Moving to Japan
In Japan, the median gross salary is €1,781 a month (2025), a single worker on the average wage keeps 77.4% of gross pay after income tax and employee contributions (2025) and unemployment is 2.5% (2025).
Japan had GDP per capita of US$35,951 in 2025 and life expectancy of 84.0 years in 2024. From 1 April 2025, the top income-tax rate was 45% and the corporate tax rate was 23.2%.
Can I move to Japan?
Across 198 passports, 73 passports enter visa-free and 125 passports need a visa for Japan. Check your passport below.
- Visa-free
- 73
- Visa required
- 125
Choose citizenship and purpose to see the relevant entry steps.
Entry.
Living & working.
Official requirements [2] · Visitor-entry rules
Residence rules and exceptions
| Citizenship / situation | Starting point |
|---|---|
| Other citizenship | Check work, study or family requirements.[55] |
| Existing status or family rights | A passport alone cannot establish your eligibility. Check the relevant authority’s guidance. |
These are national starting points, not an eligibility decision. Long-stay residence, work authorisation and in-country application rules differ by route; a visa-free visit never settles them. Check the route that matches your purpose and circumstances with the responsible authority.
Visa and entry rules
Sources checked through 22 Oct 2026.
Work and income
What is the unemployment rate in Japan?
The national unemployment rate was about 2.5 % in 2025.
This is the World Bank / ILO modelled estimate series used as the canonical national answer. Other published definitions exist and are shown in the table below.
- National unemployment rate: 2.45 % · Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate), 202537
What is the median gross salary in Japan?
The median gross salary was about 1,781 EUR/month in 2025-06.
Half of employees earn less than this. Mean gross and national-accounts averages use different definitions and are shown in the table below.
What is the minimum wage in Japan?
The statutory minimum wage is about 6.41 EUR/hour, gross (as of 2025-FY). Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan16
National statutory floor, gross, before tax and social contributions.
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median gross salary, monthly | 1,781 EUR/month | 30 Jun 2025 | 2025 Basic Survey on Wage Structure, Appendix Table 33Official · national figure |
| National unemployment rate | 2.45 % | 31 Dec 2025 | Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate), 202537Official · national figure |
| Minimum gross hourly wage | 6.41 EUR/hour | 31 Dec 2025 | Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan16Official · national figure |
Typical city (median): about 3.8%
Unemployment rate (%)
Typical city (median): about €6.27
Net rent (€/m²/month)
Typical city (median): about 8.4 µg/m³
Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)
Public employment service in Japan
Official job-search, registration, counselling and training routes. Private recruitment agencies are not included.
Hello Work — Public employment service
A national service does not prove that an office exists in every city. City pages show an office only after an exact address is linked to that city. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.
Taxes in Japan
National rates and comparable published scenarios. Personal tax depends on income, household and residence circumstances.
Benefits newcomers may qualify for in Japan
Public schemes where an official source defines an eligible migration or residence status. Amounts and conditions are kept in their native terms.
| Programme | Published amount | Source and application |
|---|---|---|
児童手当 (Child Allowance) — Family and child support | 10,000–30,000 JPY / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsThe Children and Families Agency current table gives JPY 15,000 per month for a child under 3 for the first or second child and JPY 30,000 from the third child; from age 3 through high-school age it gives JPY 10,000 for the first or second child and JPY 30,000 from the third child. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare states that a person with an address in Japan is eligible under the Child Allowance Act and that foreign nationals can also receive the allowance; municipal administration uses the Basic Resident Registration. This is the bounded profile of a foreign national with an address in Japan and Basic Resident Registration, subject to the child and claimant conditions. | ||
雇用保険 基本手当 (Employment Insurance basic allowance) — Unemployment support | 8,270 JPY / Daily | |
Eligibility and amount detailsMaximum basic-allowance daily amount for recipients aged 30–44. 雇用保険の被保険者が失業し、原則として離職前2年間に被保険者期間12か月以上(倒産・解雇等は離職前1年間に6か月以上)などの受給要件を満たす場合。外国人被保険者についても厚生労働省資料は日本人と同様に基本手当が支払われると説明する。 | ||
Protective Measures for Refugee Status — Arrival and reception support | Amount varies / Daily And Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsThe current RHQ guide dated 2026-01-13 states JPY 2,400 per day for adults aged 12 and over and JPY 1,200 per day for children under 12; accommodation support varies by rent and number of residents and is subject to an upper limit. The current ISA report records JPY 40,000 monthly for a single person, JPY 50,000 for a second person, JPY 55,000 for a third and JPY 60,000 for a fourth or later person, subject to the stated housing limit; medical expenses are basically supported where covered by public health insurance and assistance is in principle for four months. The current Refugee Assistance Headquarters (RHQ) page states that allowances for living costs, housing expenses and medical costs are provided to those who have a pending application for refugee status and who are deemed to be facing economic hardship. The current RHQ guide limits eligible persons to applicants for Recognition of Refugee Status, including persons who filed on appeal, who are in need of protection in Japan and meet the guide's exclusion conditions. Status Applicant In Japan In Economic Hardship; it does not generalise the measure to every foreign resident or every protection applicant. | ||
