The purchase of land and apartments by foreigners has become a hot button issue this year, with rising property prices in central Tokyo and land purchases near military sites of strong concern. Japan does not currently have any restrictions about the purchase and ownership of real estate by non-residents, nor does it impose any additional taxes on foreign buyers.
On October 13, it was reported that the national government is launching a factual investigation into regulations applied on foreign buyers by other nations, such as Canada and Germany, with the goal of using the results of this investigation to guide a revision to domestic legislation.