TOKYO >> Japan is considering a “quasi-refugee” framework to create a legal basis for supporting people in Japan who have fled conflict zones.

The framework would allow displaced foreign nationals to receive the same treatment as people in Japan with refugee status. The mass exodus of people from Ukraine since Russia’s invasion has highlighted the need for such a framework.

The government aims to submit a bill in the fall that would revise the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law.

The U.N. Refugee Convention defines a refugee as a person unable or unwilling to return to their country of origin because of a “well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.”

Japan’s refugee recognition system operates under an extremely strict interpretation of this definition. People fleeing the conflict in Ukraine would not meet the criteria for receiving refugee status in Japan. Under the government’s proposed framework, foreign nationals whose home nations have become conflict zones and whose lives are at risk would be eligible for quasi-refugee status.

Japan has provided displaced Ukrainians with financial support, but the legal basis for offering such assistance is murky. A quasi-refugee system would expand the scope of support that could legally be provided to people displaced by war, such as long-term residence status that would enable them to stay in Japan for five years, with the possibility of extending the period. They also would be eligible to join the national health insurance system, and receive employment support and welfare benefits, as is the case for people with refugee status.

The government hopes the new framework will ease criticism of Japan’s refugee recognition system, which approves an extremely small number of applicants.