All visitors to Japan must have a valid passport for the
duration of their stay, but only residents of certain countries
need apply for a visa in advance. Citizens of Austria, Germany,
Ireland, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Switzerland and the UK can stay in
Japan for up to ninety days without a visa provided they are
visiting for tourism or business purposes. This stay can be
extended for another three months
.
Citizens of Argentina, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados,
Belgium, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus,
Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland,
France, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Israel,
Italy, Latvia, Lesotho, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mauritius,
Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San
Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Surinam, Sweden, Tunisia,
Turkey, Uruguay and the USA can also stay for up to ninety days
without a visa, though this is unextendable and you are required to
possess a return airline ticket. Anyone wishing to stay longer will
have to leave the country, then re-enter.
All other nationalities must apply for a visa in advance from
the Japanese embassy or consulate in their own country. These are
usually free, though in certain circumstances you may be charged a
fee of around ¥3000 for a single-entry visa. The rules on visas do
change from time to time, so check first with your embassy or
consulate, or on the Japanese Foreign Ministry Web site (
www.mofa.go.jp/j_info/visit/visa/index.html ), for the
current situation.