Japan Press Weekly

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2024 April 17 - 23 [POLITICS]

Motomura opposes revocation of permanent resident status of foreign residents who accidentally fail to pay taxes

Japanese Communist Party lawmaker Motomura Nobuko on April 16 opposed a bill to revise the Immigration Control Act which would allow the revocation of permanent resident status of foreign residents in Japan who accidentally fail to pay taxes.

Under the pretext of “optimizing the permanent residence visa system”, the bill will establish a new system for revoking “permanent resident” status of foreign residents in the event of tax or social security payment arrears.

At the House of Representatives plenary meeting where discussions on the bill began, Motomura criticized the proposed amendment as being outrageous, and stressed, “The bill, if enacted, will destabilize not only the status of foreign residents who currently hold the status of permanent resident, but of all foreign residents who may apply for permanent resident status in the future.” She said, “The introduction of the new system will place foreign workers and their family members under strict surveillance and control. It also will deprive them of their stable livelihood that many have built over many years of hard work in Japan. Such discriminatory treatment is unacceptable.”

Prime Minister Kishida in response only said that under the new system, the revocation will be judged on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the degree of maliciousness.