ATTENTION: Refugees/asylum applicants can NOT receive any livelihood/housing assistance by calling or visiting us at the JELA Foundation’s office. (So don’t waste money on phone calls or transportation.)
- If you are a first-time asylum applicant in Japan and have financial/housing needs, you should first contact the Refugee Assistance Headquarters (RHQ).
- We also strongly recommend consulting the Japan Association for Refugees (JAR), a UNHCR Japan partner.
IMPORTANT MESSAGE
for those who are considering traveling to Japan to apply for refugee status
JELA’s Refugee Support offers two types of assistance to refugees and asylum seekers currently residing in Japan: housing and scholarships.
Overview
The JELA Foundation supports people who have fled persecution and violence in their countries of origin and come to Japan seeking protection.
JELA’s Refugee Support Program began in 1984 in response to the request by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
As support continued, JELA recognized that refugee applicants needed housing where they could live without worrying about financial burden. As a result, JELA has been developing support activities focusing on providing housing since 1991.
Currently, JELA Foundation owns and operates two shelters, both referred to as “JELA House” in Tokyo, and are mainly used by refugee applicants who have high needs in terms of living and health.
In addition, a major pillar of the Refugee Support Program is to provide tuition until graduation to refugees who have not received sufficient higher education in their countries of origin, and to those who have passed entrance exams for Japanese universities and graduate schools but cannot afford the tuition.
Refugee Shelter “JELA House”
The two JELA Houses have secured enough space where up to 17 people can live independently. Each room is equipped with daily necessities such as a kitchen, refrigerator, washing machine, and futon, so individuals can start living without any problems from the day they move in.
The rooms are provided free of charge, including water and utility bills until residents are economically sound or public support for housing is available.
The residents are primarily asylum seekers facing economic hardship, and their residency is determined based on their needs, with referrals from organizations such as UNHCR, the Refugee Affairs Headquarters, and NGOs.
Scholarships for refugees
JELA currently offers two scholarship programs for refugees. Please refer to the following web pages for details: (The pages are only available in Japanese. You can machine-translate them into English using the dropdown menu under the main heading.)
- Refugee Vocational Education Programme (RVEP)
The RVEP scholarship is offered to people who wish to go to vocational schools and are officially recognized as refugees. This scholarship process is carried out in collaboration with the UNHCR Office in Japan and the Wesley Foundation. - JELA Philoxenia Scholarship
The Philoxenia Scholarship is offered to refugees and refugee applicants who wish to pursue higher education such as universities. JELA will support up to 1.2 million yen in tuition and related fees per person per year for up to 4 years.
Partnership with other organizations
As part of supporting refugees, JELA Foundation participates in the Forum for Refugees Japan (FRJ), a network of more than a dozen major refugee support NGOs in Japan, cooperating and developing activities for refugees. In addition, JELA hosts Lutheran Refugee Cooperation meetings three times a year, and invite officials from the Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs involved in refugee administration, UNHCR, and refugee support NGOs to exchange information on an informal basis, with the goal of protecting refugees.