Japan will raise its departure tax, also known as the international tourist tax, to 3,000 yen (about US$19) per person in July, up from 1,000 yen (US$6.70) at present, for both foreign tourists and Japanese citizens. The fee will be automatically added to airfare or cruise fares tickets.
This hike is part of a broader, long-term initiative by the Japanese government to manage high tourist numbers and improve the experience for visitors by improving infrastructure in regional areas.
State subsidies will be provided to local governments taking steps to address overtourism, such as measures to ease congestion, eliminating inappropriate behavior by tourists and limiting visitor numbers. It will also promote improved transportation capabilities to draw people to regional and rural destinations instead of the usual popular destinations such as Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka.
New target of 100 regions
The Japanese government has adopted a new target to increase the number of regions implementing measures against overtourism from 47 in 2025 to 100 by 2030. This is the first time it has set a target on the issue.
To date, 47 areas including Kyoto in western Japan have been advancing initiatives based on residents’ feedback.
Dual pricing for tourists and residents
The Japanese government will also consider drawing up guidelines for public tourism facilities on dual pricing for residents and inbound visitors.
For example in March, the city of Himeji raised the admission fee for Himeji Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage site, to 2,500 yen ($15.60) for non-residents, while keeping it at 1,000 yen ($6.30) for residents. In Okinawa’s new Junglia theme park, an online ticket price on its English website is 8,800 yen (US$$60) whilst the same ticket on its Japanese-language portal costs 6,930 yen ($47).
60 million tourist arrivals by 2030
The government has maintained its existing targets to increase inbound visitor numbers to 60 million up from about 42.7 million in 2025. Annual spending by tourists are expected to rise to 15 trillion yen ($94 billion) by 2030, as compared to approximately 9.5 trillion yen (about US$60 billion) in 2025.
February set a monthly record of around 3.47 million inbound tourists, government estimates show.
With the number of Chinese tourists declining due to strained Japan-China relations, the government plans to focus on attracting more visitors from Europe, the United States, Australia and other regions.
