— Latest update: June 2024 —

The combined endeveours of the Japanese government and local municipalities, private sector and flourishing start-up cities have resulted in the facilitation of creating start-ups in Japan and, subsequently, made Japan an appealing site to start a (foreign) start-up/business. The several policies and support programs provided by the government which are also aimed for non-Japanese businesses, the assistance of angel investors and crowdfunding and the openness of major corporations to support the start-up market, create increasing opportunities for European start-ups to flourish in the Japan market.

As Japan desires to continue and improve innovation in a variety of sectors, European start-ups and SMEs specialized in deep tech sectors or which work with (the latest) cutting-edge technologies, are particularly appealing and have high chances to (start the process to) launch their businesses in Japan. While Japan might have been a difficult place to establish a foreign business in the past, recent developments in the enhancement of Japan’s start-up environment have made Japan a noticeable player in the Asian and global start-up market who can no longer be ignored.

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Table of Contents

• Overview
• Establishment of a foreign start-up in Japan
  • Program to Increase Foreign Entrepreneurs
  • Foreign Entrepreneurship Activity Management Support Plans
  • Start-up Visa
• Funding of start-ups in Japan
  • Angel investors and entrepreneurship
  • Venture Capital
  • Crowdfunding
• Support systems for start-up development on a national and regional level
• Expert Reports & webinars
• Annual reports
• Further Reading
• Relevant Organisations