1. Reported Stateless Persons
Japan has shown fluctuations in the reported statistics on stateless individuals over the past few years. The country has the highest reported stateless population in East Asia, with 508 stateless persons reported to UNHCR in 2022, a decrease of 199 persons from 2021 and 2020, when the country reported 707 stateless persons. Many of the reported stateless population in Japan are children of irregular migrants and foundling children.
It is estimated that the actual number of stateless persons in Japan is far larger than the above numbers reflect as the number of stateless persons in Japan under UNHCR’s statelessness mandate only reflects cases of those recognized by the Japanese government. UNHCR’s representatives in Japan have pointed out that the actual number of stateless persons in Japan is not accurately captured by the official estimates due to the lack of consistent definition for “statelessness” or “stateless person” and possibility of duplication among various estimates.
| Country | 2019 (year start) | 2020 (year end) | 2021 (year end) | 2022 (year end) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 709 | 707 | 707 | 508 |
2. Persons at Risk of Statelessness
A child born to foreign parents in the territory of Japan may be at risk of statelessness if they are not eligible for citizenship elsewhere due to gaps in citizenship legislation. Children born to migrants and abandoned children risk statelessness due to presumed links to foreign nations which can, at times, undermine the legal protection for such children recognised in Japanese laws.
Historical context and legal frameworks suggest that certain populations, particularly Zainichi Koreans, persons of Korean ethnic descent permanently residing in Japan, are at a higher risk for statelessness in Japan. This is especially true for those who chose not to apply for South Korean nationality in the 1960s. While many Zainichi Koreans have naturalized as Japanese citizens since the 1990s, to this day their legal status remains complex, and the application process is intricate and requires renouncing any dual citizenship they may hold.
Individuals who are the children of Indochinese refugees from Thailand escaping the first Indochina War to live in Japan are also at a high risk of statelessness. Many of these refugees’ children were born and brought up in Thailand but it is nearly impossible for them to trace their roots or obtain relevant documents, making it challenging to prove ties to Vietnam, Laos, or Thailand. A number of these individuals resort to illegal entry into Japan to find work but are rendered stateless.
3. Stateless Refugee
In 2022, among the 17,406 refugees in Japan according to UNHCR’s mandate, the Japanese government reported 9 stateless refugees to UNHCR. As noted above, while Japan is a party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, its domestic laws do not provide a definition for statelessness. The unique status of stateless refugees in Japan has however been recognised and examined by the courts of Japan.
4. Undetermined Nationalities
In Japan’s 2020 census, the nationality of 131,684 foreigners in Japan was categorized as “stateless and name of country not reported”. The discrepancy between the number of such “stateless and name of country not reported” persons from the number of UNHCR-identified stateless persons may be explained by the fact that the former number includes individuals with undetermined nationality or who did not report their nationality (but may nonetheless be recognized as nationals). Japan is the only country in East Asia with publicly accessible census statistics available in English on the citizenship status of foreigners.
While not recognised as stateless persons by the Japanese government or UNHCR, a major group within Japan whose nationality status remains unresolved is the children of ethnic Koreans who currently hold the categorisation of “citizens of the Korean Peninsula (Korea or Chōsen)”. This population group may opt to claim South Korean citizenship or seek Japanese citizenship through naturalization and until they do so are considered to be “special permanent residents” which enables their access to services and temporary travel documents. Of the over 800,000 registered Koreans in Japan, 25,358 persons remain registered as Chōsen in 2022.
