MEXT defines separate scholarship periods for non-regular research students and regular degree students.

Standard scholarship period

• If you start as a non-regular research student:
  • April arrival: April 2026 – March 2028
  • September/October arrival: September/October 2026 – March 2028
  • For some students, the first 6 months may be a Japanese-language preparatory period before full research activities.
• If you are directly admitted as a regular degree student (Master’s/Doctoral):
  • The scholarship covers the full “standard period” of the degree, for example:
    • Master’s: usually 2 years
    • Doctoral: usually 3 years
  • In rare cases, a 6-month preparatory period may be added if your university decides it is necessary.

Fields of Study

MEXT Research Students are expected to:

• Apply in the same field they studied at university, or in a closely related field.
• Choose a field that can realistically be studied at graduate level in Japan (i.e., a university can supervise you).

Not covered under this scholarship:

• Practical training that is essentially vocational/industrial (e.g., learning specific factory skills in a company)
• Certain forms of traditional performing arts such as Kabuki or classical dance as purely performance training

If your field is Medicine, Dentistry, welfare or similar, you cannot do clinical practice (e.g., surgery, patient treatment) until you obtain the legally required Japanese licenses.

The exact dates differ by country, but the official Research Students page and several universities describe this typical flow:

1. April–May (previous year)
   • Japanese Embassies/Consulates announce the MEXT Research Students call for the following year (e.g., 2025 announcements for 2026 entry).
2. May–July – First Screening (Embassy)
   • Document screening
   • Written exams (language and/or specialized fields; details vary by embassy)
   • Interview
3. July–September – Contact universities & get provisional acceptance
   • Applicants who pass the first screening receive a “Passing Certificate” from the embassy.
   • Using that, they contact Japanese universities and apply for a Letter of Provisional Acceptance (LoPA) from potential supervisors.
4. Autumn–Winter – Second Screening (MEXT)
   • Embassies send final recommended candidates (with LoPAs) to MEXT.
   • MEXT and the universities decide the final university placement and scholarship awards.
5. Arrival in Japan
   • April 2026 (Spring term) or
   • September/October 2026 (Autumn term), depending on what you selected and the university schedule.

Always check the Japanese Embassy/Consulate website in your own country for exact local deadlines.

Nationality

• You must be a national of a country with diplomatic relations with Japan.
• You cannot hold Japanese nationality at the time of application.
• If you have dual nationality including Japan, you may apply only if:
  • Your main residence is outside Japan, and
  • You choose the non-Japanese nationality, and
  • You renounce Japanese nationality before arriving in Japan.

Age

• For the 2026 intake, you must in principle have been born on or after 2 April 1991.
• Exceptions are only for specific national reasons (e.g., compulsory military service, loss of study opportunities due to war), not for personal reasons.

Academic background

You must be eligible to enter the graduate course you want in Japan. In practice:

• To enter a Master’s or first-phase Doctoral course (Master’s/PhD 1st stage), you usually need:
  • 16 years of education outside Japan, or
  • A Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) from a 3+ year university program, or
  • Other qualifications that a Japanese graduate school accepts as equivalent.
• To enter a Doctoral course (2nd phase) or Medicine/Dentistry/Veterinary/Pharm (Doctoral), you usually need:
  • A Master’s or professional degree, or
  • A strong research record and proof that you are equivalent to a Master’s graduate, according to the Japanese graduate school, or
  • Longer programs (5+ years) in relevant fields, depending on the program.

Each university may have its own exact academic rules, so applicants must check the requirements of the university/graduate school they want to join.

Japanese language & motivation

• You do not need to be fluent in Japanese at the start, but you must:
  • Be willing to learn Japanese,
  • Be interested in life in Japan and ready to adapt to it, and
  • Be capable of conducting research and living in Japan.

(Depending on the university/program, certain minimum English or Japanese levels may be required for admission, especially for degree courses.)

Health

• You must submit a health certificate on the official MEXT form, signed by a doctor, showing you have no physical or mental condition that would prevent study in Japan.

Who is NOT eligible (examples)

You are not eligible if, for example:

• You are military personnel or military civilian staff.
• You cannot arrive during the allowed arrival window.
• You already received a MEXT scholarship (unless a specific 3+ year gap and conditions are met).
• You are already enrolled in Japan as a privately-funded student and won’t finish before the new scholarship period starts.
• You will receive another Japanese government scholarship during the same period.
• You have no intention of getting a degree in Japan.
• You cheat in the exams or provide false information in your application.

Local embassies may add small country-specific requirements.