生活保護 (Public Assistance) — Minimum-income support | Amount set per household by formula / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsThe current MHLW public-assistance page states that when household income is below the minimum living expenses calculated under the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare's standards, the difference is paid as protection. The payable amount varies by region, household composition and the applicable standard; no unsupported single nationwide JPY amount is asserted. The current Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare public-assistance page states that the household must use available assets, abilities and other resources and that assistance applies when household income is below the minimum-living-cost standard. The exact MHLW notice wording is ‘外国人に対する保護は’ and states that protection for foreigners is extended, by applying the Public Assistance Act mutatis mutandis as a budgetary measure, to 永住者、定住者等 (permanent residents, long-term residents and the source's other listed category). Or Long Term Resident In Japan Under Foreigner Public Assistance Measure; it does not generalise the measure to every foreign resident, and the source's household, income, asset and administrative conditions remain mandatory. | ||
生活保護 — 住宅扶助 (Public Assistance housing assistance) — Housing support | Amount set per household by formula / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsThe current MHLW Public Assistance page states that housing assistance (住宅扶助) covers apartment rent and that actual rent is paid within the prescribed limits (定められた範囲内で実費を支給). The payable amount therefore varies by household, locality and the current standards; no unsupported single nationwide JPY amount is asserted. The current Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare material states: ‘外国人に対する保護は’ extended under the public-assistance administrative measure to ‘永住者、定住者等’; the listed Immigration Control Act Table 2 statuses include permanent resident, long-term resident and the listed spouse statuses, while special permanent residents and recognized refugees are also listed and some unrestricted designated-activities cases may qualify. Or Long Term Resident In Japan Under Foreigner Public Assistance Measure, which is the bounded status profile already evidenced by the source; it does not generalise housing assistance to every foreign resident or every lawful resident. | ||
ImmigrationDB shows published rules; it does not decide personal eligibility. Confirm your status, contribution record and household circumstances with the responsible authority before applying. Sources checked through 12 Aug 2026.
Can migrants receive medical care in Japan?
Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Japan when the official insurance or residence conditions are met.
Language courses and integration in Japan
Government programmes, public integration services and exact provider records. The section expands only from fields present in the source; missing prices, refunds or contacts are not replaced with estimates.
Japanese Language Education Program for Foreigners Living in Japan — State Language Course
Agency for Cultural Affairs
For foreigners living in Japan.
Amikas Japanese Class Takamiya — Municipal language course
Fukuoka City Gender Equality Promotion Center Amikas
For people learning Japanese in Fukuoka.
Chiba City Regional Japanese-Language Education — Municipal language course
Chiba City
For foreign residents living in Japan and Chiba.
Connect and Enhance Your Life in Japanese (Tsunahiro) — State Language Course
Agency for Cultural Affairs / MEXT public platform
For foreign nationals living in Japan.
Fukuoka Foreign-Resident Japanese-Learning Support — Welcome Program
Fukuoka City
For foreign residents in Fukuoka.
Hiroshima City Japanese Classes for Foreign Residents — Municipal language course
Hiroshima City
For foreign residents in Hiroshima City.
Private and nonprofit providers
These records come from the provider's own website. They are useful leads, but are not counted as government-verified or complete.
Provider-supplied record · supplemental Tokyo International Japanese School
2-13-6 Shinjuku, Shinjuku, Tokyo
Open provider websiteLiving and moving context for Japan
Average gross salary was €2,347 per month in 2025. National median net income was €1,623 per month in 2021. There were 2.649 doctors per 1,000 people in Japan in 2022.
Japan cities by population
The largest published cities appear first. Population is taken from the reusable official city layer; hub labels come from the existing city taxonomy.
All published cities in Japan (2,059)
60 of 2,059 shownSearch all cities
Reports with this country
Accepted report pages with a row for this country.
What different occupation groups earn in Japan
Mean gross monthly earnings by occupation group, from Japan's Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2024 (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare), converted to EUR.
| Occupation group | Earnings | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Managers | ≈ 3,539 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Professionals and technical workers | ≈ 2,460 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Clerical workers | ≈ 2,113 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Sales workers | ≈ 2,128 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Service workers | ≈ 1,672 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Security workers | ≈ 1,611 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Agriculture, forestry and fishery workers | ≈ 1,593 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Manufacturing process workers | ≈ 1,916 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Transport and machine operation workers | ≈ 2,160 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Construction and mining workers | ≈ 2,095 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
| Carrying, cleaning and packaging workers | ≈ 1,678 EUR/month (gross) | 2024 |
Source: Japan Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2024 (e-Stat)) · observed 2024 · checked 2026-07-30.
