Planning a trip to Japan? Good for you! Japan is one of my favorite countries to visit and I’m sure you’ll have a magical time there.
Recently, Japan has finally allowed visitors to apply for a Japanese tourist visa online, through a system called the Japan eVISA system. Before the release of this new system, if you need a tourist visa to enter Japan, you’ll have to physically apply in person at the Embassy of Japan. It was such a time-consuming process and I’m glad they finally allowed us to apply online!
Much like the regular short-term visa, the Japan eVisa lets you stay in Japan for a period of 90 days, and for the purpose of tourism. It is valid for entry within 3 months from the date of issue. Meaning, you can enter Japan any time within 3 months after the date of issue, and then you can stay for 90 days after your first day in Japan.
However, it’s worth noting that you can only apply for a single entry for eVisa. If you would like to get a multiple-entry visa, you’ll still need to make an appointment at the embassy and apply in person.
As of the time of writing, only residents (not to be confused with citizens) in the following 10 countries and are required to obtain a short-term visa on visiting Japan are eligible to apply for the Japan eVisa:
Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Taiwan, United Kingdom, U.S.A.
PS: This is a growing list of countries, so be sure to check the latest complete list from MoFA here.
Also, please be aware that I bolded the word “residents” above. This is done on purpose so that you will not confuse it as citizens/passport holders of the countries I listed. You only need to be a legal resident in that country.
For example, if you are a Singaporean and hold a Singapore passport, you do not need to apply for a visa to Japan. However, if you are an Indonesian passport holder legally residing in Singapore (on a work visa or holding permanent resident status for example), you could apply for eVisa since Singapore is one of the countries listed. BUT, If you are an Indonesian passport holder residing in Indonesia, you’ll still need to apply for Japan visa through the Embassy.
Typically, it costs 3,000 yen to obtain the visa. However, it depends on the agreement Japan might have with each country. Citizens of certain countries are exempt from paying visa fees, and therefore also exempt from the eVisa fees.
Visa Fees: You can refer to the website of the Embassy of Japan in your country for more information regarding Visa fees. Here are the visa fees from the Embassy of Japan in Singapore, for example.
Applying for the visa was a long process, but it’s quite easy! I’ll break down step by step for you here:
First, you can read up about the Japan eVisa system here.
As I explained before, the eVisa is currently only available for single-entry tourism, for a maximum stay of 90 days. If you would like to get a multiple-entry visa, or if you want to stay longer than 90 days, or visit Japan for reasons other than tourism, you’ll still need to make an appointment at the embassy and apply in person.
If you have decided that you would like to apply for the visa electronically, then you can proceed to check the necessary documents here.
When applying for a tourist visa, you will need:
Make sure that you have all the documents scanned and available as a PDF file on your laptop or computer. Jpg, bmp, gif, and heic file formats are also accepted.
Once you have all the necessary documents scanned, you can then proceed to the Japan eVisa portal here.
You will need to create an account by providing email and password. Please keep this credential safe somewhere. You MUST remember this information to check on the visa status later. You’ll also only be able to download the visa issuance (once the visa has been approved) by logging in to the account.
Each time you log in, they’ll send an authentication code to the email, so also make sure you’re providing a legit email that you have access to.
Once you have created the account, log in to the eVisa portal and click on “New Registration”. From here onward, start filling in the form and uploading the documents you have prepared in Step 2.
For the most part, I did not have issues uploading the documents.
Once your application has been submitted, you can monitor the status in the Japan eVisa portal here, using the same credentials you created back in Step 3.
After you’ve submitted your application, you should be able to see it under “Visa Application List” menu.
You should also look out for any emails requesting additional documents. In my case, they came back and asked me to redo my Schedule of Stay as I did not furnish enough details for the planned activities. So the second time around, I made sure to include everything and where I was planning to stay. I was also honest that some of the trips within Japan are still in the planning stage and put “TBD” as places to stay as I did not know yet. They were okay with it!