Main forms (Embassy Recommendation – Research)

From the Study in Japan page:

• Application Form (FY2026 – Research Students)
• Placement Preference Application Form (list of preferred universities)
• Field of Study and Research Plan
• Certificate of Health (MEXT format, completed by a doctor)
• Recommendation Letter (format flexible; sample will be provided)

Supporting documents (typically required)

Based on the Guidelines and example embassy/university instructions:

• Academic transcripts for all university years (Bachelor, and Master if applicable)
• Graduation / degree certificates (or proof of expected graduation)
• Recommendation letter from the dean, president or academic advisor of your current/last university (often the same as the main recommendation)
• Abstracts of your thesis (if you have one)
• Language proficiency certificates (Japanese and/or English) if submitted to the embassy
• Proof of nationality (e.g., passport copy)
• Any additional documents requested by your local Japanese embassy or the universities you contact

Always follow the document list and formats given by:

1. The official MEXT 2026 Research Guidelines
2. Your local Japanese embassy/consulate website.

• The scholarship is open to nationals of countries that have diplomatic relations with Japan.
• There is no single public “list” of countries on the guidelines page. Instead, each Japanese embassy/consulate announces the call where it applies.

If you want to check whether your country is eligible:

• Confirm that there is a Japanese diplomatic mission for your country on the official MOFA list, then see if they publish a MEXT Research Students call for 2026.

The scholarship usually covers:

Monthly stipend

Per month (amounts may change slightly if the budget changes):

• 143,000 JPY –
  • During Japanese-language preparatory education (if assigned)
  • While you are a non-regular research student
• 144,000 JPY –
  • As a regular student in a Master’s or professional degree course
• 145,000 JPY –
  • As a regular student in a Doctoral course

On top of this, a regional allowance of 2,000 or 3,000 JPY per month may be added if you study in certain designated areas.

If you are absent from university for a long period, the stipend may be suspended for that time.

Tuition & university fees

• Entrance examination, admission (matriculation) and tuition fees at the host university are fully waived.

(If you fail to enter a degree course after being a non-regular student, the entrance exam fee in that case may not be covered.)

Travel to and from Japan

• One-way economy-class flight to Japan
  • From the international airport nearest your residence (usually in your home country)
  • Only if you travel during the official arrival period decided by MEXT/university
• One-way economy-class flight back to your home country
  • If you return directly to your home country at the end of your scholarship and finish your program as planned

Airport taxes, domestic travel, extra baggage, travel insurance, etc. are your own responsibility. If you come or leave outside the allowed periods, MEXT won’t pay for that flight.

Important: You apply via the Japanese embassy/consulate in your country, not directly to MEXT.

Step 1 – Read official guidelines

• Download and carefully read the “Application Guidelines for 2026 (Research Students)” from Study in Japan.

Step 2 – Check your local embassy website

• Go to the website of the Japanese Embassy/Consulate in your country.
• Find the page for “MEXT Scholarship – Research Students (2026)” to see:
  • Exact deadline
  • Where/how to submit documents
  • Any country-specific instructions (e.g., number of copies, email vs paper).

Step 3 – Prepare and submit your documents

• Fill in the official Application Form, Placement Preference Form, Field of Study & Research Plan, and Health Certificate.
• Collect transcripts, degree certificates, recommendation letter(s), thesis abstract, language scores, etc.
• Submit the full set to the embassy/consulate by the stated deadline. Do not send anything directly to MEXT.

Step 4 – First Screening at the Embassy

• The embassy conducts:
  • Document screening
  • Written exams (language and/or specialized subjects – varies by country)
  • Interview

If you pass, you receive a Passing Certificate for First Screening and copies of your stamped documents.

Step 5 – Contact universities & get a Letter of Provisional Acceptance

• After passing the first screening, you contact Japanese universities (often up to two or three) to ask for a Letter of Provisional Acceptance (LoPA).
• You usually email the international office or potential supervisors, following each university’s instructions (many have a specific LoPA application page).
• You send them:
  • The Passing Certificate, and
  • Copies of the application documents stamped by the embassy (application form, research plan, transcripts, degree certificates, etc.).

Universities review your file and decide whether they can accept you. If positive, they send you a Letter of Provisional Acceptance.

Step 6 – Second Screening by MEXT

• The embassy sends to MEXT:
  • A list of recommended candidates,
  • Their documents, and
  • At least one Letter of Provisional Acceptance from a university.
• MEXT performs a second screening and, together with universities, decides who receives the scholarship and final placement.

Step 7 – Final results, visa & arrival

• Successful candidates receive:
  • Confirmation of being selected as a MEXT Research Student, and
  • A university placement and arrival term (April or Autumn).
• You then apply for a Student visa, arrange flights following MEXT rules, and arrive in Japan at the designated time.

• Language of research: Many graduate programs now offer English-taught tracks, but some require strong Japanese. Always check language requirements on the website of your target graduate school.
• Non-degree vs degree status:
  • Many students first come as non-regular “research students”, then sit the university entrance exam and move into a Master’s or PhD course.
  • Others are accepted directly into a degree program from the start.
• You cannot receive multiple main Japanese government scholarships at the same time.
• MEXT expects scholars to act as bridges between Japan and their home countries, stay in touch with their university after graduation, and cooperate with surveys or alumni events run by embassies.