In a significant step toward educational equality, Japan’s parliament (the Diet) has voted to reinstate free public high school education for all children. This new measure, part of the country’s 2025 budget, eliminates the tuition fees that had been reintroduced in 2013 after being initially abolished in 2010.
The move aims to increase access to education, particularly for children from marginalized backgrounds, including those from low-income or immigrant families who have previously struggled with bureaucratic hurdles to secure tuition subsidies. The new system removes income thresholds for subsidies, making public high school education universally free, regardless of household income.
Historically, Japan has subsidized tuition up to ¥118,800 (US$800) annually for students from families earning less than ¥9.1 million (around US$60,000). However, with this policy shift, all students will now benefit from free public high school education, ensuring greater educational equity across the country.
This change was pushed forward by the Japan Innovation Party, whose support was crucial to passing the budget in Japan’s minority government. The reform aligns Japan with global education standards, such as the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which advocates for the progressive availability and accessibility of secondary education for all children.
Despite the positive development, some inequities remain, particularly between public and private schools. Private schools still receive greater financial subsidies to offset the higher costs of private education. Additionally, while Japan has achieved near-universal enrollment in schooling, immigrant children still face challenges in accessing education equally.
This move marks a milestone in Japan’s efforts to meet its international obligations under human rights law and provides a clearer path to universal secondary education. To ensure its long-term security, however, experts recommend that the Diet pass an amendment to Japan’s Fundamental Law on Education, guaranteeing that these advances remain protected from future changes in government.
