DESK REVIEW ON POPULATIONS AT RISK OF STATELESSNESS In Article 53 of the ICRRA, “[a]ny person subject to deportation is to be deported to a country of which they are a national or citizen.”232 In the alternative, in Article 53(2), if the person cannot be deported to such a country, then they are to be deported to a country, pursuant to the wishes of the person subject to deportation, such as: • a country in which they had been residing immediately prior to their entry into Japan; • a country in which they once resided before their entry into Japan; • a country containing the port or airport where they boarded the vessel or aircraft departing for Japan; • a country where their place of birth is located; • a country which contained their birthplace at the time of their birth; or • any other country. In the deportation procedure, the country of destination must be determined, but there does not appear to be any internal guideline providing criteria for determining statelessness. Under Article 26 of the ICRRA, the Minister of Justice may grant “a re-entry permit to a Foreign National… residing in Japan who is to depart from Japan with the intention of reentering Japan prior to the date of expiration of their Period of Stay… [including] …multiple re-entry permission.” Article 26 allows the same permission to be granted “if the Foreign National does not have their Passport in their possession and is unable to acquire one for reason of being without nationality or for any other reason.” This provision makes it possible to issue a passport booklet-style re-entry permit to a person who does not have a passport due to statelessness. The Immigration Bureau requires foreign individuals to claim their nationality in various procedures, such as acquiring a residence permit, extending a period of stay, and changing a status of residence. The foreigner residence card issued to mid- to long-term residents shows the country of nationality or the region of the individual. As noted above, what is listed here cannot be said to be the result of a consistent and conclusive determination. For example, even within the Immigration Bureau, the sections responsible for entry and residence are different from those responsible for deportation procedures, and they may come to different conclusions on the same case. The typologies study finds that, “there seems to be no unified criteria for the determination of statelessness across various procedures where the Immigration Bureau determines the nationality of individuals concerned.”233 The same study cites the Japan: Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act of 1951 as Amended in 2014 [Japan], Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951, Article 53, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6b5754.html. 232 UNHCR, Typology of Stateless Persons in Japan, December 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/ docid/5bb618b74.html. 233 76 UNHCR / April 2021