"Furusato Nozei" Donations Hit Another Record High in FY 2025

Tokyo, July 31 (Jiji Press)--The total amount of "furusato nozei" donations to local governments across Japan hit a record high for the sixth consecutive year in fiscal 2025, which ended in March, the internal affairs ministry said Friday.

The annual amount rose 4.6 pct from the previous year to 1,331,428 million yen. The number of such donations also hit a record 59,630,027.

Although a new rule was introduced in October 2025 to effectively ban donation portal sites from awarding reward points to users, a ministry official said that the ban did not reduce donations.

The western city of Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture, received the largest amount of donations, at 23,039 million yen, followed by the northern town of Shiranuka, Hokkaido, at 22,329 million yen, and the southwestern city of Miyakonojo, Miyazaki Prefecture, at 21,646 million yen.

Under the furusato nozei system, all but 2,000 yen of a donation is deducted from the donor's residential and income taxes. Such residential tax deductions will total 952,442 million yen in fiscal 2026.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]