The Type 96 is Japan's first indigenous 8 x 8 armored personnel carrier, and draws upon the experience obtained in earlier wheeled APC designs, namely the Type 87/82 series. The Type 96 is of all-welded construction with a front engine compartment on the left side, besides which is the driver compartment. The commander/gunner is located behind, and is provided with a raised cupola which features an M2 machine gun that can be fire from within (some vehicles also add a 40-mm grenade launcher). To the rear of the vehicle is the troop compartment, with entry and exit provided through a power-operated rear ramp. Numerous firing ports as well as vision devices are also included. Other mechanical features include power steering on the front four roadwheels, an adjustable tire pressure system to optimize mobility in different terrain, NBC protection, and a laser warning device. Over 300 have so far been built for the JGSDF and the low production rate of the Type 89 IFV suggests that it will play a more important role in equipping Japan's mechanized units.

Development of the Type 96 was the result of experience from the earlier Type 87/82 6 x 6 vehicles, built by Mitsubishi and Komatsu respectively. There are no known variants.