Fewer Visa Overstayers in Japan

[Mulboyne]

The Ministry of Justice has announced that, as of January 1st 2011, 78,488 foreigners were illegally overstaying their visas. That total is down 14.5% from a year earlier. The number doesn't represent all illegals since some individuals will likely have entered the country unrecorded. However, it's probably a reasonable guide since illegal immigrants are around 10-15% the number of overstayers. By nationality, the MoJ details four main groups: 19,271 Koreans, 10,337 Chinese, 9,329 Filipinos and 4,774 Taiwanese. The Ministry attributes the decline to the introduction of fingerprinting at immigration in 2007. That seems an odd claim unless the Ministry can show they turned away people who planned to become overstayers. You would think the decline is more down to greater enforcement and a weak market for unskilled labour. From 2004 to 2009, the number of visa overstayers declined from 219,418 to 113,072, or nearly 50% in five years, while 2010 saw a further fall to 91,770 (nearly 19%). The Ministry is now focusing on fake marriages where a foreign national may have gained a spouse visa illegally, usually through marriage brokers run by criminal gangs.

Following the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear plant destruction, 2011 is going to show up some fairly drastic changes in foreign resident and visitor data trends. It will be interesting to see what happens to the overstayer figure come January 2012

Source (Japanese)

[matsuki]

Can't wait for them to release the data on how many illegals fled after the earthquake!

[Greji]

Can't wait for them to release the data on how many illegals fled after the earthquake!

They can't get to those figures yet. They are currently too busy averaging out the crimes per gaijin figures for NPA's budget for next year.

[wuchan]

the MoJ details four main groups: 19,271 Koreans, 10,337 Chinese, 9,329 Filipinos and 4,774 Taiwanese.
Source (Japanese)

I love how western foreign nationals never make the list but we are the first to get carded.

[matsuki]

I love how western foreign nationals never make the list but we are the first to get carded.

Yep, we're the most "foreign looking."

Funny thing is I grew up in an Asian community in LA, and am pretty accurate in guessing ethnic backgrounds of different Asians...whereas alot of Japanese I know are retards when it comes to this yet talk as if they are experts on who "looks Japanese."

[Iraira]

Yep, we're the most "foreign looking."

Funny thing is I grew up in an Asian community in LA, and am pretty accurate in guessing ethnic backgrounds of different Asians...whereas alot of Japanese I know are retards when it comes to this yet talk as if they are experts on who "looks Japanese."

Bolsa or Garbage Grove?:p

[Samurai_Jerk]

I love how western foreign nationals never make the list but we are the first to get carded.

I don't think that's true. I've never been carded in Shinjuku but used to see it happen to Chinese and Koream people there all the time.

[wuchan]

I don't think that's true. I've never been carded in Shinjuku but used to see it happen to Chinese and Koream people there all the time.

I get the "give me a free ego lesson" treatment from the j-cops about three times a year.