While a website offering advice and general information for potential couples is already online, a dating app is also in development.
The government hopes to launch it later this year. It can be accessed by phone or online, a Tokyo official said Thursday.
The details of its operation have not yet been announced. Authorities declined to comment on Japanese media reports that said the app requires proof of identity, such as a driver’s license, tax information to prove income and a signed form stating that the participants are ready to get married.
At the same time, those interested must fill in 15 personal details, such as height, profession and educational background, which will be visible to other users.
The goal is to provide a gentle push for almost 70% of people who want to get married but are not actively involved in events or applications to find a spouse,” a government official told the Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun.
Marriages fell in Japan as the country’s birth rate fell to a record low, according to health ministry data released on Wednesday (June 19). Last year there were 474,717 marriages, up from 504,930 in 2022, while births reached 727,277, up from 770,759.
The city has already invested $1.28 million in the app, which is expected to launch this summer. It comes amid a population crisis that Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has described as “the worst crisis facing our coury”.