Tokyo, Feb 17 (IANS): The Japanese government announced on Friday that it will establish a new, simplified track for granting special visas to high-income earners and graduates of high-ranking foreign universities as the global race for talented workers intensifies.

The new method for highly skilled professionals, to be implemented in April following a public comment process, would include foreign researchers and engineers with an annual income of at least 20 million yen (148,000 US dollars), and a master's degree or more than 10 years of work experience, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The government also decided to make it easier for "young people with high potential" to seek jobs in Japan.

A foreigner who has graduated from a university ranked in the top 100 in two world ranking lists designated by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan within the last five years and have at least 200,000 yen (1,480 US dollars) upon arrival in Japan will be granted a "designated activities" visa that will enable him or her to stay for up to two years for the purpose of job seeking.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said that the new system "would recognise expanded preferential treatment to those with top-level abilities."