Japan Financial Services Agency publishes Finance Minister Katayama Q&A on two-year zero consumption tax on food and beverages and Japanese CFIUS legislation

Japan Financial Services Agency published a summary of Finance Minister Katayama’s press conference after an extraordinary Cabinet meeting, setting out the government’s current direction on a temporary consumption tax cut on food and beverages and the parallel development of “tax credits with benefits” aimed at supporting low- and middle-income earners. The minister described plans to reduce the consumption tax rate on food and beverages to zero for exactly two years, citing a scale of JPY 10 trillion, while work proceeds on benefit-linked tax credits that would take time to introduce. He framed the approach as temporary and targeted, and referenced the International Monetary Fund’s Article IV consultation language on avoiding measures that erode fiscal buffers, alongside an intention to secure funding without issuing additional government bonds. The briefing also covered progress on the “Japanese version of CFIUS”, with the minister indicating an intention to submit related legal amendments to the Diet, and discussed Japan–US investment projects involving loans from Japan Bank for International Cooperation and private-sector lending backed by Nippon Export and Investment Insurance. Diet deliberations were described as the immediate forum for refining and advancing the two-year consumption tax measure and the planned tax credit scheme, with the investment-screening bill also intended for submission during the ongoing Diet session. On Moritomo Gakuen-related documents, the minister indicated a decision would be made on 18 February to disclose materials to the bereaved family, with the handover timing to be set based on the family’s wishes.