Fukuoka Startup Visa — Japan's First Municipal Fast-Track for Foreign Founders

In April 2015 Fukuoka became the first Japanese municipality to operate a 'Startup Visa' under the national Kokka Senryaku Tokku (National Strategic Special Zone) framework, letting foreign founders who have not yet met Japan's capital/staffing thresholds apply with an approved New Business Implementation Plan reviewed by Fukuoka City.

The city's Startup Café office handles applications and ongoing support; approved applicants get a six-month Business Manager visa and up to a year to meet standard criteria at renewal, and qualifying companies can claim a five-year exemption from corporate and municipal corporate tax.

By September 2024 the city had approved 247 foreign entrepreneurs, about 62% in software or digital content, and the municipal incubator Fukuoka Growth Next reports an 82% five-year survival rate among graduate companies, above Japan's roughly 50% national average. However, an independent 2026 analysis found the programme has brought only 612 accompanying technical employees to Fukuoka over five years, against a forecast Kyushu-wide shortfall of roughly 4,800 ICT professionals by 2026.

From late 2025 Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry folded the special-zone waiver into a unified national framework extending validity to up to two years; Fukuoka's Startup Café continues to support foreign founders under the new national rules.