On December 10, 2024, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan, together with the Architectural Institute of Japan, officially issued the Mandatory Specifications for Age-Friendly and Barrier-Free Design of Elevators, which comprehensively upgraded the age-friendly and barrier-free design of elevators in public buildings and residential buildings in Japan. The core contents include: First, upgrade the mandatory requirements for age-friendly design of elevators in public buildings, clarifying that all newly built elevators in public buildings must be equipped with double-sided handrails, large-size buttons, high-contrast visual signs, clear voice announcement and floor prompt functions, with the button diameter not less than 35mm and the font height not less than 5mm. Second, standardize the age-friendly design requirements of residential elevators, clarifying that newly built residential buildings with 3 floors and above must be equipped with age-friendly elevators, and the minimum net size of the car, door opening width, and handrail configuration must meet the mandatory standards. Third, clarify the age-friendly transformation requirements of existing elevators, requiring that elevators in public buildings with a service life of more than 10 years must complete age-friendly transformation before 2030, and install age-friendly facilities such as handrails, voice prompts, and emergency call systems. Fourth, upgrade the requirements of the elevator emergency call system, clarifying that the elevator emergency call system must have the functions of two-way voice call, one-key call to property and emergency center, to ensure 24-hour effective response, to adapt to the emergency rescue needs of the elderly. Fifth, add the specification of intelligent age-friendly functions of elevators, encourage elevators to be equipped with intelligent age-friendly functions such as face recognition, voice control, and remote assistance, to simplify the elevator operation for the elderly. Sixth, clarify the inspection and acceptance standards for the age-friendly design of elevators, incorporate the age-friendly design requirements into the mandatory items of the annual elevator inspection, and elevators that fail to meet the standards are not allowed to continue operation. The new regulation was officially implemented on April 1, 2025.