Dramatic changes will help Japan attract more foreign talent

Japan is pushing through changes to ensure a far greater number of foreign talents are able to help reduce its domestic manpower shortages.

The Japanese government is considering an update to the country’s visa system in order to attract more foreign workers, amidst an acute labour shortage. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the new work visa may be available as soon as April next year.

Japan needs to attract more foreign workers in a growing number of professions including the restaurant and fisheries industries. A number of other business sectors have also expressed their interest to utilise foreign workers via the new visa status to cope with manpower demand.

Suga said he had already received reports of sectors whose operations were starting to become severely derailed due to manpower shortages. The most short-staffed sectors include:agriculture, construction, nursing, hotel, and the ship-building industries.

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