Japan closes door tighter to tourists while Korea opens up for more visitors

Japan is tightening entry rules for Chinese visitors while Korea is easing them, a contrast that highlights diverging strategies toward tourism and relations with Beijing as both countries seek to balance economic benefits with domestic and diplomatic priorities.

Earlier this month, Japan announced that it will raise visa application fees for foreign visitors, including Chinese tourists, by up to fivefold starting July 1. But for Korea, the government decided to extend the visa-free entry program for Chinese group tourists, which was set to expire this month, for another six months.

The Japanese government approved the fee increase on June 19. The fee for a single-entry visa will rise from 3,000 yen ($19) to 15,000 yen, while the fee for a multiple-entry visa will rise from 6,000 yen to 30,000 yen. It is the first revision in 48 years since 1978.

"The fee increase has become unavoidable after 48 years due to factors including inflation and fluctuations in exchange rates," Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said at a regular briefing.

The Japanese government plans to use an additional annual tax revenue of about 120 billion yen to fund foreign-resident administration and measures against illegal overstays.

The fee increase will apply to nationals of more than 100 countries, including China, India and Vietnam, who require visas to enter Japan. Visitors from Korea, Taiwan, the United States and Europe are exempt because they already receive visa-free entry.

Given the scale of visitors, analysts say the measure is effectively aimed at China. China sent 9.1 million visitors to Japan last year, making it the second-largest source of tourists after Korea, which sent 9.5 million visitors.

Chinese tourists, however, ranked No. 1 in total spending at 2 trillion yen, which accounted for 21.2 percent of all tourist spending. Taiwan followed with 963.8 billion yen (about 9.1 trillion won), the United States with 913.9 billion yen (about 8.7 trillion won) and Korea with 876.7 billion yen (about 8.3 trillion won).

The Japanese government "does not expect the measure to immediately affect inbound tourism," according to Motegi. Nomura Securities, however, estimated that the higher fees will reduce annual visitor arrivals by about 1.7 percent, or 630,000 people, while lowering per capita spending by about 2.0 percent. As a result, total tourist spending is expected to fall by about 284 billion yen annually, with most of the decline attributed to fewer Chinese tourists.

Even so, observers say the Japanese government's decision reflects a combination of multiple factors, namely concerns over overtourism, worsening relations with China and a tougher approach to immigration policy. Some analysts also believe that even if the number of Chinese tourists declines, the impact will be offset by the rapid increase in overall visitor arrivals, which are approaching 40 million annually.

In April, the number of Chinese visitors fell 56.8 percent from a year earlier, while arrivals from Korea rose 21.7 percent and those from Taiwan increased 19.7 percent. As a result, the total number of foreign visitors declined by only 5.5 percent.

Korea, by contrast, has chosen to ease restrictions.

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in the northeastern Chinese city of Dalian on Tuesday to discuss expanding people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. During the meeting, Kim stated that Korea would extend the visa-free entry program for Chinese group tourists, according to the Prime Minister's Office.

The move is widely seen as reflecting the Lee Jae Myung administration's emphasis on managing relations with China, in contrast to the Sanae Takaichi administration in Japan, which has taken a markedly tougher stance toward Beijing.

Relations between Korea and China have been improving since the summit and APEC event held last year. In particular, spending by Chinese tourists has rebounded after nearly a decade of stagnation, following China's unofficial restrictions on Korean cultural content imposed in response to Korea allowing the United States to deploy its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense to the country in 2017. Chinese visitors to Korea now spend an average of 2.24 million won ($1,450) per person, about twice the 1.11 million won average spending of Chinese tourists in Japan.

BY YOU SEONG-UN [[email protected]]