Japan has determined to sharply reduce passport charges in an effort to spice up abroad journey and worldwide trade. International Minister Motegi Toshimitsu introduced at a press convention in December 2025 that the federal government will decrease the charge for a 10-year passport from 16,000 yen to 9,000 yen, and scale back the price of a five-year passport issued to these aged 18 or youthful from 11,000 yen to 4,500 yen. In the meantime, a five-year passport for these aged 18 or older might be abolished.
The coverage shift comes as Japan continues to report low passport possession. Japan’s passport is among the many world’s strongest, permitting visa-free journey to 190 locations. Nevertheless, in response to figures launched by the International Ministry in early 2025, as of 2024, the overall variety of legitimate passports stood at about 20.77 million, equal to solely about 16.8 p.c of Japan’s inhabitants of 123 million. Of those holders, 44.8 p.c have been males and 55.2 p.c have been girls, and people aged 30 or youthful accounted for 48 p.c.
Passport issuance has rebounded solely partially from the pandemic stoop. The International Ministry started on-line passport functions in 2023. In 2024, round 3.7 million passports have been issued domestically, an 8.8 p.c enhance from the earlier 12 months however nonetheless 15.2 p.c under the pre-pandemic degree in 2019.
Japan’s passport possession fee hovered at roughly 22-24 p.c all through the 2010s earlier than falling additional in the course of the pandemic, and it has but to get well. It stays strikingly low in contrast with different main economies: 50 p.c within the U.S. and 60 p.c within the U.Ok. It’s also decrease than in close by economies: 60 p.c in Taiwan and 40 p.c in South Korea.
Towards this backdrop, outbound journey has additionally but to get well from the pandemic. The variety of outbound vacationers reached 13,007,000 in 2024, surpassing 10 million for the primary time since 2019. Nevertheless, this nonetheless represents a 35.2 p.c decline from 2019 ranges. In distinction, South Korea and Taiwan have already recovered to pre-pandemic 2019 ranges.
Equally, outbound research stays weak. In keeping with the Japan Scholar Providers Group (JASSO), within the fiscal 12 months by way of March 2023, solely 58,162 college college students participated in short- to mid-term abroad trade packages – about half the quantity recorded in 2018 and 2019. The variety of Japanese college students of all ages learning overseas on a long-term foundation fell to 41,612 in 2022, roughly half the height reached in 2004.
In distinction, Japan’s potential to draw overseas guests and college students has strengthened. In keeping with the Japan Nationwide Tourism Group, the nation welcomed a report greater than 39 million overseas guests in 2025. The Japan Tourism Company additionally reported that annual spending by worldwide guests rose 16.4 p.c 12 months on 12 months to a report 9.5 trillion yen. Most of this spending went to lodging, which totaled 3.5 trillion yen (up 26.7 p.c), adopted by purchasing at 2.5 trillion yen (up 6.4 p.c) and meals and drinks at 2.1 trillion yen (up 18.8 p.c).
By area, Chinese language guests accounted for the most important share of whole spending at 21.2 p.c, adopted by Taiwan (12.8 p.c), the USA (11.9 p.c), South Korea (10.4 p.c), and Hong Kong (5.9 p.c). Though the variety of Chinese language vacationers declined since November 2025 following remarks by Takaichi Sanae on a possible “Taiwan contingency,” China remained the most important supply of customer spending for the 12 months as a complete.
A notable pattern has emerged in Hong Kong, lengthy considered one of many “stickiest” supply markets for inbound tourism to Japan. Knowledge present that greater than 70 p.c of Hong Kong guests in 2023 had visited Japan at the very least 3 times, reflecting an exceptionally excessive repeat-visit fee. Even so, arrivals from Hong Kong in 2025 fell 6.2 p.c year-on-year, making it the one main supply marketplace for Japan to point out unfavorable development final 12 months. This was partly attributable to widespread issues in Hong Kong concerning the threat of a serious earthquake in Japan in July 2025.
On the identical time, in response to JASSO, the nation hosted a report 336,708 worldwide college students as of Might 2024, who enrolled in universities, language colleges, and specialised coaching schools – a rise of 20.6 p.c from the earlier 12 months. Most got here from Asia, with China, Nepal, and Vietnam accounting for the highest three international locations. The variety of overseas college students in Japan had risen steadily from 2013, reaching 312,000 in 2019. After a decline in the course of the pandemic, it resumed development, hitting a report excessive in 2024.
Monetary pressures together with persistent inflation and weak yen seem like a significant component behind the low passport possession fee. A 2024 survey by JTB Company, Japan’s largest journey company, discovered that about 17 p.c of respondents stated yen weak spot and inflation prevented them from touring, whereas some 13 p.c cited security issues.
Additionally, 45 p.c of respondents, each women and men, indicated that they’d journey “if the yen appreciates.” In contrast, amongst males below 30, 45 p.c stated they’d journey abroad whatever the trade fee, or would accomplish that if the journey have been fascinating even with the yen weaker than 150 to the greenback.
Amongst girls below 30, 44 p.c stated they didn’t know what constituted an affordable trade fee for abroad journey or had by no means considered it, whereas a further 30 p.c stated they’d journey whatever the trade fee, or even when it have been weaker than 150 to the greenback. These figures counsel that youthful generations appear much less delicate to present trade charges when making selections about abroad journey. It’s price noting that in 2024, the outbound journey fee for Japanese girls of their 20s was 29.4 p.c, which was considerably greater than different gender and age teams.
Yen depreciation has been acknowledged as an necessary driver of cost-push inflation. The yen has misplaced a couple of third of its worth for the reason that finish of 2019, pushed largely by the vast hole in rates of interest and bond yields between Japan and the USA stemming from their divergent financial insurance policies.
The U.S. Federal Reserve aggressively raised rates of interest to fight excessive inflation, whereas the Financial institution of Japan maintained ultra-low charges for years to stimulate its financial system. This rate of interest hole has made “carry trades” – borrowing in low-interest-rate yen and investing in higher-yielding greenback property – extremely enticing, boosting demand for the greenback and weakening the yen.
Excessive vitality and commodity import prices, and Takaichi’s coverage stances of proactive fiscal enlargement, particularly in “strategic industries” and “disaster administration,” which rely closely on overseas imports, have additional added stress on the foreign money.
Language stays one other necessary deterrent for Japanese journey overseas. EF Schooling First, a Swiss training firm, ranked Japan 96th globally and seventeenth out of 25 Asian economies in its 2025 English Proficiency Index, inserting the nation within the lowest “very low” class. Japan’s rating was corresponding to these of Mongolia and Afghanistan, and nicely behind Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, South Korea, India, and China.
How efficient Japan’s plan to chop passport charges might be in boosting worldwide journey and research stays uncertain and is more likely to be largely symbolic. With the yen nonetheless weak, together with a long-standing desire for home journey, passport acquisition and outbound journey and research are unlikely to rise considerably. A big share of outbound journey is more likely to proceed to be pushed by youthful folks, who seem much less delicate to exchange-rate fluctuations when making journey selections and have a tendency to have stronger English expertise. This sample is being strengthened as extra Japanese universities transfer to develop English-taught programs.
