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From Asharq Al-Awsat · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

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  • A Nepalese restaurant owner in Tokyo faces expulsion from Japan due to tightened visa rules for business managers, jeopardizing her dream and her daughter's future.
  • New regulations, introduced by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, significantly increase the capital requirement for business manager visas to 30 million yen from 5 million yen.
  • The stricter rules impact foreign nationals who have built businesses in Japan, with some fearing they cannot meet the new conditions despite a three-year grace period.

Budhathoki Samjhana, a Nepalese national who built a life and business in Tokyo, now confronts the possibility of deportation under Japan's new visa regulations. She fears her dream of bridging Nepal and Japan is shattered as the government tightens rules for business manager visas, a move impacting foreign entrepreneurs.

I always wanted to become a bridge between Japan and Nepal... but my dream is broken.

— Budhathoki SamjhanaA Nepalese restaurant owner in Tokyo, expressing her distress over Japan's tightened visa rules.

Samjhana, who spent a decade apart from her daughter to establish her life in Japan, faces expulsion because she may not meet the updated requirements. The new rules, implemented by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in late 2025, have raised the capital requirement for business manager visas from 5 million yen to 30 million yen ($185,000). This dramatic increase poses a significant hurdle for many foreign business owners.

The biggest problem is the increase in capital requirement to 30 million yen ($185,000) from 5 million ($30,000). It's impossible.

— Budhathoki SamjhanaExplaining the financial burden of the new visa regulations.

"The biggest problem is the increase in capital requirement to 30 million yen ($185,000) from 5 million ($30,000)," Samjhana told AFP. "It's impossible." She arrived in Japan as a student in 2016 and opened her first restaurant in 2023, eventually expanding to three eateries and bringing her 14-year-old daughter to join her. Now, she worries deeply about her daughter's future and the upcoming visa renewal.

Now, I'm very worried not about myself but about my daughter... What did I do to her? My heart pounds when I think about the next visa renewal.

— Budhathoki SamjhanaExpressing her anxiety about her daughter's future due to the visa situation.

Other foreign business owners share Samjhana's concerns. Indian restaurant owner Manish Kumar, a resident of Japan for 30 years, has been informed his business manager visa will not be renewed, despite the grace period. Visa experts note increased scrutiny from immigration officials, demanding extensive documentation. A petition with over 67,800 signatures calls for the suspension of the new rules, highlighting the distress caused to individuals who have contributed to Japan's economy and society.

My children only speak Japanese... and we're told to go back to India.

— Manish KumarAn Indian restaurant owner in Japan, speaking about his visa non-renewal.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Asharq Al-Awsat. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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