-case basis instead of just pursuing the numbers.”

It is assumed that it is not uncommon for children who are not responsible for their circumstances to be forced to leave due to their parents’ immigration status.

Susumu Takahashi, chairman emeritus of the Japan Research Institute, said if foreign nationals who don’t follow the rules aren’t penalized, all foreign residents could be viewed with prejudice. “When the measures are implemented, the government needs to give the most possible consideration to human rights and provide a detailed explanation of why it decided to forcibly deport foreign nationals with an immigration officer escort.”