Japan grants visa-free entry to citizens of 74 countries and regions for short-term stays. The list below follows the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of Japan notice dated September 1, 2025, which is still the latest version.
> Official source: MOFA — Exemption of Visa (Short-Term Stay) · Last updated by MOFA: September 1, 2025
All 74 countries and regions
Most nationalities get 90 days; Brunei and Qatar get 30 days, and Indonesia and Thailand 15 days. Seven nationalities can stay up to 6 months with an extension. Click a country for its own page.
| Country / region | Stay | Passport condition |
|---|---|---|
| Asia (9) | ||
| Brunei | 30 days | — |
| Hong Kong | 90 days | HKSAR passport, or BNO passport with Hong Kong right of residence |
| Indonesia | 15 days | ePassport pre-registered with a Japanese mission |
| Macao | 90 days | Macao SAR passport only |
| Malaysia | 90 days | ICAO ePassport (other passports: visa advised) |
| Singapore | 90 days | — |
| South Korea | 90 days | — |
| Taiwan | 90 days | Passport with a personal ID number |
| Thailand | 15 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Middle East (4) | ||
| Israel | 90 days | — |
| Qatar | 30 days | ePassport pre-registered with a Japanese mission |
| Turkey | 90 days | Machine-readable passport (others: visa advised) |
| United Arab Emirates | 90 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Europe (38) | ||
| Andorra | 90 days | — |
| Austria | 90 days | Can extend to 6 months |
| Belgium | 90 days | — |
| Bulgaria | 90 days | — |
| Croatia | 90 days | — |
| Cyprus | 90 days | — |
| Czech Republic | 90 days | — |
| Denmark | 90 days | — |
| Estonia | 90 days | — |
| Finland | 90 days | — |
| France | 90 days | — |
| Germany | 90 days | Can extend to 6 months |
| Greece | 90 days | — |
| Hungary | 90 days | — |
| Iceland | 90 days | — |
| Ireland | 90 days | Can extend to 6 months |
| Italy | 90 days | — |
| Latvia | 90 days | — |
| Liechtenstein | 90 days | Can extend to 6 months |
| Lithuania | 90 days | — |
| Luxembourg | 90 days | — |
| Malta | 90 days | — |
| Monaco | 90 days | — |
| Montenegro | 90 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Netherlands | 90 days | — |
| North Macedonia | 90 days | — |
| Norway | 90 days | — |
| Poland | 90 days | — |
| Portugal | 90 days | — |
| Romania | 90 days | — |
| San Marino | 90 days | — |
| Serbia | 90 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Slovakia | 90 days | — |
| Slovenia | 90 days | — |
| Spain | 90 days | — |
| Sweden | 90 days | — |
| Switzerland | 90 days | Can extend to 6 months |
| United Kingdom | 90 days | Can extend to 6 months |
| Americas (18) | ||
| Argentina | 90 days | — |
| Bahamas | 90 days | — |
| Barbados | 90 days | Machine-readable passport (others: visa advised) |
| Brazil | 90 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Canada | 90 days | — |
| Chile | 90 days | — |
| Costa Rica | 90 days | — |
| Dominican Republic | 90 days | — |
| El Salvador | 90 days | — |
| Guatemala | 90 days | — |
| Honduras | 90 days | — |
| Mexico | 90 days | Can extend to 6 months |
| Panama | 90 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Paraguay | 90 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Peru | 90 days | ICAO ePassport required |
| Suriname | 90 days | — |
| United States | 90 days | — |
| Uruguay | 90 days | Old-version passport only |
| Africa (3) | ||
| Lesotho | 90 days | Machine-readable passport (others: visa advised) |
| Mauritius | 90 days | — |
| Tunisia | 90 days | — |
| Oceania (2) | ||
| Australia | 90 days | — |
| New Zealand | 90 days | — |
Passport conditions in detail (MOFA notes)
- Hong Kong: only holders of a Hong Kong SAR passport, or of a British National Overseas (BNO) passport whose holder has the right of residence in Hong Kong.
- Macao: Macao SAR passport holders only.
- Taiwan: only passports that show the holder's personal ID number.
- ICAO ePassport required (no registration): Montenegro (since September 1, 2025), Peru (since July 1, 2025), Paraguay (since June 1, 2025), Panama (since April 1, 2024), Brazil (since September 30, 2023), United Arab Emirates (since November 1, 2022), Thailand (since July 1, 2013) and Serbia (since May 1, 2011). Without such an ePassport you must get a visa in advance — otherwise you will be refused entry.
- Malaysia: ICAO-compliant ePassport holders only (since July 1, 2013). Holders of other passports are advised to get a visa in advance; otherwise they are strictly examined and may be refused entry.
- Machine-readable passport (MRP) required: Barbados (since April 1, 2010), Türkiye (since April 1, 2011) and Lesotho (since April 1, 2010). Without an ICAO-compliant MRP you are advised to get a visa in advance; otherwise you are strictly examined and may be refused entry.
- Indonesia and Qatar — ePassport registration: the ICAO-compliant ePassport must be registered in advance with a Japanese embassy or consulate (for Indonesia, one in Indonesia). The registration is valid for 3 years or until the passport expires, whichever comes first. (Indonesia since December 1, 2014; Qatar since April 2, 2023.)
- Up to 6 months: Austria, Germany, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Switzerland and the UK. You are admitted for 90 days; to stay longer, apply for an extension at the Regional Immigration Services Bureau before the 90 days run out.
- Uruguay: the new Uruguayan passport issued after April 16, 2025, with no "place of birth" on the data page, is not recognised as valid by the Japanese government, so it cannot be used to travel to Japan at all. Holders of the old-version passport remain visa-exempt — even if that old-version passport was issued after April 16, 2025.
Countries NOT on the visa-free list
- Colombia — MOFA advises Colombian nationals to obtain a visa in advance; otherwise they are strictly examined and may be refused entry. (Since February 1, 2004.)
- China (PRC) — visa required. See Can Chinese passports get Japan visa-free?
- India — visa required; tourists can apply online via JAPAN eVISA
- Philippines and Vietnam — visa required
- Russia, most African countries and most of the Middle East — visa required; check your nationality on the By Country pages
Before you fly: entry checklist
- Purpose: tourism, business meetings, conferences, visiting friends or relatives — no paid work during a visa-free stay.
- Passport: valid for your whole stay (Japan has no six-month rule), and of the type your nationality needs (see the table).
- Onward ticket and money: immigration officers may ask for a return or onward ticket and proof that you can pay for the stay.
- Visit Japan Web: register before you fly to get QR codes for the immigration and customs forms; otherwise you fill in the paper forms.
- On arrival: most foreign visitors aged 16 and over give fingerprints and a face photo, and the immigration officer decides the length of stay you are granted.
Coming: JESTA pre-travel authorisation
Japan is creating JESTA (Japan Electronic System for Travel Authorization), an online pre-screening similar to the US ESTA. The amendment to the Immigration Control Act that creates it was passed by the Diet on May 29, 2026 and promulgated on June 5, 2026; the JESTA provisions take effect on a date set by Cabinet Order no later than March 31, 2029. Once it starts, visa-exempt visitors coming for short stays such as tourism will have to submit their details online — such as occupation and purpose of travel — and be approved before travelling to Japan. The start date and how to apply have not been announced yet. Until then nothing changes: the visa exemption above applies as it is.
> Source: Immigration Services Agency — 2026 amendment to the Immigration Control Act