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Country profile

Norwegian nationals in Japan

Total residents (2025)
659
Total Population of Norway: ~5.5 million
Growth (past 10 years)
+52.2%
433 in 2015 → 659 in 2025

Top visa types (2025)

Student
197
Permanent resident
103
Engineer / Humanities
88
Spouse of Japanese
78
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The Average Norwegian Migrant

Male profile

The average Norwegian male in Japan is a student in his early twenties, living in Tokyo.

Modal age20–24
Top visaStudent (28.4%)
2nd visaPermanent resident (17.2%)
Population436 (66.2%)
Female profile

The average Norwegian female in Japan is a student in her early twenties, living in Tokyo.

Modal age20–24
Top visaStudent (32.7%)
2nd visaPermanent resident (12.6%)
Population223 (33.8%)

Population over time

Total Norwegian residents

Annual figures, 2006–2025 — hover the line for details
020040060080020062010201520202025
0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2024
Permanent resident Engineer / Humanities Spouse of Japanese Instructor Student Others

Visa Types

What do these visa types mean? →

Status of residence (2025)

Current snapshot
0 50 100 150 200 Student Student: 197 197 Permanent resident Permanent resident: 103 103 Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services: 88 88 Spouse of Japanese Spouse of Japanese: 78 78 Designated activities Designated activities: 75 75 Family stay / Dependent Family stay / Dependent: 44 44 Religion Religion: 19 19 Business manager Business manager: 9 9 Professor Professor: 9 9 High-skilled professional High-skilled professional: 6 6 Entertainer Entertainer: 6 6 Instructor Instructor: 5 5
0 50 100 150 200 Student Student 2015: 167 Student 2025: 197 167 197 (2025) Permanent resident Permanent resident 2015: 76 Permanent resident 2025: 103 76 103 (2025) Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services 2015: 35 Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services 2025: 88 35 88 (2025) Spouse of Japanese Spouse of Japanese 2015: 47 Spouse of Japanese 2025: 78 47 78 (2025) Designated activities Designated activities 2015: 23 Designated activities 2025: 75 23 75 (2025) Family stay / Dependent Family stay / Dependent 2015: 25 Family stay / Dependent 2025: 44 25 44 (2025) Religion Religion 2015: 16 Religion 2025: 19 16 19 (2025) Business manager Business manager 2015: 4 Business manager 2025: 9 4 9 (2025) Professor Professor 2015: 5 Professor 2025: 9 5 9 (2025) High-skilled professional High-skilled professional 2015: 0 High-skilled professional 2025: 6 0 6 (2025)
Where Norway is heavier than rest of world Where Norway is lighter (or absent) Student Norwegian: 29.9% 29.9% Rest of world: 11.3% 11.3% Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services Norwegian: 13.4% 13.4% Rest of world: 11.5% 11.5% Spouse of Japanese Norwegian: 11.8% 11.8% Rest of world: 3.7% 3.7% Designated activities Norwegian: 11.4% 11.4% Rest of world: 3.0% 3.0% Religion Norwegian: 2.9% 2.9% Rest of world: 0.1% 0.1% Business manager Norwegian: 1.4% 1.4% Rest of world: 1.1% 1.1% Professor Norwegian: 1.4% 1.4% Rest of world: 0.2% 0.2% High-skilled professional Norwegian: 0.9% 0.9% Rest of world: 0.8% 0.8% Entertainer Norwegian: 0.9% 0.9% Rest of world: 0.1% 0.1% Instructor Norwegian: 0.8% 0.8% Rest of world: 0.4% 0.4% Artist Norwegian: 0.5% 0.5% Rest of world: 0.0% 0.0% Cultural activities Norwegian: 0.5% 0.5% Rest of world: 0.1% 0.1% Journalist Norwegian: 0.2% 0.2% Rest of world: 0.0% 0.0% Specified Skilled Worker Norwegian: 0.2% 0.2% Rest of world: 9.5% 9.5% Permanent resident Norwegian: 15.6% 15.6% Rest of world: 23.0% 23.0% Long-term resident Norwegian: 0.6% 0.6% Rest of world: 5.5% 5.5% Family stay / Dependent Norwegian: 6.7% 6.7% Rest of world: 8.6% 8.6% Spouse of PR Norwegian: 0.5% 0.5% Rest of world: 1.4% 1.4% Skilled labour Norwegian: 0.5% 0.5% Rest of world: 1.3% 1.3% Intra-company transferee Norwegian: 0.3% 0.3% Rest of world: 0.5% 0.5%

