According to several national press agencies, Japan wants to improve the efficiency of the process for international visitors entering the country -especially those exempt from visa requirements. entry formalities in Japan seem to be having little effect for the time being.
According to the Japanese Ministry of Justice, an electronic pre-authorisation system for entering Japan is to be introduced, modelled on the ESTA system in the United States. This online form should be launched in the 2028 tax year..
It is aimed exclusively at travellers from the 71 countries and territories currently exempt from visa requirements. Including all the French-speaking countries in Europe. This measure, even if it takes an extremely long time to implement, is a matter of urgency because airports are totally saturated.
Uncontrolled passenger flows at airports
The fall in the yen has boosted Japan's appeal. In 2024, the country recorded a record number of travellers: 36.87 million, an increase of 47.1 % on the previous year. The country expects to welcome 40 million by 2025 and targets 60 million foreign visitors by 2030.
However, passengers are subject to formalities that many tourism experts consider obsolete, with a temperature check, followed by immigration and customs formalities. Each procedure is supervised by different ministries (including an endemic bureaucracy) making the process interminable.
The authorities have confirmed that the influx of arrivals is no longer under control at many airports. For example, at Tokyo-Narita. A Japanese newspaper reported that on 5 May, when international flights were arriving on average every two minutes, the queue at immigration reached over 500 metres. It took up to two hours to get through the checks.
Under the new system, travellers from countries benefiting from visa exemptions for short-term stays in Japan will have to provide information on their identity. They will also have to provide details of their trip to Japan.
The form must be completed several days in advance.. This will enable Japan's immigration services agency to examine travellers' details, in particular whether they have a criminal record or a history of illegal stays in Japan. This could result in a refusal.
