# Foreign residents hit record 3.48% of Japan's population

> Japan's foreign residents reach 3.48% of total population, up 3.8% from last year.
- Title: Foreign residents hit record 3.48% of Japan's population
- Summary: Japan's foreign residents reach 3.48% of total population, up 3.8% from last year. Japan's foreign resident population grew to 4.28 million, representing…
- Keywords: japan, foreign residents, population, immigration services agency, japan population, foreign community, news, politics, world, Foreign, residents, hit
- Source: The Japan Times — https://japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/10/16/japan/society/foreign-population-figures
- Author: Jessica Speed
- Published: 2026-10-16T00:27:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: japan, foreign residents, population, immigration services agency, japan population, foreign community, news, politics, world
## Foreign residents reach record 3.48%
Japan's foreign resident population grew 3.8% to a record 4.28 million in the first half of 2026.
## Population figures from Immigration Services Agency
The number of foreign residents reached 4,281,026 as of the end of June, up 155,631 from the end of 2025.
## Residence status overstayers decline
Residence status overstayers fell 4.8% to just over 65,000 in the first half of 2026.
## Foreign population growth rate
The increase compares with a 5.0% rise in the number of foreign residents during the first half of 2025.
## Key takeaway

Japan's foreign resident population grew to 4.28 million, representing 3.48% of the total population, according to government data.