Once the eVisa has been issued, you’ll receive an email. Log back into the eVisa portal and follow the instructions to make a payment. The visa fees will differ depending on the passport you are holding.
When the payment has been received, you’ll be able to download your visa issuance notice from the eVisa portal. To do this, click on the check box to the left of the visa application, and click on the “Visa Issuance Notice (pdf)” blue button at the bottom.
And that’s all! Fill out Visit Japan Web a few days before your trip, and you’re all set for your trip to Japan. You can print the pdf if you’d like, or keep a copy on your phone and be ready to display it when required.
Timing will vary depending on your situation, the volume of applications, and also perhaps what passport you hold and which country you are applying from.
From my application from Singapore in October 2023, here is the timeline from application to approval:
7 October | Applied for the Japan eVisa online (Status: Temporarily Received) |
18 October | Received an email to submit additional documents. In my case, they wanted the Schedule of Stay to be more detailed. (Status: Under Examination) |
19 October | Additional documents acknowledged |
24 October | eVisa issued |
It took roughly 17 days (or 12 business days) to get the eVisa issued. I was getting restless… because for 11 days, the status of the visa did not change. It was still the same “Temporarily Received” status and I was beginning to wonder if I did something wrong.
Finally, just as I was about to shoot them an email to chase, I received the request to submit an additional document. From then, it took only 5 business days to get the eVisa issued.
This is a much longer processing time than the previous procedure which only took 5 business days. But given the convenience of not having to show up physically at the Embassy of Japan, I didn’t mind it.
As I have previously said, this wait time for eVisa could be longer when there is an influx of travelers to Japan. You can browse the comments in this post to see other people’s experiences when applying for their Japan eVisa.
To be safe, I would apply for the eVisa at least 1.5 months before your planned date of travel to Japan.
If you’re visiting during popular time (Sakura time, school holidays, etc) then make sure you get it done 2 months before.
If you find that your eVisa is still not issued and it’s almost time for your travel to Japan, you can try doing the manual visa application via the Japanese embassy. The experience for this varies depending on your country of residence, so I can only speak for Singapore.
In Singapore, you’ll need an appointment to apply for the visa in person at the Japanese Embassy at Nassim Road. This appointment is highly coveted and they’re booked out months in advance. However, people do cancel last minute so I advise you to keep checking.
If you manage to get an appointment, it will take only 5 business days to get your visa approved, provided you have all the documents.
If you can’t secure an appointment at the Japanese embassy, you can try paying a travel agent to apply for your visa. I have not used them personally so I can’t vouch for them, but I have friends who have used JA Travel and they can get you a Japan visa for S$100.
… And that’s about everything I know about applying for the Japan eVisa! Please let me know if you have comments!
Are you planning a trip to Japan? I’ve written loads about the beautiful country. Check out the ‘Japan’ category of this blog for some travel inspiration.
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Filed under: Japan, Travel TipsHi there! 👋🏻 I'm the "Girl" in Girl Eat World. I love eating, traveling and sharing my travel experiences in this blog. During the day, I work as a designer in tech. More about me →
Hi i’m planning to go to Japan next year, is the eVISA application is only for those who have e-passport? or standard passport can also apply through eVISA? I’m Indonesian currently staying in SG with S pass. Also, getting appointment to the Japan Embassy is very difficult and slots are always fully booked.
Melissa saysHey Tiff – The Indonesia e-passport would grant you visa exemption to Japan. It’s different that eVisa. Anyone can apply for eVisa as long as you’re residing in the approved country. Singapore is one of the approved countries so you can apply for eVisa if you have the ordinary Indonesia passport (non e-passport)
Ok! Thank you so much for replying
Melissa saysNo worries Tiff, aku orang Indo juga, jadi aku ngerti susahnya kalo mesti apply visa kemana2. Have fun in Japan!
I have applied evisa in Singapore.
