Police organisation
Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department
The prefectural police of Tokyo — one of the forces that actually carry out policing in Japan, not a branch of the National Police Agency.
At a glance
- Official name
- Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department
- System
- Japan
- Level of government
- Regional
- Kind of body
- Regional police force
- Status
- Currently operating
- Facts last checked against sources
- 13 September 2026
What it is
Despite the name, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is the prefectural police of Tokyo. Japanese policing is carried out by prefectural forces under the coordination and supervision of the National Police Agency, and the TMPD is the largest of them. Police boxes (Koban) and residential police boxes (Chuzaisho) are subordinate units of police stations within such a force.
What it covers
The Tokyo prefecture.
Broad responsibilities
- Carrying out police duties in the Tokyo prefecture
Elsewhere on this site
- Who polices what — how Japan is structured, against other systems
Other organisations to compare
- National Police Agency — Japan
Where this connects
Institutions: Municipal police.
Sources
National Police Agency (NPA), Japan · Government publication · 2020 · link verified 2026-09-13
The NPA's own English overview; figures and wording extracted directly from the report PDF. Supports: that the National Public Safety Commission (NPSC) and the National Police Agency (NPA) constitute the national police organisation and the NPSC supervises the NPA; that the Police Act empowers the national government to establish a central police organisation 'to control and supervise prefectural police forces on matters of national concern'; that the NPSC 'draws up basic policies and regulations, coordinates police administration on matters of national concern and sets general standards'; that each prefecture has 'the authority to carry out police duties'; that Regional Police Bureaus are subordinate to the NPA; that police boxes (Koban) and residential police boxes (Chuzaisho) are subordinate units of police stations; that the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is the prefectural police of Tokyo; and that 'the Prime Minister is not empowered to exercise direct command or control over the Commission'. CRUCIALLY, it supports national COORDINATION, STANDARDS and SUPERVISION ON MATTERS OF NATIONAL CONCERN, with operational policing carried out by the prefectures — NOT a single nationally commanded operational police force. Does not support operational detail. RE-READ on 2026-09-13 for its rank section, which supports verbatim: ‘Police officers are divided into nine ranks: Superintendent General, Senior Commissioner, Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner, Superintendent, Chief Inspector, Inspector, Sergeant, and Police Officer. On top of the nine ranks, the highest position in the Japanese police is held by the NPA Commissioner General.’ It also supports that newly promoted Sergeants and Inspectors train at regional police schools and that a Chief Inspector Appointment Course is run at the National Police Academy.