Update · 2026-05-30

Japan passes immigration bill — residency fee caps up to ¥300,000, JESTA pre-entry system coming

On May 30, 2026, Japan's parliament raised statutory caps for visa renewals (to ¥100,000) and permanent residency (to ¥300,000) and authorized a new online pre-arrival authorization system (JESTA) launching fiscal 2028. Short-term tourist visa fees are unchanged.

Japan's parliament passed an amended Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act on May 30, 2026. The bill does two big things: it raises the statutory ceiling on long-stay visa fees by an order of magnitude, and it authorizes a new ESTA-style online pre-entry screening system for visa-exempt travelers. Here's what's actually in it and what's not.

What changed: the fee caps

The bill raises the statutory upper limits for immigration procedure fees. These are caps — not the actual fees. The actual fees will be set later by cabinet order after a public-comment period:

Procedure	Old cap	New cap
Visa renewal · status change · period extension	¥6,000	¥100,000
Permanent residency application	¥10,000	¥300,000

Multiples are stark — 16.7× for visa renewals, 30× for permanent residency. The Immigration Services Agency has signaled the actual fees won't go straight to the cap; expect a tiered structure scaled to length of stay.

Expected actual fees (per Immigration Services Agency guidance)

Residence of 3 months or less: around ¥10,000
1-year status: around ¥20,000–30,000
3-year status: around ¥60,000
5-year status: around ¥70,000
Permanent residency: around ¥200,000

These figures are guidance, not law. Final amounts arrive with the cabinet order later in 2026.

JESTA — the new pre-arrival authorization

The bill establishes the Japan Electronic System for Travel Authorization (JESTA), modeled on the US ESTA and the EU's ETIAS. Implementation is planned for fiscal 2028.

Who it applies to: citizens of the 74 countries and regions that currently qualify for visa-free short-stay entry to Japan
What you'll do: submit name, purpose of visit, and intended destination through an online system several days before departure
Why: stated aims are preventing terrorism and illegal employment
Enforcement: if pre-arrival screening flags suspected overstay risk, airlines and shipping carriers will deny boarding

For visa-exempt travelers — including US, Canadian, UK, EU, Australian, New Zealand, South Korean, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan passport holders — this means the visa-free flow you know today will get an extra step. The visa-free entitlement isn't going away; you'll just need a confirmed JESTA authorization before you board.

Who's not affected

Short-term tourist visa fees for travelers from visa-required countries (mainland China, India, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, most of Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America) are not in this bill. Those fees are set under a separate framework. If you're applying for a standard tourist visa to Japan today, the application process and fee schedule aren't changing because of this legislation.

Why the change

Japan's foreign-resident population has grown sharply since the pandemic. The Immigration Services Agency has framed the fee hikes as a way to offset rising administrative and operational costs and to fund:

Immigration system infrastructure
Japanese-language education programs
Social integration services

The bill cleared the House of Representatives on April 28, 2026, and final passage came on May 30, 2026.

What to do

If you're currently navigating Japan's immigration system, two practical takes:

Long-stay applicants: if you're planning a permanent-residency application or a major status change in the next 12–18 months, the fee schedule is still being finalized. Watch for the cabinet order. The expected ¥200,000 permanent-residency fee is roughly 20× today's ¥10,000 — material if you're budgeting.
Short-term visitors: nothing changes immediately. From fiscal 2028, expect to apply for JESTA before you fly. We'll update this page when the JESTA application portal opens and the fee structure is confirmed.

Quick FAQ

Does this affect my next tourist trip to Japan? No. Short-term tourist visa fees aren't in this bill. If you're from a visa-exempt country, you still enter visa-free until JESTA goes live in fiscal 2028.

When will the new long-stay fees actually apply? After the cabinet order is issued, which is expected later in 2026 following a public-comment period.

Will the maximum fees (¥100,000 / ¥300,000) be the actual fees? Unlikely — the Immigration Services Agency has indicated tiered amounts well below the caps for most cases. The caps give the government headroom to adjust.

Is JESTA a visa? No. It's a pre-travel authorization, similar in concept to the US ESTA. It doesn't replace visas for travelers who need one; it adds an online step for travelers who currently don't.