The Japanese government will give families up to 1 million yen ($7,670) per child if they opt to move out of Tokyo, according to multiple media reports.

The government was already offering 300,000 yen per child for families relocating to other parts of the country, Kyodo news reported.  According to Kyodo news, the increase of up to 700,000 yen per child as a fresh incentive will come on top of the maximum 3 million yen in base financial support already given to relocating families. The new rule will be implemented in the fiscal year starting next April.

Residents of the 23 wards of Tokyo that make up the core metropolitan area as well as those who commute there from surrounding areas, including Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures, are eligible for the relocation support.

About 1,300 municipalities – roughly 80% of the total – have joined the scheme, hoping to capitalize in a shift in public attitudes towards quality of life that gained momentum during the pandemic, when more workers discovered the benefits of working remotely.

Half of the cash will come from the central government, and the other half from local municipalities, Kyodo said. The scheme has struggled to capture the public imagination since it was launched three years go, with support provided to 1,184 families in 2021 – the year teleworking became more common – compared with 71 in 2019 and 290 in 2020, the Nikkei business newspaper said.

The government is hoping 10,000 people will have moved from Tokyo to rural areas by 2027, it added.

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