Japan to Tighten Requirements for Naturalization, Bumping Residency Requirement Up to 10 Years

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:31 JST, March 27, 2026

The Justice Ministry said Friday that it would tighten requirements for foreigners seeking to naturalize in Japan. The new rules will take effect in April.

The Nationality Law requires a minimum of five years’ residence for naturalization, but this will become “10 years or more” in practice.

The guidelines for granting permanent residency require the applicant to have lived for 10 or more years in Japan. The government indicated in its basic policy on foreigner nationals, compiled in January, that it intended to align naturalization requirements with those for permanent residency.

The ministry will also change tax record requirements for screenings from the most recent year of resident tax records to five years. Similarly, applicants will have to present payment records for social insurance premiums for two years, rather than for just the most recent year.