Nipponica

Japan has, by some measures, the highest inheritance tax rate in the world. It's so high, and the related laws and rules so unforgiving and complicated, that a smart move to the country can years later suddenly look like an expensive mistake.

Yes, this is a very dry article but it is a good overview of the rules you have to follow when an inheritance event happens. On a related now, tax law makes me break out in hives.

J-RISE is a major pillar of the government’s broader University for International Research Excellence initiative, which supports top Japanese universities through the national ¥10 trillion University Fund. The fund, managed by the Japan Science and Technology Agency, aims to elevate the global standing of Japanese institutions by supporting world-class research environments.

This level of investment signals a clear policy shift: Japan wants to become a global scientific hub. Sadly, this important strategic pivot is taking place against a backdrop of rising nationalist sentiment and economic frustration, neither of which bode well for attracting world-class researchers.

You want scientists to come to the country but you slash the money in to train them in PhD programs while starting a generic fund to push SCIENCE. Sounds like a typical day in Nagata-cho.

Japan's opposition Sanseito party has informed news organizations that preregistration is required for attendance at regular press conferences by its leader, fueling concern that it is undermining freedom of the press and the public's right to know.

Looks like they got a copy of the fascist playbook from their meeting with AfD, but implemented with a very 21st century twist: "Admission is only possible after checking a box to indicate agreement with the party's stated terms and conditions."

The Mobile Software Competition Act is expected to come into force by December 2025. With Japan joining the EU and UK, there are now three jurisdictions where Apple will be required to permit browsers to run their own engines. As Japan prepares for enforcement, it is likely studying the regulatory approaches and challenges already unfolding in Europe and the UK.

As the EU and UK have already shown (UK MIR, CMA SMS case, EU DMA enforcement), enforcement will be a long and difficult process.

Now that Japan, the EU, and the UK all require Apple to support third-party browser engines, 2026 may become the decisive year in restoring browser competition on iOS. But much depends on regulators’ resolve, and on Apple’s willingness to comply in substance, not just form.

First person to port IE6 to iOS gets a free case of Mountain Dew Code Red on me.

Japan's central government has yet to adopt a comprehensive national immigration policy despite a rise in foreign workers, leaving government agencies and local governments to handle issues individually, often in a haphazard manner.

The local governments want unified guidance at the national level but Tokyo is dropping the ball. There would be so much benefit and cost savings to centralize this kind of support but no political will to implement. Just another Thursday in Japan.

“(Trump) is not a normal person. He’s someone who changes the rules,” Ishiba said in response to demands in parliament by opposition parties that the government draft a formal document to put in writing the recent trade deal Japan sealed with the U.S. that lowers onerous tariffs.

Credit where credit is due: this needs to be said out loud in more parliaments around the world.

Sanseito leader Sohei Kamiya met with Tino Chrupalla, coleader of the hard-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany party, at the Diet on Tuesday to exchange views on policies toward foreign nationals and other issues.

During the talks, Kamiya explained his policy of “imposing restrictions” on the entry of foreigners. Chrupalla reportedly responded, “I want you to see the German cities where the number of immigrants has increased too much.”

We already knew this is the kind of society these people in Sanseito wanted but might as well scream it from the rooftops with this AfD meeting.

Seiji Maehara, the opposition Japan Innovation Party's co-leader, said Tuesday he will step down to take responsibility for the party's poor national showing in July's House of Councillors election.

The party campaigned to reduce the social security burden in greying Japan, but failed to expand its support beyond its heartlands in the country's western Kansai region. A vote for Maehara's replacement will be held Friday, the party said.

A leader steps down over a poor result. Imagine that.

Japan will seek to establish international rules for the removal of human-made objects in space that could pose collision risks to satellites and the International Space Station if left in orbit, according to officials.

By the end of March, the Cabinet Office, in cooperation with experts, aims to identify legal and procedural issues involved in clearing space debris, such as fragments of rockets and satellites.

The government aims to use input from an expert panel to lead global discussions on rules for disposing of space debris, timed to coincide with a 2026 meeting of the U.N. Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the officials said.

All power to them but if we can't agree on cleaning up the debris and pollution on the Earth's surface then there is no chance to reach some kind of consensus for the junk flying above our heads, out of sight.

The Kyoto Prefecture city of Kyotango on July 31 called for confirmation of the facts surrounding a joint Japan-U.S. military exercise that went ahead at a U.S. base in the city without prior notification to local officials.

One resident near the communications site expressed their concerns, stating, "The most serious issue is that the joint Japan-U.S. exercise was conducted on the front lines without (Japanese) defense authorities being informed. This is a grave situation. Conducting drills without defense authorities' knowledge is unacceptable under civilian control. I want the facts to be thoroughly investigated and publicly released."

While the local civilian government should have definitely been notified about such an exercise, I can't help but smile at the mainland Japanese getting a taste of what Okinawa has had to endure for almost a century of de jure and de facto US rule.