Demographics

Age distribution

All Norwegian residents — five-year age brackets, December 2025
0 50 100 150 0–4: 16 16 0–4 5–9: 11 11 5–9 10–14: 10 10 10–14 15–19: 26 26 15–19 20–24: 142 142 20–24 25–29: 125 125 25–29 30–34: 109 109 30–34 35–39: 65 65 35–39 40–44: 37 37 40–44 45–49: 30 30 45–49 50–54: 22 22 50–54 55–59: 13 13 55–59 60–64: 9 9 60–64 65–69: 8 8 65–69 70–74: 8 8 70–74 75–79: 13 13 75–79 80+: 15 15 80+
MALE 男性 FEMALE 女性 0–4 6 10 5–9 5 6 10–14 5 5 15–19 17 9 20–24 87 55 25–29 83 42 30–34 75 34 35–39 44 21 40–44 29 8 45–49 24 6 50–54 19 3 55–59 12 1 60–64 5 4 65–69 3 5 70–74 6 2 75–79 7 6 80+ 9 6

Gender split

December 2025
Male: 436 (66.2%) Female: 223 (33.8%) 659 total
Male
436 (66.2%)
Female
223 (33.8%)

The Norwegian community (659 people, 66% male) is student-led (30%) with permanent residents (16%) and professionals (13%) following.

Student: 73 (32.7%) Permanent resident: 28 (12.6%) Designated activities: 28 (12.6%) Family stay / Dependent: 27 (12.1%) Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services: 24 (10.8%) Spouse of Japanese: 18 (8.1%) Religion: 9 (4.0%) Professor: 4 (1.8%) Instructor: 3 (1.3%) Cultural activities: 2 (0.9%) Long-term resident: 1 (0.4%) Journalist: 1 (0.4%) Spouse of PR: 1 (0.4%) Other: 4 (1.8%) Total female 223
223 female Norwegian residents — by status of residence
Student73
Permanent resident28
Designated activities28
Family stay / Dependent27
Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services24
Spouse of Japanese18
Religion9
Professor4
Instructor3
Cultural activities2
Long-term resident1
Journalist1
Spouse of PR1
Other4
Student: 124 (28.4%) Permanent resident: 75 (17.2%) Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services: 64 (14.7%) Spouse of Japanese: 60 (13.8%) Designated activities: 47 (10.8%) Family stay / Dependent: 17 (3.9%) Religion: 10 (2.3%) Business manager: 9 (2.1%) High-skilled professional: 5 (1.1%) Professor: 5 (1.1%) Entertainer: 5 (1.1%) Long-term resident: 3 (0.7%) Skilled labour: 3 (0.7%) Other: 9 (2.1%) Total male 436
436 male Norwegian residents — by status of residence
Student124
Permanent resident75
Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services64
Spouse of Japanese60
Designated activities47
Family stay / Dependent17
Religion10
Business manager9
High-skilled professional5
Professor5
Entertainer5
Long-term resident3
Skilled labour3
Other9
0 200 400 600 2010 2015 2020 2025 Female 223 Male 436

Where they live (2025)

By region — heat map

Hover or tap a region to see its breakdown.
Hokkaido Hokkaido 723 723 Tohoku Tohoku 518 518 Kanto Kanto 2,621 2,621 Chubu Chubu 1,926 1,926 Kansai Kansai 3,189 3,189 Chugoku Chugoku 487 487 Shikoku Shikoku 245 245 Kyushu Kyushu 1,158 1,158
Fewer
More
Selected region
Kanto
11,830
57.6% of Japan total
Top Visa Categories
Prefectures
Tokyo
7,596
Kanagawa
1,948
Chiba
1,018
Saitama
763
Ibaraki
231
Tochigi
138
Gunma
136

Highest and Lowest Prefectures

2025 Resident Counts
Top 10
Tokyo
Kanto
237
Kanagawa
Kanto
73
Hyogo
Kansai
61
Kyoto
Kansai
39
Aichi
Chubu
38
Osaka
Kansai
34
Saitama
Kanto
23
Chiba
Kanto
20
Hokkaido
Hokkaido
20
Fukuoka
Kyushu
16
Bottom 10
Gunma
Kanto
1
Hiroshima
Chugoku
1
Shimane
Chugoku
1
Yamanashi
Chubu
1
Fukui
Chubu
1
Tokushima
Shikoku
1
Miyazaki
Kyushu
1
Aomori
Tohoku
1
Mie
Kansai
1
Fukushima
Tohoku
1

Prefecture Growth, 2015 to 2025

Absolute change in Norwegian residents over the past decade
Largest increase
Tokyo
Kanto
+90
Kanagawa
Kanto
+38
Kyoto
Kansai
+20
Aichi
Chubu
+18
Hokkaido
Hokkaido
+18
Largest decrease
Chiba
Kanto
-15
Nagasaki
Kyushu
-13
Yamanashi
Chubu
-4
Oita
Kyushu
-3
Mie
Kansai
-2
0 100 200 300 2010 2015 2020 2025 Tokyo Kanagawa Hyogo Kyoto Aichi Osaka Saitama Chiba

Fun Fact

Norway and Japan share a seafood bond — the salmon in Japanese sushi was a Norwegian marketing invention of the 1980s ('Project Japan'). The human exchange is smaller: 659 people, growing steadily.
Interested to know more about migration numbers in Japan?
Explore Overview →Immigration statistics for the whole of Japan — 4.13 million foreign residentsAll Nationalities/Regions →This page is one of 67 — explore every major community in Japan
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