Japan eases cap on foreign student enrolment at top universities

Japan’s education ministry will allow selected faculties at three national universities to recruit more international students, marking a significant shift in a system that has traditionally penalised institutions that exceeded approved quotas.

The ministry said it has certified 11 departments at Tohoku University, University of Tsukuba and Hiroshima University under a new framework permitting certain faculties to exceed standard enrolment caps by up to 5 per cent from 1 April this year. 

The ministry said the initiative is designed not only to attract high-achieving students from overseas, but also to internationalise learning environments, encourage Japanese students to engage globally and cultivate diverse perspectives.

To qualify, faculties must maintain enrolment rates above 90 per cent, demonstrate sound financial management, set out a clear internationalisation strategy and show they have adequate academic and language support systems in place to maintain educational quality while expanding intake.

Universities in Japan can face penalties if they surpass officially approved enrolment limits, including those for international students – rules that have been widely seen as discouraging institutions from significantly expanding overseas admissions.

The change comes as the government steps up efforts to attract global talent and internationalise campuses. The country has traditionally lagged behind other developed economies on international student admissions.

A 2023 survey by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) found that international students accounted for 31.1 per cent of students in the European Union, 17.1 per cent in the United States and 13.4 per cent in the United Kingdom, compared with just 3.3 per cent in Japan.

But more recent figures from Japan’s Immigration Services Agency showed that the number of international students as of June 2025 rose to 435,200, up 8.2 per cent year on year, driven by a record 180,000 first-time students.

That total means Japan has already surpassed its target of 400,000 international enrolments by 2033, eight years ahead of schedule.

Tohoku University and the University of Tsukuba have said they will aim to raise the proportion of international students in their undergraduate programmes to around 20 per cent, while Hiroshima University plans to increase the number of foreign students by about 10 percentage points from current levels, according to reports from NHK.

Alongside the enrolment changes, tuition policy is also evolving. Until 2024, national universities were not permitted to charge international students more than 1.2 times domestic tuition, but that restriction has been removed.

Tohoku University plans to raise annual tuition fees for international students to ¥900,000 (£4,302) from the 2027 academic year, an increase of ¥364,200 (£1,741). The University of Tsukuba will increase annual fees to ¥608,800 (£2,910), up ¥73,000 (£349). Hiroshima University has said it will raise fees for incoming undergraduate students in the near future.

tash.mosheim@timeshighereducation.com