Japan’s integration into the world economy over the past half a century is reflective of the importance of FDI and a countries’ openness to economic restructure brought about by foreign involvement. But, in order to achieve that, Japan had to undergo historical changes in policy, which were unprecedented in the country’s modern history. Japan is an example of how countries’ with restrictive economic policies towards foreign involvement can reap significant gains from economic restructuring which include domestic development and futureproofing of industries.