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August 05, 2026
 

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TAXES

A building damaged by the earthquake in the town of Hikawa, Kumamoto Prefecture, on July 28
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2026
Donations to quake-hit Kumamoto via hometown tax system reach ?730 million
The figure represents the total amount of donations made through four major furusato nš­zei portal websites, according to the top government spokesperson.
Members of the Liberal Democratic Party's tax and social security panels hold a meeting on Monday to discuss a consumption tax cut.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 3, 2026
LDP members worry about two-year tax cut¡¯s impact on 2028 poll
Under the plan, the consumption tax rate on food will be lowered to 1% for two years from next April.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the opposition Democratic Party for the People, speaks at a meeting with supporters in the city of Wakayama on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 3, 2026
Opposition DPP not to join ruling bloc for now, citing consumption tax cut
Some in the LDP sought to realize the DPP¡¯s participation before an extraordinary session of parliament is convened possibly this autumn.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announces a plan to lower the consumption tax rate on food items at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on July 30.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 2, 2026
Japan¡¯s politically sensitive consumption tax faces first-ever cut
Takaichi has championed a proposal to lower the tax rate on food purchased at stores, which would mark the first cut to the rate since it was implemented in 1989.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a meeting with Liberal Democratic Party executives at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 30, 2026
Takaichi announces plan to lower consumption tax rate on food to 1%
The decision comes despite opposition party criticism and concerns among fellow LDP members about how lost revenue ¡ª ?5 trillion annually ¡ª from the reduction would be covered.
Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Itsunori Onodera, who chairs the National Council, speaks in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 29, 2026
Takaichi finalizing plan to cut consumption tax rate on food products
The prime minister is expected to make a formal decision on the matter as early as Thursday.
A reduction of the sales tax on food has made slow progress as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi opted for multiparty talks that failed to reach a consensus.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Jul 28, 2026
Takaichi¡¯s long-term vision may fail to dispel inflation angst
The one issue on which voters sought quick and clear action ¡ª a reduction of the sales tax on food ¡ª has made slow progress.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a budget committee session at the Lower House in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 27, 2026
After a legislative sweep, Takaichi faces public confidence test
A recent poll shows 71% of respondents disapproved of the government¡¯s response to rising living costs as talks remain stalled over a reduction of the consumption tax for food.
The 55-year-old former president of New Look, who goes by the name Shigenori Kanemoto, is suspected of evading some ?367 million in income tax by concealing about ?2.276 billion in income in 2023.
BUSINESS
Jul 23, 2026
Former head of Japanese barbecue chain arrested over tax evasion
The 55-year-old former president of New Look is suspected of evading some ?367 million in income tax by concealing about ?2.276 billion in income in 2023.
LDP lawmaker Itsunori Onodera (right), who chairs the National Council on Social Security, in Tokyo on Thursday
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 16, 2026
Parties agree on new benefit program but stay divided over consumption tax on food
While there is agreement to a refundable tax credit for certain workers, debate on cutting the consumption tax on food is expected to intensify.
Reika Kuroki and an advertising agency where she serves as president were charged with evading corporate and other taxes totaling ?157 million in the year through January 2021 and the two years through January 2024.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2026
Japanese social media influencer given suspended sentence over tax evasion
The Tokyo District Court also imposed a fine of ?40 million on an advertising agency for which influencer Reika Kuroki serves as president.
Neyagawa Mayor Keisuke Hirose speaks to reporters in the city in Osaka Prefecture on Thursday.
JAPAN
Jul 9, 2026
City in Osaka Prefecture to tax vacant houses from fiscal 2029
Annual revenue from the tax is estimated to reach ?139 million, which will be used for measures against crimes and natural disasters.
Britain¡¯s King Charles III inspects a guard of honor during a ceremony at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh on June 23.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 6, 2026
King Charles just got a lot more treasure
Charles¡¯ mother Queen Elizabeth II began paying tax only after a public outcry at the government¡¯s decision to pay for expensive repairs to Windsor Castle after a fire in 1992.
Record growth in tax revenues reflects higher wages and corporate earnings, as well as a rise in the value of consumption amid inflation.
