Paper short abstract:

This paper examines Japan's shifting principle to introduce migrant workers, focusing on Nikkeijin and specific skilled workers. It argues that differential status to these two migrants suggests that Japan's principle to rely on "blood ties" was replaced by neoliberalism based on meritocracy.

Paper long abstract:

In 2018, the Ministry of Justice of Japan granted two types of new visas: one is for the specified skilled workers and the other for fourth-generation Japanese descendants (Nikkeijin) who had been allowed to live in Japan solely as non-adult children of the third generation. Although the latter attracted much less attention than the former, which is the main topic of this panel, it implies fundamental change in Japan's migration policy. The aim of this paper is to clarify Japan's shifting principle to introduce migrant workers, focusing on what the Japanese government learned from its thirty-year experience to import Nikkeijin and technical interns. At first glance the newly instituted status for the fourth-generation Nikkeijin looks like expansion of jus sanguinis, but it is blatantly based on meritocracy and getting similar to temporary guest worker programs. The visa allows only five-year length of stay and cannot be extended. In addition, fourth-generation applicants are not authorized family reunification and required to pass the N4 level of the Japanese Language Aptitude Test, all of which were never demanded to the second- and the third-generation Nikkeijin. On the other hand, the government made a major revision to pave the way to permanent residency for technical interns. They were granted non-renewable five-year visa, but the new Immigration Law permitted them to change their visa as specified skilled workers. They are also allowed family reunification after five-year work and then qualified to apply for permanent residency. Differential status to these two migrants suggests that Japan's principle to rely on "blood ties" was replaced by neoliberalism based on meritocracy, in which migrants had to learn the rope without effective integration policies such as language and vocational training programs.