Japan plans to boost financial support to households to move away from the capital to combat depopulation in other areas of the country, according to Japanese media.
The Japanese government is set to offer families relocating from the Tokyo metropolitan area up to 1 million yen ($7,500) per child, up from 300,000 yen, as part of efforts to reduce population concentration in the Japanese capital.
The increase of up to 700,000 yen per child as a fresh incentive will come on top of the maximum 3 million yen in base financial support already given to relocating families.
Half of the cash will come from the central government, and the other half from local municipalities, Kyodo news said.
The new rule is expected to be implemented in April 2023. The government is hoping 10,000 people will have moved from Tokyo to rural areas by 2027.
Child support will be provided to eligible families if a child is under 18, or if a child is 18 but in the final year of high school. The incentive reflects the government’s intention to encourage families with school-age or preschool children to relocate to regional areas.
Additionally, if an eligible couple with two children under 18 move and start a business in their new area of residence, they would receive up to 5 million yen in financial support.
The Japanese government began the initiative to attract people to regional areas in 2019, allowing households who have lived in the central Tokyo metropolitan area for five years to apply for support funds if they move.
At least 2,381 people moved out of the metropolitan area using financial support during fiscal 2021, the Kyodo news agency reported.