My timeline:
30 July 2024: Submitted application -> Temporarily Received
06 Aug 2024: Under Examination
07 Aug 2024: Visa Issued (Free of Charge) PH passport
Question, my date of expiry is Nov 7, 2024. So I must enter Japan by Nov 6 or Nov 7 still can enter? As my travel companion only touch down Japan by Nov 8.
Thank you!
You can enter 7 Nov I think, but best to shoot them an email to make sure. I’m not sure what the relevance of 8 Nov in your case but definitely can’t enter by 8 Nov.
Yeah that would be the best thing to do, ask the Embassy to make sure. Thanks! My companion is travelling from the US so only can reach Japan by Nov. 8. Guess I need to travel solo for 1 or 2 days earlier. Goodluck to me! Hahaha
Melissa saysYou’ll be fine 🙂 Japan is really easy to travel solo in. I have done it many times!
Hi everyone! My partner and I just received our e-visa today, just thought I’d leave a comment here with our process to hopefully give even more info to this already super informative and helpful blog post + comment thread! I’m an S-Pass holder and my partner a Student in NUS grad school.
We weren’t asked to provide additional documents so here’s just a few tips I saw around different forums – this post also (and applied them). It helps to have a detailed itinerary, mostly for each day of the trip I would either say ‘Visit to Ikebukuro area’ or ‘Shopping at Akihabara’ – things like that, and I included transportation between cities too. For the bank statement I know the file limit is quite insane (at least for those who choose not to upload their IRAS income tax notice), try to ask for e-statement from your bank and combine them all into 1 pdf. I did for 3 months of statement. Usually the pdf provided by your bank should be very small in size.
I’m not sure about off-peak periods but I applied exactly 2 months in advance, and received my visa after 18 working days (on the 18th day). Just a bit shy of 1 month (4 days). Definitely don’t do this thing last minute as it takes so long for the application to turn to ‘under examination’. After turning to this state tho it takes exactly 5 working days I think, counting both the day you’ll receive it and the day the status changed (it was for me and some redditors). On reddit there’s even info that if you get rejected then it’ll be within 2 days of the status change, if it passes this mark then it should be issued.
My timeline:
13th April 2024: Submitted application -> Temporarily Received
2nd May 2024: Under Examination
8th May 2024: Asked to pay Visa issuance fee + Visa Issued (within a few hours after paying the fees online)
My partner’s timeline is identical as we submit at about the same time. I would say at the beginning I was quite paranoid and was a bit doubtful of the e-visa thing, especially knowing if somehow we manage to book and appointment at the embassy it would only take 5 working days, but gladly it turns out all okay. I did manage to get an appointment at the embassy for 17th May in case my e-visa application takes too long. The key is to just visit everyday and it will release slots for the following month on a specific day (on 17th April I got the slot for 17th May, they opened some slots from beginning of May to 17th May).
That’s all for me! Sorry if it’s long haha and pls feel free to ignore if y’all knew all of this before 🙂 Thank you Melissa for the wonderful blog post + all the people who contributed to it by commenting their application process!
Thank you this is very useful!
Melissa saysHi Zig, thank you so much for taking the time to write this very useful information!
Claire saysJust submitted an application yesterday, for the bank statement section in particular I noticed the site only allows you to upload one file. Is it okay to upload just your past one month bank estatement? The checklist said to submit the past two months but there wasn’t an option to upload two files, realised only after I submitted that I should have merged the two months files together TT.
Melissa saysHey Claire, I never uploaded my bank statement. I’ve always used my tax document instead. If the checklist says 2 months, you might want to merge the two files and reupload the file. However, doing so might delay the application (I don’t know for sure but it seems every time you upload a new file it changes the status of the application, which makes me think it pushes the application to the back of the queue?)
Just wondering if anyone applied the eVisa on or around 8 April 2024?
I am flying on 12 May 2024 and my eVisa status is still “temporarily received” as of today. It’d be great if anyone can share any updates to their recent applications?
I applied on March-29th and mine changed to under examination on April -17th. No update on Visa yet, but I believe my delay was due to me uploading additional documents without them asking for it.
