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Housing and living

Japan Housing Safety Net: registered housing for foreign residents

Foreign nationals are included in the group of people requiring housing consideration. Foreign residents must still find registered housing whose accepted group includes foreign residents. After finding a listing, read that dwelling's registration details and check the local authority's subsidy information separately.

住宅セーフティネット制度

Region
Available across Japan, while registered housing and local subsidy implementation vary.
Responsible body
MLIT (system information) / registered landlord (dwelling application) / local authority (confirmation of subsidy implementation and details)
Last reviewed
2026-08-29
About this article
Independent private site

The accepted groups, acceptance range and acceptance conditions are registered per dwelling. Housing details list information about a joint guarantor and enrollment in a rent guarantee. Check the registered housing details and apply to the landlord. Registration does not guarantee tenancy, rent reduction or subsidy eligibility. Read the dwelling registration and local subsidy notice as separate, current sources.

Who it is for

  • Foreign nationals belong to the housing consideration group, but they must check each registered dwelling for acceptance of foreign residents.
  • Rent reduction applies to Safety Net exclusive dwellings or residential-support dwellings. Monthly household income must be up to JPY 158,000 ordinarily, up to JPY 214,000 for child-rearing and newlywed households, and up to JPY 259,000 for multi-child households.
  • Rent guarantee-fee and related reduction applies to registered Safety Net housing or residential-support dwellings. Monthly household income must be up to JPY 158,000 ordinarily, up to JPY 214,000 for child-rearing and newlywed households, and up to JPY 259,000 for multi-child households.
  • Relocation assistance can cover registered housing, Safety Net exclusive dwellings or residential-support dwellings. All branches use monthly household income ceilings: ordinarily up to JPY 158,000, up to JPY 214,000 for child-rearing and newlywed households, and up to JPY 259,000 for multi-child households. The low-rent branch ordinarily requires rent to decrease, except for child-rearing, newlywed and multi-child households. Disaster branch A is limited to moving from a landslide disaster special warning zone or a disaster hazard zone where building is prohibited. Disaster branch B is limited to a disaster victim moving from a disaster hazard zone or flood damage prevention zone in an area carrying out a basin flood-control recovery project that does not assume restoration to the original condition.
  • Assistance varies by route, household, dwelling and local-authority implementation.

Points to note

  • Foreign status or registration alone does not establish tenancy or subsidy eligibility.
  • The three routes do not share one dwelling boundary and must be checked separately.

Conditions and availability vary by route, household, dwelling and local-authority implementation. There is no fixed nationwide resident-facing amount and no fixed nationwide application deadline. The amended Act took effect on 2025-10-01, but that does not automatically mean local implementation and does not automatically mean individual subsidy eligibility.

How it works

  1. Check MLIT's official pages for system information.
  2. Check the housing details and submit the dwelling application to the registered landlord.
  3. Confirm subsidy implementation and details with the local authority. Subsidy confirmation and the dwelling application are separate procedures.

Frequently asked questions

Can a foreign resident apply for every registered home?

Find a dwelling that lists foreign residents among its accepted groups, check its details, and apply to its landlord.

Is the dwelling application also the subsidy confirmation?

No. Apply to the landlord for the dwelling and confirm subsidy implementation and details with the local authority as a separate procedure.

Related programs

Housing and livingNationwide (municipal self-reliance consultation support organizations, etc.)

Housing Security Benefit in Japan: rent support and foreign residents

The Housing Security Benefit (住居確保給付金) supports rent for the household's main livelihood supporter who is in financial hardship and has lost housing or is at risk of losing it. It covers people who left a job or closed a business, and people whose work opportunities fell through neither their own fault nor their own choice and whose employment situation became equivalent to job separation or business closure. Foreign residents may qualify, but they must meet the applicable household-income, financial-asset and job-search requirements.

Last reviewed
2026-08-29
Housing and livingAvailable across Japan, but each prefecture-designated corporation has its own actual service area and scope.

Find a housing support corporation by service area in Japan

A housing support corporation is an organization designated by a prefectural governor to help people requiring housing consideration enter private rental housing more smoothly. Under Japan's Housing Safety Net system, foreign nationals are included among people requiring housing consideration, but the people actually served, service area, duties and service languages differ by corporation. Foreign residents should use MLIT's Japanese-language list to identify candidates for their area and then confirm the current details directly with each corporation.

Last reviewed
2026-08-29
Housing and livingOsaka Prefecture

Osaka prefectural housing: eligibility for foreign residents

Osaka prefectural housing is public rental housing for households in housing need; it is not a cash rent subsidy. Foreign residents may apply when they fall within a stated residence-status category and meet every common requirement and every requirement for the application category they use. Those requirements include the household's calculated monthly income, based on the income of all intended occupants, and the applicant's residence or employment in Osaka Prefecture. Application is followed by qualification review and the applicable selection process, such as a public lottery, so meeting one condition does not guarantee housing.

Last reviewed
2026-08-28