Method and sources for these figures
Mean gross monthly earnings in EUR from Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2024 (e-Stat); Japan Standard Occupational Classification major groups; converted from JPY at the recorded annual-average exchange rate.
Japan Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare — Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2024 (e-Stat)
An occupation major group (ISCO or national equivalent) is not a job title: each figure is the average across all occupations in the group, so it is never a salary "for" one profession. Rows from different surveys, periods or statistics are shown as separate rows and are never merged or ranked against each other.
Japan facts
Current source-backed observations, grouped the way the city pages are, with geographic scope and observation periods.
Population and profile
How many people live in Japan?
The published population was 123,975,371 people in 2024. Source: World Bank41
National, resident population scope. Foreign-resident and migration-background figures are separate metrics in the table below.
How many foreign residents live in Japan?
The foreign-resident population was 4,125,395 people in 2025-12. Source: 在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計） 2025年12月末（政府統計コード 00250012、出入国在留管理庁）52
Residents without Japan citizenship. The migration-background population is a broader measure and appears in the table below.
Legal, tax and other context
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent deposit can be paid in instalments | 0 | 1 Apr 2020 | Civil Code (Act No. 89 of 1896)7Official · national figure |
| Typical rent deposit | 2 months | 11 Sept 2024 | Apartment Search Guidebook4Official · national figure |
| Public healthcare access for foreign residents | Conditional | 3 Aug 2026 | Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan14Official · national figure |
| Area | 377,969 km² | 31 Dec 2023 | World Bank42Official · national figure |
| Gross-to-net pay for a sample household | single person no children — 5,703,038 gross → 4,411,492 net a year (2025, national currency) | 31 Dec 2025 | Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition36Official · country household scenario |
| Population by year | 126,811,000 people (2018) | 1 Jul 2018 | Population, total (SP.POP.TOTL)33Official · country annual series |
| Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents | 595.9 incidents per 100,000 | 31 Dec 2024 | National Police Agency of Japan18Official · national figure |
| Doctors per 1,000 residents | 2.65 per 1,000 | 31 Dec 2022 | World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS45Official · national figure |
| Household electricity price | 0.235 EUR/kWh | 31 May 2023 | 2023年6月の電気料金、なぜ値上がりするの？1Official · national figure |
| Employed women | 30,820,000 people | 2024 | www.e-stat.go.jp51Official · national figure |
| Employed men | 36,990,000 people | 2024 | www.e-stat.go.jp51Official · national figure |
| People employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing | 1,990,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in mining and quarrying | 20,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in manufacturing | 10,800,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning | 650,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in construction | 4,830,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in wholesale and retail trade; motor vehicle and motorcycle repair | 10,700,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in transportation and storage | 3,740,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in accommodation and food services | 3,980,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in information and communication | 2,780,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in finance and insurance | 1,780,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in real estate | 1,120,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in professional, scientific and technical services | 2,560,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
| People employed in administrative and support services | 3,450,000 people | 2023 | sdmx.oecd.org35Official · national figure |
Settling-in index
How the conditions a newcomer meets in Japan compare with the other 35 scored destinations: integration policy, getting by in English, an established foreign community and language courses. Every point comes from the component table below.
Below it on getting by in English and the size of the foreign community; about the median on integration policy.
| Component | Reading | Score (0–100) | Weight | Adds | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Integration policy (MIPEX) | 59 of 100 | 59 | 35 | 25.8 | MIPEX 2020 |
| Getting by in English (EF EPI) | 446 EF EPI points | 0 | 25 | 0 | EF EPI 2025 |
| An established foreign community | 3.3% of residents | 13 | 20 | 3.3 | 在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計） 2025年12月末（政府統計コード 00250012、出入国在留管理庁） 2025; population 2024 |
Working as… in Japan
Open a profession for its available regulation, recognition and work-route evidence.
Regions of Japan
Each region's page lists its published cities with population, rent, salary, unemployment and air quality.
Common questions
Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.
What is the unemployment rate in Japan?
The national unemployment rate was about 2.5 % in 2025. Source: Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate), 2025.
How many people live in Japan?
The published population was 123,975,371 people in 2024. Source: World Bank.
What is the median gross salary in Japan?
The median gross salary was about 1,781 EUR/month in 2025-06. Source: 2025 Basic Survey on Wage Structure, Appendix Table 3.
What is the minimum wage in Japan?
The statutory minimum wage is about 6.41 EUR/hour, gross (as of 2025-FY). Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan.
