This book shows how the Cold War played a decisive role in shaping Japan's migration controls, examining the origins of migration policy.

Introduction; 1. Border politics: rethinking Japan's migration controls; 2. Drawing the line: from empire to Cold War; 3. Crossing the line: 'unauthorized arrivals' in occupied Japan; 4. Guarding the line: the Cold War and the immigration bureau; 5. A place apart I: the armed archipelago; 6. A place apart II: the liminal world of ¿mura; 7. Special permission to stay: 'hidden lives' in postwar Japan; 8. A point of no return: repatriation to China and North Korea; 9. Beyond the postwar system: what changed; what stayed the same?