Japan quintuples foreigner visa fees in first price hike since 1978

BBC - Japan has implemented a fivefold increase to visa fees for foreigners, marking the first price hike in nearly 50 years.

From 1 July, single-entry visa fees will be raised from the current 3,000 yen ($18.69; £14) to 15,000 yen, while multi-entry visas will now cost 30,000 yen, up from 6,000 yen.

The visa fee revisions - the first since 1978 - were made to "reflect inflation and exchange rate fluctuations", Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told reporters on Friday.

"We do not anticipate that it will have an immediate impact on inbound tourism," he added.

The Japanese yen has been weakening continually since 2021, and is now hovering near historic 40-year lows.

This, along with a post-pandemic travel rebound, has led to a surge in tourists to Japan. The country welcomed a record 42.7m international tourists last year.

In May, Japan's Upper House enacted a bill to raise other fees relevant to foreigners.

Under that revision, the statutory upper limit for permanent residency applications will go up to 300,000 yen, 30 times the current cap of 10,000 yen. It will also cost up to 100,000 yen to change one's residency status or extend a period of stay, up from the current 10,000 yen.

Authorities pushing for the fee hikes say Japan must align its visa- and residency-related fees closer to those of other G7 economies.

In the US, for example, non-immigrant visa application fees range from $185 to $315. For visitors to the UK, a standard short-term visa with a maximum duration of six months' stay costs £135.