Two changes took effect on 1 July. Japan's departure tax tripled from ¥1,000 to ¥3,000, and consular visa fees rose roughly five-fold. Different taxes, different ministries, same date.
What the departure tax is
Formally the international tourist tax, introduced in 2019 at ¥1,000 per departure. It is charged on everyone leaving Japan by air or sea, regardless of nationality — Japanese nationals, foreign residents, and tourists all pay it.
Collection is through the airline or shipping operator, built into the ticket price. Most people never see it as a separate line.
A few exemptions apply: children under two, transit passengers departing within 24 hours of arrival, and certain diplomatic categories.
Who actually pays the increase
The political framing is overtourism, and the revenue is earmarked for tourism infrastructure. But the tax falls on departures, not arrivals, which means everyone living in Japan pays it too.
A foreign resident who flies home twice a year now pays ¥6,000 annually in departure tax rather than ¥2,000. A family of four making one trip pays ¥12,000. It is not a large sum against the cost of an international ticket, but it is not aimed at tourists in any meaningful sense either.
And the visa fee
The same day, the fee for a single-entry visa went to approximately ¥15,000 and a multiple-entry visa to approximately ¥30,000, both charged at the Japanese embassy or consulate that issues the visa.
The combined effect on someone visiting Japan from a country without visa exemption is around ¥18,000 in government charges before flights or accommodation.
Still to come
The third leg arrives on 1 October, when the Immigration Services Agency's fees for residence procedures inside Japan change. Those are the ones that hit residents rather than visitors, and they move further than either of the July changes.
Our 2026 fee changes page tracks all three in one place.
The pattern
Taken together, three revisions in one year to charges that had been fixed for decades — visa fees since 1978, the residence fee ceiling since 1982, the departure tax since its introduction. The consistent argument is cost recovery and alignment with comparable countries. The consistent effect is that being a foreign resident in Japan costs more than it did.
Sources: The Japan Times, National Tax Agency — International Tourist Tax