TOKYO : Japan is set to increase the annual limit on tax-free investment accounts aimed at the middle classes and raise taxes on ultra-wealthy individuals, as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pursues his agenda of fairer distribution of the fruits of growth.
Use of both types of NISA account at once will be permitted, and existing time limits on tax exemptions will be abolished, according to the documents. A shift in the roughly ¥2 quadrillion of household assets could buoy the stock market and help financial firms. Japanese households had about 54% of their financial assets in cash and deposits as of the end of March, and only about 10% in stocks, according to Bank of Japan data.