Foreign National Crime Statistics: What Official NPA and Ministry of Justice Data Show
This article organizes publicly available information into a single account. Where it describes an arrest or an ongoing investigation, that reflects only one stage of criminal procedure and does not mean guilt has been established (the presumption of innocence applies). We will update this article as new information becomes available, including the outcome of prosecution, non-prosecution, or trial. This article is not intended to unfairly disparage any individual, group, nationality, ethnicity, or belief, and aims to provide objective, fact-based information.
When covering the topic of crime involving foreign nationals, it is important to look not only at reporting on individual incidents but also at the statistics published by government agencies. This article organizes statistics on crime by foreign nationals published by Japan's National Police Agency and Ministry of Justice, with sources cited, and situates this site's own individual coverage within that context. Note that the "foreign nationals visiting Japan" (rainichi gaikokujin) crime statistics discussed below are a specific National Police Agency category that excludes permanent residents and special permanent residents; they do not represent trends for all foreign residents of Japan.
2024 statistics
According to the National Police Agency's 2025 White Paper on Police and the Ministry of Justice's 2025 White Paper on Crime, in 2024 the number of Penal Code offenses cleared that were committed by foreign nationals visiting Japan was 13,405 (up 33.5% year on year), with 6,368 people arrested (up 11.0%). This represents 5.5% of the total number of people arrested for Penal Code offenses in Japan (191,826) (sources: Ministry of Justice, 2025 White Paper on Crime, National Police Agency, 2025 White Paper on Police).
Long-term trend
The number of Penal Code offense cases cleared involving foreign nationals visiting Japan had been on a declining trend since peaking at 33,037 in 2005, but turned upward for two consecutive years starting in 2023. The number of people arrested peaked at 8,898 in 2004 and has fluctuated since. In other words, two things are both true: the recent two-year increase is real, and the current level remains lower than the mid-2000s peak.
Breakdown by offense type and nationality
By offense type, theft is the most common, followed by assault and violence. Murder accounted for 60 cases (0.4% of the total) and robbery 81 cases (0.6%), both small shares of the total. By nationality, Vietnam accounts for by far the most theft cases at 4,964, followed by China (938) and Cambodia (603). For assault and violence, China leads with 280 cases, followed by Vietnam (166) and the Philippines and Brazil (99 each). Vietnam and China together account for roughly 60% of all cases cleared and about half of all people arrested.
How this relates to this site's coverage
This site has separately reported on theft cases involving Vietnamese nationals (related article, related article, related article) and an assault case involving a Chinese national (related article). While these overlap with the offense-type and nationality combinations that are statistically most common, this site's article selection is based on whether an incident was reported and how much detail was available, not on statistical representativeness. Individual articles convey what happened in a specific case; understanding overall trends requires referring to the official statistics presented here.
Current status: Statistics on crime by foreign nationals visiting Japan are updated annually by the National Police Agency and the Ministry of Justice. This article will be updated with 2025 figures once they are published. Developments in individual cases will continue to be covered in their respective articles.