Taipei: Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) warned Tuesday of rising numbers of Taiwanese nationals being lured into shady part-time jobs in Japan and urged people not to fall for the illicit schemes. Lin Yu-hui, deputy head of the Taiwan-Japan Relations Association under the foreign ministry, said Taiwan’s representative office has found a growing number of nationals engaging in the shady gigs that support criminal activity, known as “yami baito,” based on arrest records.

According to Focus Taiwan, fifty Taiwanese have been arrested in Japan for doing the illicit jobs so far this year, marking a significant increase from the four and five arrested in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Many individuals are drawn to Japan by social media posts promising free travel and easy money, only to find themselves working for telecommunication fraud rings as money mules, Lin explained during a MOFA weekly briefing.

She suggested that perceptions of Japan contributed to the rise in arrests this year. While most Taiwanese are now more aware of fraud rings in Southeast Asian countries, they may not recognize similar risks in Japan. Lin urged Taiwanese citizens to avoid such schemes and seek part-time employment in Japan only through official channels.

The term “yami baito” refers to the recruitment of individuals without prior criminal records for illicit activities in Japan, often under the pretense of high pay and easy work. The Japanese police have cautioned that recruits are coerced into providing personal information and rarely receive payment.

Although it is challenging to determine the full extent of the issue due to the absence of official figures, Japan’s National Police Agency reported arresting 2,373 people for participating in such activities in 2023. However, the agency did not specify how many of those arrested were foreign nationals.