Hi Devi
are you able to get your visa?
i also uploaded additional requirements without them asking for it..
Still my visa status not moving..
Have you managed to get visa Japan?
Thank you, Melissa! What an amazing work you did! 🙌
I also want to share my experience with the E-Visa application process. 🛂
The timeline is as follows:
12th April: Date of Application
13th April: Temporarily Received
14th April: Under examination
15th April: Under examination
I am planning to visit Japan by 20th April. I know I am very late with my submission. 😅
In my case, I will be in the middle of my trip. My strategy is called “Fingers crossed!” If I get the approval, I will take the flight from where am at.
Let’s hope! 🤞
Hey ID, where are you applying from? that seems to matter as well.
Hi – I also want to share my experience for the E-Visa application process.
Background: Me (SG) and my girlfriend (PH) applied visa on same date. I applied thru E-visa while she applied thru an agency in PH. Both of us have had JP visas granted previously prior to this application.
Original Departure Date: 5th April
New Departure Date: 12th April (Re-booking incurs additional cost so sad)
Timeline is as follows:
17th Mar: Date of Application
18th Mar: Temporarily Received
4th Apr: Additional Documents Required (At this point, Me and my girlfriend had to re-book everything 🙁 )
5th Apr: Under Examination
10th Apr: Still Under Examination…
Total Working Days/Total Days: 16 / 25
Notes:
– Don’t apply for E-visa if you have option to go via travel agency. From what I heard, these agencies hoard the appointment in JP Embassy (though this will incur an additional cost).
– If only E-visa is your option, apply at least 2 months before. The entire waiting process is such a pain. I can’t can’t even control my anxiety.
– Ensure the Documents you submit are within the same month of application. This is a no brainier but happened to me. Mixed up some requirements from another visa application. Documents I submitted were dated February.
– Most importantly: PLAN ALL YOU CAN IN ADVANCE! Ensure you have a backup plan. For example, for my case, I had a chance to go to JP embassy 28th Mar but I was very much trusting the process of the E-visa so I still waited for the E-visa.
PS: Please pray we get the visa on Friday.
Melissa saysHey Jun. Sorry to hear that, and thanks for your data points. I’ll be sure to apply earlier next time.
After the additional documents have been received, it should only take 5 business days to get your visa approved. I hope you’ll get it tomorrow.
12th Apr: Got my visa around 3:28pm.
Funny story, was about to rebook all flights/accommodation again to July / August then got the notification email indicating my visa is approved. Rushed home to finish packing then was able to catch my 10pm flight. Almost brought my old passport lol!
PS: Thanks again for this blog Melissa. I wish i read this a lot sooner.
Melissa saysWow amazing Jun! I was thinking about you. I hope you enjoyed Japan
Febriana saysHi Melissa, thanks for sharing your experience. I am so glad that I found your post here. I’ve planned to go to Japan on 26th April and submitted my application on 21st Mar, but till today (2nd April) my status is still “temporarily received” and I’m panicking now, since my trip is coming in 3 weeks. I am so worried that I would be unable to get my Visa on time and I’m not sure if I should email them to query. Furthermore, I also realized that I submitted “hotel booking confirmation” instead of “scheduled of stay”. Do you think I still have ample time to wait or proceed to apply via agent? Thanks alot!
My application status has finally “under examination (additional documents attached)” after I resubmitted my schedule of stay. But this was not requested by the embassy,I initiated to submit since it was “temporarily received”for almost 2 weeks. Not sure if the status changed coincidentally or it has been processed by the embassy. Does anyone has similiar experience?
Hi ive been following your application process as I also am waiting for updates to mine. I submitted last Mar 25th and still temporarily received until now 6th Apr. I hope you continue to post and share your visa journey!
Melissa saysI’m not sure, but it could be related. Schedule of stay is always required, so they would have asked you for it anyway when your application gets processed.
