Japan scraps two-month deportation notice to lawyers, citing missing foreigners, as bar association decries move and defends right to trial.

TOKYO: The Japanese government has terminated a long-standing practice of notifying lawyers about their foreign clients’ deportations two months in advance.

The Immigration Services Agency ended the system on February 1, citing cases where foreigners disappeared after their lawyers were notified.

Introduced in 2010 via an agreement with the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, the system aimed to help lawyers prepare legal defences for clients facing forced removal.

The agency reported 249 cases of forced deportation with escorts in 2024, with the Tokyo bureau issuing about 50 advance notices in 2025 alone.

However, officials noted at least seven individuals have gone missing temporarily since 2019 following such notifications.

Protests coinciding with planned repatriations have also disrupted the agency’s operations, leading to the policy shift.

The bar federation protested the move, arguing it violates foreigners’ right to seek a trial to contest deportation orders.

Discussions held in July 2025 failed to resolve the dispute, with the agency informing the association of its decision in January.

The agency stated it will continue informing individuals directly, deferring deportation for one month after the final decision to allow for lawsuits.

This ensures the abolition of lawyer notifications does not violate the right to a trial, according to the agency.

In a late January statement, the bar federation criticised the move as a “unilateral measure lacking fact-based examination and sincere consultations.”

It argued simply informing foreign nationals does not specify the exact deportation timing and provides too short a grace period for seeking judicial relief.

The policy change is part of a broader government effort to tighten measures on foreigners residing illegally.

The agency plans to double the number of deportations conducted with escort officials from 2024 levels by 2027.

 The Sun Malaysia