appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

SCMP’s Asia desk

A Japanese prefecture is paying its singles to use dating apps as the country grapples with record-low birth rates.
Kochi prefecture announced on April 10 that it would subsidise private matchmaking app fees for its young residents, according to a Sankei News report.
Residents aged between 20 and 39 will get a subsidy of up to 20,000 yen (US$125) for the 2026 financial year to use apps that have received “internet-based marriage partner introduction service certification”.
One of these verified apps is believed to be Tapple, Japan’s most popular dating app. Last December, Kochi partnered with the app to promote safe and secure online dating.
“The going rate for annual membership fees is a little over 20,000 yen, so we set the amount to cover most of the cost,” a prefectural official told the newspaper.
The users will be surveyed when the year is up to track the effectiveness of the programme and help with future usage.
Other prefectures are also providing similar subsidies. Last year, Miyazaki prefecture gave out dating app subsidies of up to 10,000 yen per person.
The response to Kochi’s announcement was mixed online. Some lauded the initiative while others said that meeting was the easy part.
Critics cited barriers such as economic pressure, long working hours and the high cost of raising children, the International Business Times reported.
Japanese youth are increasingly turning to matchmaking apps to find life partners.
A 2024 survey by Japan’s Children and Families Agency found that one in four married individuals under the age of 39 reported meeting their spouse via dating apps.
The internet was a more common meeting place than the traditional venues of work or school.

Japan has one of the world’s most serious demographic issues.
The problem is especially acute in rural prefectures such as Kochi, whose population of around 650,000 has been declining over the years as young people leave to seek employment and education in larger cities.
Last year, Japan registered a little over 700,000 births, the lowest since record-taking began in 1899, the NHK reported, citing health ministry figures.
The number of births in 2025 was 705,809, down 2.1 per cent from the previous year. It marks the 10th consecutive year of decline.
Marriages, however, went up for the second straight year. There were 505,656 marriages last year, 5,657 more than in 2024.
Ministry officials told the public broadcaster they would continue to tackle the declining birth rate by working to increase young people’s incomes and help them balance work and childcare.


Manga mania: how Japanese comics conquered the world

Trump praises Takaichi for doing ‘tremendous job’ ahead of Xi’s visit to US

Hong Kong on way to securing green fuel supply to safeguard aviation hub status

Taiwan coastguard’s rare missile firing reveals deepening links with navy

Japan

Japanese prefecture pays singles to use dating apps to battle low birth rates

A couple admires the autumn leaves in Japan. Japanese youth are increasingly turning to matchmaking apps to find life partners. Photo: SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

A fishing boat sails away in search of a katsuo (skipjack tuna) fish school, in Tosa Bay, Kochi prefecture, Japan. Kochi’s population has been declining over the years. Photo: Reuters

Japan escapes worst of magnitude 7.7 quake but experts warn of potential bigger one

An electronic signboard  in  Ofunato city, Iwate prefecture, displays a sign saying “Hokkaido and Off the Sanriku Coast Aftershock Advisory” early on Tuesday. Photo: Jiji Press/AFP 

Waves beat against the coastline of Tomakomai, Hokkaido prefecture, after a tsunami advisory was issued following an earthquake on Monday. Photo: Kyodo/Reuters

Commuters are stranded at Sendai station following the interruption of Shinkansen train service on Monday. Photo: Jiji Press/EPA

A fisherman prepares to depart to inspect an oyster farm for earthquake damage in Ofunato, Iwate prefecture, on Tuesday. Photo: Kyodo/Reuters

Japan warned of ‘hellish summer’ as energy fears mount

People walk under a parasol in Shizuoka, Japan, where temperatures exceeded 30 degrees Celsius, on April 11. Photo: Kyodo

People in Tokyo, Japan, walk amid unseasonably warm weather on April 11. Photo: Kyodo

People stand at a crossing near Akihabara Electric Town in Tokyo. Japan could be forced to implement measures such as planned power outages if the Iran war continues, analysts say. Photo: EPA

A liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker is moored at a LNG berth in Kawasaki, Kanagawa prefecture on April 8. Photo: AFP

Japan’s Narita Airport expansion revives row over forced land sales

Runways at Narita International Airport in Japan’s Chiba prefecture in 2024. Photo: Kyodo

Naoki Fujii (right), president of Narita International Airport, speaks to reporters in Tokyo on April 2. Photo: Kyodo

People wait in a long line to go through electronic customs procedures at Narita International Airport on February 20. Photo: Kyodo

Visitors relax on a revamped observation deck with footbaths at Narita International Airport’s Terminal 1 building on April 9. Photo: Kyodo

Japan’s rural rail crisis hits new low as JR East cuts toilet paper service

Oshikiri station in Japan’s Niigata prefecture no longer has toilet paper service. Photo: Handout

JR East says no toilet paper will be provided at some unmanned stations in its service areas after taking into consideration usage patterns and other factors. Photo: Shutterstock

This Week in Asia

Lifestyle & Culture

News

Asia

East Asia

Kochi prefecture says residents aged between 20 and 39 can receive a US$125 subsidy to use certified matchmaking apps


Kochi prefecture says residents aged between 20 and 39 can receive a US$125 subsidy to use certified matchmaking apps.


Ageing society

Dating

Japanese prefecture pays singles to use dating apps to battle low birth rates

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Kochi prefecture says residents aged between 20 and 39 can receive a US$125 subsidy to use certified matchmaking apps

Kochi prefecture says residents aged between 20 and 39 can receive a US$125 subsidy to use certified matchmaking apps