Nigerians, other foreign nationals to pay more as Japan hikes visa fees

The Japanese government has approved a significant increase in visa fees for Nigerians and other foreign nationals following a revision of a related Cabinet order.

According to Japan Times, the decision was adopted at a Cabinet meeting on Friday, marking the first adjustment to Japan’s visa fees in 48 years since they were introduced in 1978.

Under the new fee structure, the cost of a single-entry visa will increase from ¥3,000 ($18.60) to ¥15,000 ($92.99), while a multiple-entry visa will rise from ¥6,000 ($37.20) to ¥30,000 ($187.97).

The revised charges will take effect for visa applications submitted on or after July 1.

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Speaking at a news conference on Friday, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said the increase was necessary to reflect decades of inflation and exchange rate changes.

“The current visa fee was set in 1978, and we have recently revised it to reflect inflation and exchange rate fluctuations since then.

“We made this decision after carefully considering various factors, and we do not anticipate that it will have an immediate impact on inbound tourism,” he said.

Motegi added that the government does not expect the higher fees to have an immediate impact on inbound tourism.

The development follows the passage of a bill by Japan’s Upper House last month to increase visa-related charges for foreign nationals by as much as 30 times current levels. The legislation had earlier been approved by the Lower House in April.

Japanese authorities said the move is aimed at generating additional revenue to cover the administrative costs associated with the country’s growing foreign population.

Before the revision, the maximum fee for changing residency status or extending a stay was ¥10,000, while permanent residency applications were capped at the same amount. The new law raises those ceilings to ¥100,000 and ¥300,000 respectively.

Under the updated framework, the government plans to increase fees for residency status changes and stay extensions from the current ¥5,500–¥6,000 range to between ¥10,000 and ¥70,000. Permanent residency application fees are also expected to jump from ¥10,000 to ¥200,000.

The changes are expected to be implemented before the end of the next fiscal year on March 31, 2027.

Officials said the additional funds will be used to manage Japan’s record foreign resident population, which stood at 4.13 million at the end of 2025, expand Japanese-language education programmes and strengthen efforts to tackle illegal overstayers.

The government also argued that the revised charges would bring Japan’s visa and residency-related fees closer to those imposed by many Western countries.

Visa renewal fees in the United States, for example, range between $420 and $470, while similar charges in Germany range from €93 to €98.