Japan reallocates 20,000 foreign worker slots to nursing care to tackle surging labor demand

Japan’s government plans to increase the quota for foreign caregivers under its Specified Skilled Worker (i) status by 20,000 slots, in a bid to prevent critical staffing shortages in nursing homes as demand rapidly outpaces original forecasts.

To accommodate the surge without increasing overall foreign labor targets, officials will transfer the extra slots directly from the upcoming Employment for Skill Development program set to launch in April 2027.

This temporary fix keeps the total limit at 160,700 care workers. It comes after early data showed that caregiver arrivals could pass the original 126,900 cap before March 2029.

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“The government needs to create a better, more accurate plan based on what care facilities actually need in real life”, according to Masayuki Saito, chairman of the Japan Federation of Kaigo Business Providers.

Government officials defended the reallocation during an expert panel meeting at the Justice Ministry in Tokyo, explaining that halting the intake of new caregivers, similar to previous freezes in the food service sector, would leave essential facilities unable to operate.

Preliminary figures indicated that nearly 80,000 foreign care workers were residing in Japan under the Specified Skilled Worker (i) status by late July, putting the sector on track to hit its limit well ahead of schedule.

The government also outlined revisions to broaden the operational scope for foreign workers in other key fields, including the addition of snow removal to permitted duties within the construction sector.

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These adjustments reflect a structural dependence on overseas labor driven by Japan’s shrinking workforce and rapidly aging population.

Despite these sectoral shifts, the administration of Sanae Takaichi, prime minister maintains a strict stance on overall immigration levels, keeping the nationwide total cap for specified skilled workers and skill-development trainees capped at 1.23 million people.

For foreign nationals hoping to work in Japan, the announcement means that the structured slot system means the government will carefully manage the intake, rather than leaving the entry to open-ended applications.

Japan’s visa programmes for foreign workers typically comes with specific requirements around qualifications, language proficiency, and experience in the relevant sector.

Prospective applicants are advised to monitor official channels from Japan’s immigration authorities for guidance on eligibility criteria and application timelines.