About
We're building the data layer for Japan's foreign resident population.
Forin — the Japan Foreign Index — is an independent data platform collecting and publishing structured information on foreign residents in Japan. The data that businesses need and individuals deserve.
The problem
Many foreigners do not feel represented by brands or Companies even after years of living in Japan.
And yet, Japan is at big demographic turning point: native population has is decreasing significantly in recent years, whilst foreigners are growing in presence to supply work force demands.
~4M
Foreign residents in Japan
10.5%
Year-on-year growth in 2024
11M
Projected worker shortage by 2040
900K
Japanese nationals lost in 2024
Our mission
To collect high-quality, structured data on foreign residents in Japan through surveys, public data sources, and other means — and to turn that data into meaningful analysis and insights that are openly accessible.
We combine community-contributed survey data with government statistics to build a picture that neither source can provide alone: the lived experience of Japan's foreign population, measured and verified.
Our vision
A Japan where companies, employers, and institutions are genuinely equipped to serve their foreign residents — because they finally have the data to do so.
HR departments that hire and retain international talent effectively. Real estate platforms that understand what foreign renters actually need. Financial services built for people who weren't born in Japan. Policymakers designing integration programs based on evidence, not assumption. That's where this data leads.
The name
Forin comes from the initials of Foreign Index. It also turns out to be the original Middle English spelling of the word, which we enjoy.
The professional brand is Japan Foreign Index (JFI) — the name we use on reports, data publications, and conversations with businesses. Forin is the community-facing side: the platform, the surveys, the place where data actually lives.
Community brand
Forin
forin.me — the platform, the surveys, the data
Professional brand
Japan Foreign Index
JFI — reports, publications, business clients
Who's behind this
Forin is built by a foreign resident in Tokyo. The project started as a personal problem: the data I wanted when I was making career and life decisions in Japan simply didn't exist in any structured form. Salaries, hiring timelines, whether Japanese ability actually mattered — all of it lived in forum posts and secondhand stories.
The hypothesis is that enough people have this problem that building a real data resource around it is worth doing — and that the data becomes more valuable as it grows. Early responses are useful. Hundreds of responses become a benchmark. Thousands become a reference that researchers, HR teams, and policymakers actually cite.
The project is early. The survey has a handful of responses. But the goal is something rigorous and lasting — not another expat blog.
Help build the dataset
Every response makes the data more meaningful. The survey takes about 5 minutes and is fully anonymous — collected through Google Forms so you know exactly who holds your data.