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2026
Japan tax revenues hit record ?84 trillion in fiscal 2025
The growth reflected higher wages and corporate earnings, as well as a rise in the value of consumption amid inflation.
Tourists in Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Japan tripled its International Tourist Tax (departure tax) to ?3,000 from ?1,000 on Wednesday for all travelers leaving Japan, regardless of nationality.
JAPAN
Jul 1, 2026
Japan triples departure tax in push to combat overtourism
Previously set at ?1,000, the tax has risen to ?3,000 for all travelers departing Japan, regardless of nationality.
The Hakuba Cross-Country Course in the village of Hakuba, Nagano Prefecture, in February. For a third year in a row, roadside land prices in the village have increased at the highest rate across Japan.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 1, 2026
Roadside land prices rise in popular Japanese tourist sites
Across the board, the prices of land facing major roads in Japan as of Jan. 1 went up by 2.9%, marking a fifth consecutive year of increases.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a meeting on economic policy at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 27, 2026
Japan government to avoid deficit-covering bonds for food tax cut
The move to avoid the issuance of deficit-covering bonds follows a policy that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has consistently emphasized.
A draft by a tax panel calls for reducing the consumption tax rate to 1% for food for two years from April 2027.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 25, 2026
Interim draft on two-year food tax cut presented
The proposal calls for reducing the tax rate to 1% for food for two years from April 2027.
Although paper customs forms are still available?in many cases, it is no longer standard practice to hand them out on all flights.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 22, 2026
Japan to fully digitalize airport customs system by 2030
The phasing-out of paper customs declaration forms is among measures eyed by the Finance Ministry to handle the inbound movement of people and goods more efficiently.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi at a Lower House budget committee session on Monday
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 22, 2026
Takaichi says consumption tax cut would last only two years
Asked if the cut would expire after two years even if the economy worsened, the prime minister said the measure is only ¡°a bridge¡± until a refundable tax credit program is created.
Beast of Reincarnation shows Game Freak has more to learn
Releasing on Aug. 4, Beast of Reincarnation is set in a far-future version of Japan ruined by a mysterious apocalypse.
U.S. to close consulates in Canada, Japan and Indonesia, sources say
The U.S. State Department said in a notice ?sent to some congressional committees last week that it plans to close ?its posts ?in St. George's, Grenada; Nagoya, Japan; Medan, Indonesia; Douala, Cameroon; and Winnipeg, Canada. ?
¡®Hey Siri, call 119¡¯: How three kids proved a smartphone can be a lifeline
Kobe Kita Police Station honors local heroes Yuito Kuroishi (left), Ruito Nagai (center) and Sakutaro Akutagawa during an award ceremony on July 24.
Princess Aiko observes traditional rites at Mie¡¯s Grand Shrines of Ise
Princess Aiko observes a traditional rite for the reconstruction of the Grand Shrines of Ise in Mie Prefecture on Saturday
Two employees were sent back into Kumamoto mall before explosion
A funeral for Kurumi Otake, a store employee at a shopping mall who died after the facility exploded following last week's earthquake, is held in Kumamoto on Monday.
A pressing question on the front lines in Kumamoto: Who cares for the caregivers?
Tomoko Sato, the chief of emergency medicine at Saiseikai Kumamoto Hospital, brought her two children to the hospital so she could continue treating patients following the Kumamoto earthquake.
This children¡¯s cafeteria in Shikoku serves up free meals and global perspectives
Volunteer Vicky Parthasarathy (right) believes that people from various cultures can understand each other better through food.
For Japan¡¯s aging homeless population, brutal summers are dangerously inescapable
A homeless person near Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. Authorities have warned the public to avoid unnecessary outings and advised people to stay in air-conditioned spaces, but for people who are homeless this is often not an option.
¡®Hey Siri, call 119¡¯: How three kids proved a smartphone can be a lifeline
Kobe Kita Police Station honors local heroes Yuito Kuroishi (left), Ruito Nagai (center) and Sakutaro Akutagawa during an award ceremony on July 24.
At Nonna Nietta, Italian magic in suburban Tsukuba
Chef Kenji Kawamura honed his craft in Italy for six years before returning to his hometown in Ibaraki Prefecture to open Nonna Nietta.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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