Are Japanese students allowed to dye their hair?

Author: Valerie Raynor Sr.  |  Last update: Friday, September 19, 2025

Tokyo's public high school students will no longer need to dye their natural hair black or wear undergarments of designated colors, often white, bringing an end to rules increasingly criticized as inhibiting pupils' self-expression. For decades, Japanese schools have defined how a student should look and act.

Are Japanese people allowed to dye their hair?

Bright colors are pretty much frowned upon and they will consider you a ``不良'' a delinquent or a college student. However, it's common to see hair dyed brown in Japan.

Can Japanese students have dyed hair?

In Japan, school regulations regarding hair color can vary by institution, but many schools have strict dress codes that typically require students to have natural hair colors. This often means that dyed hair is not allowed, and students may be required to revert to their natural hair color if they have dyed it.

What are the rules for hair in Japanese schools?

The school's regulations stipulate that hairstyles should not be “trendy” but should be “clean and appropriate for a high school student”. Students are not permitted to dye or bleach their hair, or style it with a hairdryer, but the rules make no mention of braiding.

Are you allowed to dye your hair in school?

Most schools will allow dyed hair as long as it is not an odd color such as purple or green. To be sure you should ask the principal.

Real Reason Why Japanese Students Can't Dye Hair

Can Koreans dye their hair in school?

One more rule students follow in South Korea is regarding the student's hairstyle. The school will decide which hairstyle to do. However, nowadays, students are allowed to do many different hairstyles. Girls can dye their hair, curl their hair, and untie their hair.

Is it illegal to dye a child's hair?

Children's lives could be at risk because some hairdressing salons are not following guidelines on hair dye products, BBC Wales has found. No dye products should be used on under-16s, according to manufacturers and the industry's professional body.

What is not allowed in Japanese schools?

Japanese public elementary schools and junior high schools prohibit bringing snacks, drinks (e.g. soda or juice), mobile phones, and toys. Having manicures and wearing accessories such as earrings or necklaces are also prohibited. Most junior high schools have their own school uniforms and dress regulations.

Can girls in Japan have short hair?

Familiar with these? In Japan, women's short hair is very common. But Japan is still a highly monocultural society. If you go blond or dye a colour which is not dark brown, or go bald or Mohawk, it would become almost impossible to get a 'normal' office/sales/service job.

Is it illegal for a teacher to cut a students hair?

Generally, schools can't control hairstyles. because of your right to freedom of expression.

How common is hair dye in Japan?

This means that almost half of all Japanese people used hair coloring during the year. And the percentage is expected to keep growing. The main reason for this craze? We can point to media stars and athletes, especially soccer players.

Is nail polish allowed in Japanese schools?

All students adhere to a strict dress code, which always includes a Japanese high school uniform and often prohibits earrings, piercings, and nail polish. Upon arrival at school, students change into school slippers, often color-coded for gender, further enhancing the sense of order and discipline.

Can Japanese girls have brown hair?

Though the vast majority of ethnically Japanese people, who make up the vast majority of students at schools in Japan, have naturally black hair, some Japanese people's hair is instead a dark brown.

What is the rarest hair color in Japan?

Natural red hair is relatively rare in Japan as it is in most of the world. It is estimated that less than 1% of the Japanese population has natural red hair. The vast majority of Japanese people have black or dark brown hair. Red hair is most commonly found in people of European, levantine and Berber descent.

Is it OK to have body hair in Japan?

The Japanese do shave their faces, arms, legs, and pubic areas. Those with hairy pubic areas are considered sexy. However, as the Western culture has influenced the country, this practice has become more accepted in Japan.

Do Japanese students have to have black hair?

In regard to school guidance and informal rules that are not clearly stipulated in school rules, many schools ban students from dying their hair in colors other than black, according to the survey. Some respondents complained that they had been forced to get a straight perm or dye their hair black.

What is considered tall in Japan for a girl?

The average Japanese male is about 170cm, so anything above 5'9 and you'll be considered tall as a man here. The average female is about 160cm, so if you're above 5'4 and you'll be an Amazonian.

Why do Japanese wear bangs?

Asian beauty standards are quite high and Japanese women do a lot for their looks. And in Japan, one beauty standard is a small, slim face. Certain bangs for certain facial shapes helps make our faces look smaller. One really popular bang style in Japan is the 'see-through bangs'.

Do girls wear shorts in Japan?

Travelers can wear shorts in hot weather, but don't wear cut-offs, board shorts, etc. Most Japanese women don't show their shoulders, belly or cleavage. And most don't wear leggings (yoga pants etc) unless they're doing yoga or sports.

Can girls wear pants in Japanese schools?

Historically, school uniforms in Japan are decided on the basis of sex, with trousers for male students and skirts for female students. However, in April 2019, public junior high schools in Tokyo's Nakano Ward began allowing students to choose their uniform regardless of sex.

Do Japanese schools allow dating?

2022 Rewind: Japan's strict school rules restrict hair, underwear colors and dating. The year 2022 saw a score of news articles on how Japanese schools implement "black" rules, or unreasonably strict restrictions on the color of students' hair or underwear, dating, and even friendly chats during lunch.

What is not accepted in Japan?

Leave a tip. Leaving a tip is not accepted and if you leave money on the table, someone from the restaurant will come running after you to give it back. Instead of money, learn a Japanese phrase to say at the end of the meal to express your gratitude like 'gochisosama' (thank you for the delicious food).

Should I let my 13 year old dye her hair?

Manufacturers and the top industry bodies advise that no hair dye products be used on children under 16 years old. However, some children are managing to get their hair dyed. Parents are pressurised by their kids and as much as we hope to be strong and refuse a child's demands, doing so is difficult.

Can a 13 year old get a balayage?

There is no legal minimum age that a child must be to experience a treatment carried out by a professional.

Is it illegal to dye your hair in school?

As a general rule, if what you wear or the way you look is not prohibited by the school's rules, then you can do it. There is, however, one important exception. Schools can always tell a student to change clothing or remove make-up if it causes a distraction or creates a health or safety concern.

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