Japan’s Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry released its annual estimate ahead of Respect for the Aged Day on September 21: 36.24 million people are 65 or older, or 29.6% of the population. The share rose 0.2 percentage points from a year earlier, setting a record for the third consecutive year. Among 39 countries with populations above 40 million, Japan ranks first by a wide margin, followed by Italy at 25.6%, Germany at 24.2% and France at 22.9%.
The breakdown: 15.71 million are men and 20.54 million women. Some 26.3% of men and 32.6% of women are 65 or older. People aged 75 and over make up 17.7% of the population, the highest share among nine major economies. As the second baby-boom generation, born from 1971 to 1974, ages, the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research projects the over-65 share will reach 36.3% by 2045.
Older people are also staying in work. The number of employed people aged 65 and over reached 9.43 million in 2025, increasing for 22 straight years and reaching its highest level since records began in 1968. People 65 and older now account for 13.8% of all workers aged 15 and above.
Interest rates moved in the same week. On September 18, the Bank of Japan raised its policy rate from 1.0% to 1.25%, its sixth increase since exiting negative rates in March 2024 and only three months after its June move. The cited reasons were Middle East-driven inflation and a weak yen. Nippon.com’s analysis says higher rates can increase interest income for older households with savings while raising mortgage costs for younger ones.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi also delivered her first address to the UN General Assembly around the same time, calling for the removal of the “enemy state” clauses from the UN Charter, and met President Trump in New York. Turkey’s share of people aged 65 and above is around 10% in the latest TurkStat data cited by the source report; Japan’s current profile offers a point of comparison in debates about Turkey’s ageing population.
Verified: Population figures, country ranking, over-75 share and number of older workers: Jiji Press and Kyodo (via Bernama), citing ministry data. Rate increase and effects: Nippon.com. Takaichi’s UN address: Japan Times. Uncertainty: Kyodo gives a 36.3% projection for 2045, while Jiji gives 34.8% for 2040; both are projections by the same institute for different years. Turkey’s approximate 10% share was not independently checked for this article. Not available at publication: The ministry’s original Japanese-language release was not directly reviewed.