Main contents start here
Outline of the 2006 Establishment and Enterprise Census
1. Objectives of the Census
The objectives of the Census are to reveal the distribution of establishments and enterprises by district, industry, size, etc., and to complement the directories of establishments and enterprises for the sampling frames of various sample surveys on businesses, by investigating the present conditions of the business activities of establishments and enterprises in Japan.
2. History of the Census
The Establishment Census, listed second of Designated Statistics under the Statistics Law, was conducted for the first time in 1947. The Census was renamed the Establishment and Enterprise Census in 1996, representing additional survey items on the business activities of enterprises.
The Census was conducted every three years from 1948 to 1981, and thereafter it was conducted every five years on establishments including those of the national and local governments. In intermediate years, simplified censuses were conducted on private establishments.
The 2006 Census is a large-scale census, following the simplified one in 2004.
3. Date of the Census
October 1, 2006
4. Coverage of the Census
The Census covered all establishments in Japan as of the date of the Census except the following:
(1) Individual proprietorship which belonged to A-Agriculture, B-Forestry, and C-Fisheries among the major groups based on the Japan Standard Industrial Classification (Notification No. 139 of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications issued on March 7, 2002) (so-called farm, forestry, and fisheries households).
(2) Establishments which belonged to 83-Other Household Services (limited to 832-In-house Household Services among small groups)" (so-called live-in domestic helpers) and 94-Foreign Public Offices (e.g., embassies and consulates) among medium groups based on the Japan Standard Industrial Classification.
5. Enumeration Units
Any establishment having one location and being operated under a single management was defined as an enumeration unit, in principal.
In cases where business was carried out at several locations or under more than one proprietorship at one location, establishments were defined individually.
The Census did not cover the following establishments:
(1) Establishments without persons engaged who receive income from the business
(2) Establishments closed temporarily or not in operation, and having no person engaged
(3) Seasonal establishments not in operation on the date of the Census
6. Methods of the Census
The Census covered all establishments located in Japan. There are two kinds of questionnaires: Questionnaire A and Questionnaire B.
Questionnaire A is for private establishments, and Questionnaire B is for the establishments of the national and local governments. Each questionnaire was distributed and collected through the following channels:
(1) Questionnaire A
- Minister for Internal Affairs and Communication - Prefectural Governors - Mayors - Supervisors - Enumerators - Private Establishments
(2) Questionnaire B
- National establishments: The Minister - Directors of Governmental Departments - National Establishments
- Prefectural Establishments: The Minister - Prefectural Governors - Prefectural Establishments
- Municipal Establishments: The Minister - Prefectural Governors - Mayors- Municipal Establishments
7. Survey Items
Survey items were as follows:
(1) Questionnaire A
[Items relating to establishments]
a) Name and telephone number of establishment
b) Location of establishment
c) Legal organization
d) Head or branch office
e) Startup date
f) Number of persons engaged
g) Type and form of business conducted at the establishment
h) Type of establishments
[Items relating to enterprises]
a) Name and telephone number of head office
b) Location of head office
c) Year of registration
d) Capital and ratio of foreign equity
e) Existence of parent company and affiliated company
f) Name and telephone number of parent company
g) Location of parent company
h) Number of subsidiaries
i) Number of branch offices
j) Number of regular employees of entire company
k) Type of business activity conducted by entire company
l) Change in company form
m) Engagement in Electronic Commerce
(2) Questionnaire B
a) Name and telephone number of establishment
b) Location of establishment
c) Number of persons engaged
d) Type of business operations of establishment
8. Tabulation
Prefectures and municipalities are in charge of inputting data and coding industrial classification. The National Statistics Center is responsible for tabulating the returns of the Census.
