All laws have legislative purposes. They restrict and shape society in order to guide it toward a particular direction or form considered better. The highest objective of the Immigration Control and Residence Management Act is to manage the entry, residence, and departure of foreign nationals and to contribute to Japan’s national interests and world peace.
The world consists of about 200 countries. Each is composed of different peoples and ethnic groups, and their languages, cultures, laws, and common social norms differ. In the past, economies and industries were largely completed within each country. However, due to the advancement of civilization and technology based on the principles of the market economy, they have opened to the outside world, and the movement of people, goods, and capital now occurs in unprecedented volumes and with unprecedented ease.
Now, in such a situation, if each country were to allow the entry, residence, and departure of foreigners without any restrictions or rules, the internal order of each country would fall into chaos.
Each country has its own countermeasures to address this issue, and Japan’s measure is the Immigration Control and Residence Management Act.
The Immigration Control and Residence Management Act keeps every part of its structure continuously focused on achieving this objective.
In other words,
- Among all foreigners who attempt to enter Japan, only those who contribute to Japan’s national interests are accepted, while others are refused.
- Foreigners who have entered Japan are permitted to reside only as long as their stay continues to contribute to Japan’s national interests; if it no longer does, they are required to leave the country.
- Illegal departure and overstaying are prevented, and departures are recorded and managed.
These are the mid-level concepts that connect to the highest-level concept.
The above constitutes the primary purpose of the Immigration Control and Residence Management Act, and its organizational design, institutional design, and procedural design are all structured to function as mechanisms to realize these purposes. From this perspective, although the Immigration Control and Residence Management Act and its related laws may appear excessively detailed, complex, and cumbersome at first glance, each provision has meaning and effectiveness as a component within the overall structure.
Systems that realize “Among all foreigners who attempt to enter Japan, only those who contribute to Japan’s national interests are accepted, while others are refused.”
“All foreigners who attempt to enter Japan”
In order to identify them, there is a system that obliges airlines and shipping companies arriving at Japanese airports and seaports to prepare and submit identity information of foreign passengers.
“Foreigners who contribute to Japan’s national interests”
As a uniform standard for determining this, there are grounds for denial of landing in order to refuse those who should be refused. In addition, 29 types of status of residence are established as patterns of residence that are considered to contribute to the national interest, and those outside these categories are refused.
“Only those are accepted, and others are refused”
Institutions and procedures for making such determinations are established at airports and seaports, and a three-level organizational structure exists to ensure fair responses to objections from foreign nationals regarding these decisions.
Systems that realize “Foreigners who have entered Japan may reside only as long as their residence continues to contribute to Japan’s national interests.”
“Foreigners who have entered Japan may reside only as long as their residence contributes to Japan’s national interests”
For this purpose, the Immigration Services Agency has the authority to investigate the residence of foreign nationals, imposes various notification obligations on foreign residents, and evaluates the appropriateness of their residence from perspectives such as tax law, criminal law, and other legal aspects.
“If it no longer contributes, the person must leave Japan”
For this purpose, the circumstances under which a residence is considered no longer beneficial are predetermined as grounds for revocation of status of residence and grounds for deportation.
Systems that realize “Prevent illegal departure and overstaying, and record and manage departures.”
Prevent illegal departure and overstaying
For this purpose, exceptional cases in which departure cannot be permitted at airports and seaports are defined, and there is also a deportation system.
Record and manage departures
For this purpose, several types of departure are defined, and the necessary procedures are established for each.
In this way, the Immigration Control and Residence Management Act is supported by mid-level concepts that fulfill its legislative purpose, and those mid-level concepts are supported by concrete institutional and procedural designs. These institutional and procedural designs themselves consist of numerous detailed and specific provisions.