Last autumn Japan reported it would tighten its foreign direct investment (FDI) regulations and lower the threshold for pre-transaction approval for acquisitions by foreign investors of shares in Japanese listed companies from 10% to 1%. The Ministry of Finance (MOF) published the final version of the implementing ordinances on 30 April 2020. The new FDI regulations enter into force on 8 May 2020 and apply to investments which close or complete on or after 7 June 2020. In this briefing, we outline the practical impact on the activities of foreign investors and shareholders in Japanese listed companies and the conditions for relying on exemptions from the pre-transaction approval requirement.

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