A Survey of Japanese Attitudes and Actions Regarding Refugees

A photograph depicts Congolese children awaiting food rations at a refugee camp in southern Burundi.

An international survey revealed that Japanese citizens hold a more negative perception of refugees compared to citizens in other nations. The survey also indicated that Japanese individuals have contributed the least in personal efforts to assist those who have been displaced from their homelands.

The survey, conducted by Ipsos, a market research company based in Paris, involved 23,000 participants from 29 countries. The results were released on World Refugee Day. One question assessed agreement with the statement, "Most refugees who come to my country will successfully integrate into their new society." The global average agreement rate was 40 percent, while Japan's rate was the lowest at 17 percent.

Regarding the statement, "Refugees make a positive contribution to my country," only 20 percent of Japanese respondents agreed, the second-lowest percentage after Hungary. Furthermore, the survey showed that 62 percent of respondents globally agreed that wealthier nations have a moral obligation to provide financial support to refugees. Japan had the lowest agreement rate for this statement, at 43 percent.

The survey also inquired about actions taken to help refugees in the past year, such as donations or volunteering. Japan had the highest rate of "nothing," at 92 percent, followed by Hungary and South Korea. Despite these findings, responses to statements expressing strong opposition to refugees showed that Japanese citizens do not necessarily reject the idea of accepting them. The percentage of Japanese agreeing with statements like "We must close our borders to refugees entirely" and "Most foreigners who want to get into my country as a refugee really aren’t refugees" was below the global average.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), there were 42.7 million refugees worldwide as of the end of 2024.