No. of Chinese Visitors to Japan Jumps 6.6-fold

The number of Japanese entry visas issued to Chinese tourists has jumped 6.6-fold this month year-on-year after Tokyo eased entry requirements to attract more Chinese visitors, the Asahi Shimbun said Thursday.

Japan National Tourism Organization said a daily average of 378 tourist visas were issued to Chinese July 8-23, up from 57 over the same period last year.

On July 1, Japan relaxed visa rules by cutting the salary requirement to 60,000 yuan (8,848 U.S. dollars) or more per year for a Chinese to be eligible for a tourist visa, a significant drop from the previous standard of 250,000 yuan (36,867 dollars). Users of gold-class credit cards also qualify regardless of income.

If a Chinese householder receives a tourist visa, his or her spouse and children will also qualify.

Chinese can now apply for entry visas to Japan in Shenyang, Dalian, Qingdao and Chongqing in addition to Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

The latest report by the Japan tourism organization said around 700,000 Chinese visited Japan for travel in the year’s first half, up 47.4 percent year-on-year. Given that the eased visa rules have been implemented from this month, the number of Chinese visitors to Japan is expected to shoot up further.

jkmas@donga.com