Do We Need Visa For Japan
It’s pretty common that you have some questions on your mind before starting a trip. One of those questions might be “Do we need visa for Japan?” Although this is a question many people ask themselves, usually without finding the answer anywhere, I believe it would be easier to have all the info beforehand. In order to help you out, I will try in this article to describe how are things and whether you need visa for Japan or not
Do we need visa for Japan? It depends. In this article I will explain how to get a tourist visa (also known as visa waiver) if you are a Westerner, how to get a visa on arrival in Japan at Narita airport and lastly how to get a working holiday visa.
Do We Need Visa For Japan
Japan has a very liberal visa program. With the proper kind of visa, you can live and work in Japan for up to 6 months, with multiple entries during the period. The visa is valid for 90 days from the date of entry. The fee may vary from country to country. For some countries like Australia, USA, New Zealand and Canada it is free of charge. However, if you are not from these countries then you will have to pay some charges.
Japan visa types
At the moment there are numerous different types of visas and more will be introduced in the future, including the eVisa.
Visas are obtained directly from Japanese embassies and consulates, althought the application process for the eVisa will be completed entirely online.
Japanes visas can be grouped in 3 main categories:
- Working visa
- Non-working visa
- Family Related Visas
Working visa
Working visas are considered long-term stay visas and cover the kind of work that requires high-level professional knowledge or skills and ‘thus, they do not include simple labor tasks. Jobs like waiter, construction workers, sales people, etc. cannot obtain a working visa. Typical working visas:
- Engineer, Specialist in Humanities, International Services Engineer. Engineers and Specialists in Humanities must have a university degree in their corresponding fields or 10 years of professional experience. International Services Engineers must have 3 years of professional experience in their field.
- Intra-company Transferee. This status applies ot expats of foreign companies or the subsidiary companies of Japanese firms located overseas who have worked more than one year in the said office in overseas.
- Skilled Labor. Jobs involving foreign cooking, architecture or civil engineering characteristic to foreign countries, training animals, instructing sports, sommeliers, processing precious stones will fall into this status. It’s mandatory to have at least 3 years of professional experience in the field.
- Business Manager. Those who are going to start a business or invest into a business in Japan. It also applies to those managing business on behalf of investors.
- Highly-Skilled Professional. This visa aims to attract workers who are likely to contribute to the Japanese economy.
Those with a certain status, knowledge, or skills can get the following working visas:
- Diplomats or Officials, Personnel of the embassies and consular offices, Diplomatic missions, Government personnel and their families.
- Research and education at university or equivalent educational institutions.
- Instruction of foreign languages or other education at elementary schools, high schools, etc. Those instructors looking to work in private language schools must apply for the Specialist in Humanities / International Services visa.
- For those whose artistic activities provide enough income to support their living in Japan.
- Religious activities. Missionaries sent to Japan from foreign religious organizations.
- Those journalists who have signed contracts with foreign media organizations. It includes freelance journalists.
- Legal and Accounting services.
- Medical Services. Medical specialists with Japanese qualifications.
- For those researches working under a contract with public or private organizations in Japan.
- All of those working in show business and sports.
Non-working visa
Anyone who holds a non-working visa is allowed to work as long as the immigration office grants them permission. This type of visas is considered a short-term stay visa and some restrictions apply. Those doing some work under a non-working visa cannot exceed the number of authorized hours per week.
Who can benefit:
- The visa application is submitted through the school.
- Those training to acquire technology, skills or knowledge. This status is granted only when the candidate will work in a job requiring that technology, skills or knowledge once he returns to his home country.
- Technical Internships. That covers internships after training under trainee visa.
- Spouses or children of people staying in Japan under the work visa and non-working visa (except for temporary visitors and trainees).
- Cultural Activities. Cultural or artistic activities with no income.
- Students or researches of Japanese cultural or artistic activities.
- University students taking part in an internship without remuneration.
- Temporary Visitors (also known as Tourist visa). This status includes visitors on vacation, sports, family visits, participants in seminars and conferences, business meetings, market research, and those traveling to Japan to engage in PR activities.
There is also another epigraphe for non-working visas that is granted case by case: Designated Activities. Students on internship, working holidays, diplomats’ housekeepers are some of the people who can aply for this visa.
Family related visas
Family related visas are considered short-term stay visas and have no retrictions when it comes to employment, so you can engage in more than one activity or change jobs. Those who can apply to these visas are:
- Spouses and children of Japanese nationals
- Long Term Residents
- Permanent Residents
- Spouses and children of Permanent Resident
Japan tourist visa
Any tourist wanting to visit Japan must obtain a tourist visa prior to entering the country. Nonetheless, Japan excludes several nationalities from having to comply with this requirement. For instance, citizens from most European countries, United States, Australia, and Argentina do not need too get the Japan Tourist Visa since they are considered visa-exempt countries for tourism purposes. Nationals from any of those regions can stay in Japan for a maximum of 90 days visa-free and are assigned Temporary Visitor status.
Japan tourist visa is a short-term stay visa for the purposes of sightseeing, visiting friends, or attending conferences or courses. Under the single-entry regulation, tourists can remain in Japan for up to 30 days, but this tourist visa is valid for a period of up to 90 days. Tourists can also apply for a double-entry visa for 2 short trips within a 6-month period. It is important to note that the Japan tourist visa does not allow travelers to engage in paid work while in the country.
Other short-term stay visas
- Business visa: There is a temporary business visa for stays of up to 90 days which can single or double-entry visa (if both trips are within a 6-month period). Business purposes include conferences, meetings, signing contracts, and market surveys.
- Transit visa: Some nationalities need a transit visa to stop over in Japan when going to an onward destination. Many travelers do not need this as long as they stay within the allocated zone and do not leave the airport.
Which countries need a tourist visa?
All nationalities who are not visa-exempt need a visa to enter Japan. Citizens of certain countries can enter with Temporary Visitor status for limited periods of time (15 to 90 consecutive days) for tourism or business purposes.
Visitors receive a stamp in their passport which is a requirement for the Japan Rail Pass. The rules are very strict and it is not possible to get the pass without showing the stamp (tourists with other types of visas are not eligible for the Pass).
The following nationalities are eligible for Temporary Visitor status (all others need a visa to enter):
| JAPAN VISA-EXEMPT COUNTRIES & REGIONS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| EUROPE | |||
| Andorra | Finland | Latvia | Poland |
| Austria | FYR Macedonia | Liechtenstein | Serbia |
| Belgium | France | Lithuania | Slovakia |
| Croatia | Germany | Luxembourg | Slovenia |
| Cyprus | Greece | Malta | Spain |
| Czech Republic | Hungary | Monaco | Sweden |
| Denmark | Ireland | Netherlands | Switzerland |
| Estonia | Italy | Norway | United Kingdom |
| NORTH AMERICA | |||
| Canada | United States | ||
| LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN | |||
| Argentina | Chile | El Salvador | Mexico |
| Bahamas | Costa Rica | Guatemala | Surinam |
| Barbados | Dominican Republic | Honduras | Uruguay |
| ASIA | |||
| Brunei (15 days) | Republic of Korea | Thailand (15 days) | Macao |
| Indonesia | Singapore | Hong Kong | Taiwan |
| Malaysia | |||
| OCEANIA | |||
| Australia | Oceania | ||
| MIDDLE EAST | |||
| Israel | United Arab Emirates (30 days) | Turkey | |
| AFRICA | |||
| Lesotho | Tunisia | Mauritius |