Today's migration to Japan

This chapter provides a descriptive analysis of the foreign-citizen population residing in Japan today. It presents the distinction between oldcomers (immigrants who originated from the Japanese colonial ruling periods over its Asian neighbours at the turn of the 20th century) and newcomers (an expression used to address a second flow of immigrants during the 1970s and who are still entering the country to date). From the picture offered, it is evident how the foreign-citizen population residing in Japan is not merely growing numerically but it is also diversifying, in terms of country of origin. Besides the more traditional immigrant groups, such as Korean, Chinese, and Brazilian, the 2010s witnessed a rising number of Vietnamese- and Filipino-citizen residents. As projections lead us to believe, if these new foreign citizens also establish a more permanent settlement in the country, the Japanese social fabric, as well as the country’s basic amenities and services, will have to come to terms with a foreign population with diverse cultural and linguistic characteristics.