Japan-bound travellers can expect a change in entry requirements for the Asian nation, with the Japanese Government set to introduce a new travel authorisation for visitors.
Until now, 71 countries – including Australia and New Zealand – have enjoyed visa-free travel to Japan. But the recently announced new system would require visitors from those nations to declare personal information online, similar to the ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) process for the United States, which works as a visa waiver program.
While ESTA was originally introduced to combat possible security threats to the US, Japan’s new process aims to curb the number of visitors from visa-exempt nations who stay longer than they are permitted, which ranges from 14-90 days, the Sankei Shinbun reported.
According to the Japanese government, travellers will need to declare their purpose of entry and place of stay before travelling. If they are then flagged as a risk, they may be denied entry and required to obtain a formal visa.
The new system has the tentative title, JESTA and is expected to launch in 2030.
The government plans to allocate research costs for JESTA in the next budget.
Additionally, another system will be launched on a trial basis to check passenger information against a blacklist and notify airlines if necessary.
While JESTA is designed to ensure safety, there are concerns it may cause inconvenience for travellers who are used to visa-free entry to Japan. But only time will tell.
More details about the system will be provided closer to the launch date.
Among the other countries to be impacted by the new system are Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Canada, USA, UK, France and Germany.
According to Sankei News, the government says that of the 49,801 illegal short-term visitors recorded in January 2016, more than 28,000 came from visa-exempt countries and regions.
Japan rising
Who doesn’t know someone who hasn’t been to Japan in the past year – or will soon head over?
New Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data revealed the top five countries for Aussie international travel in 2023-24, and Japan was right among them, along with Indonesia, New Zealand, USA and the UK.
Recent Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) data also showed that Aussies aren’t just travelling in record numbers to the Asian nation – they’re also spending more on each trip than ever before. And not just a little more.
