Japan raises visa fees for Vietnamese travelers up to fivefold

From 1 July, Japan will increase visa fees for Vietnamese applicants by about five times. A single‑entry visa will rise from VND 520,000 ($19.7) to VND 2.59 million ($98.5) and a multiple‑entry visa from VND 1.03 million to VND 5.17 million ($196.5). In yen terms, fees move from 3,000 yen to 15,000 yen for single entry and from 6,000 yen to 30,000 yen for multiple entry.

The government says the hike reflects five decades of inflation, exchange‑rate shifts and the true administrative cost of processing visas. Additional revenue will fund staffing, technology, infrastructure and Japanese‑language training for foreign residents, as well as tighter monitoring of overstays. Officials expect the higher cost to have little effect on inbound tourism, noting that Japan welcomed 3.65 million international visitors in May, a 3.6 % drop year‑on‑year, with Vietnamese arrivals at 58,000, down 2.1 % but up 9.1 % from January‑May compared with last year.