1. Allowance: The amounts listed below shall be paid depending on the course enrolled in. Due to the situation of the Japanese Government’s budget, the amount of payment may be subject to change each fiscal year. The scholarship shall be cancelled if a grantee is absent from the university for an extended period.

• Students receiving preparatory education and non-regular students: 143,000 yen per month
• Regular students enrolled in master’s courses or degree courses in professional graduate schools: 144,000 yen per month
• Regular students enrolled in doctoral courses: 145,000 yen per month.
• *A supplemental regional allowance of 2,000 or 3,000 yen per month will be added to the monthly scholarship amount for the grantees studying or conducting research in specially designated regions.

2. Education fees: Fees for the entrance examination, matriculation, and tuition at universities will be paid by MEXT. The entrance examination fee will not be paid by MEXT if the grantees cannot proceed to the master’s or doctoral course or cannot be admitted by the university.

3. Traveling Expenses 

Transportation to Japan: In principle, MEXT stipulates the travel schedule and route, and provides an economy-class airline ticket for the flight from the international airport closest to the grantee’s residence (in principle, the country of nationality) to Narita International Airport or to any other international airport used on the normal route to the accepting university. The grantee shall bear at his/her own expense all costs related to domestic travel from the grantee’s residence to the nearest international airport, airport taxes, airport usage fees, special taxes necessary for travel, travel expenses within Japan (including airline transit costs), travel insurance expenses, carry-on luggage or unaccompanied baggage expenses, etc. The grantee shall also bear at his/her own expense travel and lodging costs incurred in a third country if the grantee must travel to a third country before coming to Japan for visa purposes because there are no Japanese diplomatic missions in his/her country, or if there are no direct flights from the grantee’s country of residence to Japan. MEXT will provide an economy-class airline ticket from the grantee’s country of residence to the said third country, and from the third country to Narita International Airport or to any other international airport used on the normal route to the accepting university. In principle, the address given in the space for “Residence before arrival in Japan” on the application form shall be recognized as the “residence,” and the airplane ticket will be arranged for a flight from the international airport nearest to that address. Except for cases when the grantee must travel to a third country to obtain a visa, MEXT will not provide an airline ticket for cases of travel to Japan from a country other than the grantee’s country of residence due to the grantee’s personal circumstances.

Transportation from Japan: Based on the Application by the grantee, MEXT will provide an airline ticket to, grantees graduating the accepting university and returning to the home country by the end of the final month of the period of scholarship (Section 4 above) designated by MEXT. MEXT, in principle, shall provide an economy-class airline ticket from Narita International Airport or the international airport used for the normal route to and from the accepting university to the international airport (in principle, in the country of nationality) nearest to the returning grantee’s residence. The grantee shall bear at his/her own expense all costs related to travel from the grantee’s residence in Japan to the nearest international airport, airport taxes, airport usage fees, special taxes necessary for travel, travel expenses within the country of nationality (including airline transit costs), travel insurance expenses, carry-on luggage or unaccompanied baggage expenses, etc. 

MEXT accepts applications from international students for study in Japan who satisfy the following qualifications and conditions. Our aim is to foster human resources who will become bridges of friendship between the grantee’s country and Japan through study in Japan and who will contribute to the development of both countries and the wider world.

1. Nationality: Applicants must have the nationality of a country that has diplomatic relations with Japan. An applicant who has Japanese nationality at the time of application is not eligible. However, persons with dual nationality who hold Japanese nationality and whose place of residence at the time of application is outside of Japan are eligible to apply as long as they choose the nationality of the other country and renounce their Japanese nationality by the date of their arrival in Japan. The First Screening must be conducted at the Japanese diplomatic mission in the country of which the applicant chooses the nationality.

2. Age: Applicants, in principle, must have been born on or after April 2, 1984. Exceptions are limited to cases in which MEXT deems that the applicant could not apply within the eligible age limit due to the situation or circumstances of the applicant’s country (military service obligation, loss of educational opportunities due to disturbances of war, etc.) Personal circumstances (financial situation, family circumstances, state of health, circumstances related to applicant’s university or place of employment, etc.) will not be considered for exceptions.

3. Academic Background: Eligible applicants satisfy the qualification requirements for admission to a master’s degree course or a doctoral degree course at a Japanese graduate school. (Includes applicants who are certainly expected to satisfy the requirements by the time of enrollment.) 

4. Japanese Language Ability: Applicants must be willing to learn Japanese. Applicants must be interested in Japan and be willing to deepen their understanding of Japan after arriving in Japan. Applicants must also have the ability to do research and adapt to living in Japan.

5. Health: Applicants must submit a health certificate in the prescribed format signed by a physician attesting that the applicant has no physical or mental conditions hindering the applicant’s study in Japan.

6. Arrival in Japan: An applicant must choose and fill in in the Application Form either of the arrival periods specified below . In principle, a change in the arrival period is not permitted after the submission of the Application. If the applicant cannot arrive in Japan specified period below for personal reasons, travel expenses to Japan will not be paid. Excluding cases of unavoidable circumstances, the applicant must withdraw from this scholarship program if the applicant cannot arrive in Japan by the end of the designated period.

April term: The arrival date should be, in principle, during the period from 1 April to 7 April, 2019. Departure from the home residence should be on or after 1 April. October term: The arrival date specified by the accepting university during the period within two weeks before the starting date of the relevant academic term (September or October) for that year set by the accepting university.

7. Visa Requirement: An applicant shall, in principle, obtain a “Student” visa at the Japanese diplomatic mission located in the applicant’s country of nationality, and enter Japan with the residence status of “Student.” Accordingly, even if the applicant already has other residence status (“Permanent resident,” “Long-term resident,” etc.), the applicant must change it to the “Student” status and re-enter Japan. Moreover, the applicant should be aware that after expiration of the status as a MEXT Scholarship student and even if the student again applies for their original resident status of “Permanent resident” or “Long-term resident,” the such resident statuses might not be necessarily granted.