Aug 10 (Japan Times) - The government plans to upgrade the Justice Ministry’s Immigration Bureau to an affiliated agency in April next year in preparation for accepting more foreign workers, sources said Wednesday.
The government will beef up immigration controls alongside the introduction of a new resident status to allow foreign people to work in various industries, sources added.
The envisaged immigration control agency will have enhanced policy-planning capabilities and assume a command-center role in implementing policy measures with other ministries and agencies, they said. More immigration officers and guards — who now number 3,140 and 1,440, respectively — will be hired.