According to a survey, 40% of “special district guesthouses” in Osaka, Japan, are operated by Chinese people. Gao Xue (pseudonym), who runs a guesthouse in Japan, told Dajiyuan that “after the pandemic restrictions were lifted, many people have experienced the strict control policies of the Chinese Communist Party and want to get away from it.”
Professor Yoshimura Yoshihisa of Hannan University’s Tourism Geography Department conducted a study that showed by the end of 2024, there were 5,587 recognized “special district guesthouses” in Osaka, with 41% being operated by Chinese individuals or Chinese companies. Following three years of the pandemic, the number of Chinese individuals applying for residence permits based on “business management” in Osaka has rapidly increased, including those operating guesthouses.
The statistics from the Osaka City Government also indicate that as of the end of last year, there were a total of 5,044 guesthouses regulated under the “Guesthouse Business Law” and 5,587 special district guesthouses regulated under the “National Strategic Zone Regulations.” Since the end of 2020, there has been a growth of 25% and 73%, respectively.
A survey of the 5,587 special district guesthouses revealed that among them, 2,305 establishments (41%) are operated by Chinese individuals, 99 establishments (2%) by other foreign entities, 2,343 by Japanese individuals or companies, and 840 with unidentifiable ownership. The number of guesthouses operated by Chinese individuals has sharply increased since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, with half of them obtaining city government certification since 2022. The number of Chinese individuals residing in Osaka on business and management visas is rapidly growing.
“Special district guesthouses” were introduced by the Japanese government in 2014 to operate within areas designated as national strategic zones, which involve reforms to the regulations of specific regions and industries, loosening restrictions and providing tax incentives. The aim is to create the most favorable business environment, such as in Osaka Prefecture and Ota Ward, Tokyo.
Special district guesthouses provide additional accommodation options in specific areas or tourist attractions to alleviate the shortage caused by an increase in foreign visitors to Japan. According to the “Accommodation Business Law,” private guesthouses are limited to operating 180 days per year, but special zone guesthouses have no such restrictions.
Osaka, as the second largest city in Japan, has seen a doubling of the Chinese population residing in the city over the past ten years, especially in the Naniwa and Nishinari wards of Osaka. The areas have seen a growing number of Chinese residents owning standalone houses. These wards are directly accessible to Kansai International Airport, facilitating travel between China and Japan, coupled with the sluggish Chinese economy and the devaluation of the Japanese yen. Apart from those who reside in Japan with permanent residency and purchase properties, there has been a recent trend of wealthy Chinese individuals settling in Japan and acquiring real estate, some relocating with business management visas.
The Osaka Chinese School is located in the Naniwa Ward, offering kindergarten, elementary, and middle school education, with many overseas Chinese children studying there. The residential prices in this district are comparatively lower, and in certain developed areas, the Chinese population accounts for up to 90% of residents. As of the end of September last year, the total number of Chinese residents in these two wards reached 8,343. The number in the Nishinari Ward has reached about 1.6 times the figure from five years ago.
According to the Resident Basic Register population data, as of September 2014, there were over 26,000 Chinese residents living in Osaka, which surged to nearly 50,000 by September 2024, almost doubling in the span of a decade.