How safe is Japan?
Police recorded 595.9 incidents per 100,000. This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: National Police Agency of Japan.
Cite this page
Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.
APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 23). Moving to Japan: population, rent, salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 4a0a5a4551c741b88027365cd8f847bd]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/countries/japan/ Retrieved 2026-10-23. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_moving-to-japan-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living_fab74b2f54da,
author = {ImmigrationDB},
title = {Moving to Japan: population, rent, salary, cost of living},
publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-10-23},
version = {4a0a5a4551c741b88027365cd8f847bd},
url = {https://immigrationdb.com/countries/japan/},
note = {Retrieved 2026-10-23. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}Markdown citation
[Moving to Japan: population, rent, salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/countries/japan/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 4a0a5a4551c741b88027365cd8f847bd; retrieved 2026-10-23; built 2026-10-23.This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.
Sources
Every number above comes from one of these records. Open the original source for its geographic scope and publication date.
- 2023年6月の電気料金、なぜ値上がりするの？ enecho.meti.go.jp · checked 2026-09-24
- 2024 Basic Survey on Wage Structure — occupation major-group table 2, industry total 2024 Basic Survey on Wage Structure · e-stat.go.jp · checked 2026-07-30
- 2025 Basic Survey on Wage Structure, Appendix Table 3 e-stat.go.jp · checked 2026-09-11
- Apartment Search Guidebook mlit.go.jp · checked 2026-10-08
- Application for Certificate of Eligibility moj.go.jp · checked 2026-10-08
- Average annual wages stats.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-26
- Civil Code (Act No. 89 of 1896) laws.e-gov.go.jp · checked 2026-10-08
- Consumption tax nta.go.jp · checked 2026-09-20
- EF EPI ef.com · checked 2026-08-03
- Globalization and World Cities (GaWC), Loughborough University gawc.lboro.ac.uk · checked 2026-08-03
Show 45 more sources
- Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
- Japan National Tourism Organization education.jnto.go.jp · checked 2026-08-03
- Labour Standards Act (労働基準法), Article 32(1) laws.e-gov.go.jp · checked 2026-09-25
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan mhlw.go.jp · checked 2026-08-02
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan mhlw.go.jp · checked 2026-08-12
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan mhlw.go.jp · checked 2026-08-27
- MIPEX mirovni-institut.si · checked 2026-08-03
- National Police Agency of Japan npa.go.jp · checked 2026-08-12
- Notification of Place of Residence after New Entry (Mid-to-Long-Term Residents) moj.go.jp · checked 2026-10-08
- NPA White Paper 2025, statistical appendix 10 (penal-code offences by type) npa.go.jp · checked 2026-09-05
- NTA No.2260, as of 2025-04-01: ordinary national income-tax rate schedule has seven brackets from 5% to 45%; 45% applies at taxable income of 40,000,000 JPY or more. This is before the separate reconstruction special income-tax surcharge. nta.go.jp · checked 2026-07-15
- NTA No.5759, as of 2025-04-01: national corporation-tax table, 23.20% for 上記以外の普通法人 (ordinary corporations other than the small-capital reduced-rate band), shown for business years beginning 2022-04-01 and 2025-04-01. nta.go.jp · checked 2026-07-15
- OECD — Average usual weekly hours worked on the main job, full-time employees OECD · sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-09-18
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-05
- OECD Income Distribution Database: median equivalised disposable household income sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-26
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-05
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-05
- Physicians (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
- Population, total (SP.POP.TOTL) api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-29
- Real estate transaction notices for consumers mlit.go.jp · checked 2026-10-08
- sdmx.oecd.org sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-12
- Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition Taxing Wages 2026 · sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-29
- Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate), 2025 api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-09-11
- Visa Fees mofa.go.jp · checked 2026-10-08
- WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
- WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank indicator NY.GDP.PCAP.CD api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- World Bank indicator SP.DYN.LE00.IN api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
- World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
- World Bank SP.POP.TOTL api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-09-05
- World Bank SP.POP.TOTL api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-09-05
- www.e-stat.go.jp e-stat.go.jp · checked 2026-08-12
- 在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計） 2025年12月末（政府統計コード 00250012、出入国在留管理庁） e-stat.go.jp · checked 2026-09-18
- 地域別最低賃金の全国一覧 mhlw.go.jp · checked 2026-09-17
- 総務省 令和6年版 情報通信白書 — インフラの整備状況 (MIC Information and Communications in Japan White Paper 2024, Infrastructure development status) 総務省 令和6年版 情報通信白書 · soumu.go.jp · checked 2026-09-18
- Immigration Services Agency of Japan — statuses of residence
Official list of Japanese residence statuses and their conditions. National guidance; the status that fits your purpose decides the requirements.