Foreigners living in Japan hit record high

Tokyo, March 11: Foreigners living in Japan hit a record high last year with a total of over two million, official date revealed on Friday.

The justice ministry's Immigration Bureau said about 2.23 million foreign nationals were living in Japan as of December 31, 2015, which was up about 110,000 from the previous year and the most since date collection began in 1959, public broadcaster NHK reported.

Those from China made up the largest group, at over 660,000, followed by South Korea with about 450,000 and the Philippines at nearly 230,000.

More than 62,000 people had over-stayed their visas as of January 1, up about 2,800 from last year.

IANS