Devika saysHey, I did the same thing was there any update to your visa status ? Because when I going through the faqs on evisa portal they suggested we don’t upload anything new unless asked for and I am worried. It’s been 15 days and mine is still under examination
Cyrus saysMay I know, when the application was submitted and when the status changed to under examination. I have applied the e-visa on 21-Mar-2024 and the status changed to under examination on 08-Apr-2024.
May I check what’s the status of your visa now? I recently uploaded additional documents (without them asking for it) and my status is updated to “under examination (additional documents attached)”. If you could share how long does it take from there to get the visa approved, it’d be much appreciated. Thanks a lot!
alexandra saysI panicked and did the same thing and got worried. Did you get any updates?
I got an appointment in the embassy last minute 2 days ago so I decided to apply there. However, the eVisa section did get back to me on Wednesday (24 April) requesting for PR documents. I informed them that I have submitted via the embassy and would like to cancel my eVisa application.
Alexandra saysHi JT, ah ok. Did you manage to get the appointment via the booking system or did you call in? And any idea if the upload of additional documents cause any issue? 😅 just hoping that i’m still on track to receive the visa as i’m flying on the 17th
I managed to get the appointment via the booking system. From what I notice, you can check every morning to see if there’s available slots for the same day (I got my appointment through this method). Just be prepared to have all the documents printed. I believe that it took me 12 working days from my application (including the days where i submitted additional documents without being asked) to the point the eVisa team contacted me to get the additional documents. From thereon, I suppose 5 working days is sufficient for your eVisa to get approved.
If you manage to get the appointment to the embassy, it would take 5 working days (including the day when you submitted) to get the visa.
Hope the above helps.
Hi Feb, wondering if you got your visa in time?
Hello Febriana, Has visa application move. We are applied almost on the same date.
Devika saysHey , Did you manage to get your visa ?
I’m taking my parents to Japan in May as a retirement gift for them! I applied for eVisa on 11 Mar and got an email requesting for additional docs today (26 Mar).
— bank statements for 2 months with all pages included
— flight info including the flights from SG to Manila and back to SG from Manila.
I only included the flights to Japan from Manila. I was late to find this blog and the comments re all flights.
Hopefully I will hear from them soon and my visa will be issued.
My parents applied in the Ph and took them 2 business days only! Imagine that!
I guess Im just used to getting my visa in just 5 biz days here in SG when we can still apply just by going to the embassy even without an appointment. And surprised that it only took 2 biz days for my parents! 😂
Next time, Id go for multiple entry visa! The waiting is just too much for an excited traveler like me! 😂
Hi Melissa,
Just want to thank you for making this vlog and the comments from here as well. This is where I often go to while I was waiting for my visa to get approved. I felt so anxious because I only applied 20 working days prior to my flight so coming here help me to feel ease.
Anyway my timeline of my application.
March 3 — application submitted
*was so worried if my documents are all correct*
Used Bank statement x 1 month only.
March 4 – status is “Temporarily Received”
March 18 – status changed to “Under Examination”
And here is when my anxiety started. My friend applied about the same time but she was asked to give more documents and was able to submit around March 19.
March 22 – Visa Issued for me 😭😭😭
I was expecting it on March 25 monday.
My flight is on March 31st.
My friend would make it on time right?
Probably hers will be on Monday/Tuesday?
Since we also dont have to pay, coz we’re residing in SG as well..
Yeah it should be issued some time next week! In my experience if she was already asked to submit docs, it should be issued within 5 business days.
Btw if you’re holding PH passport it would be more beneficial to go through a visa agency. They were able to get 5 year multiple entry visa for my friends, so you don’t have to go through the same anxiety on your next trip to Japan.
I actually might do that on my next travel.. but wow 5 year visa is great. Thank you very muuuuch~
chesca sayshello! just curious, did your friend’s visa arrive on time?
Hiii yes it arrived March 27th as well. And we just came back from our trip~
PANKAJ VERMA saysHi – Can anyone let me know the email address with which you get the query for additional documents ?
There’s always a trade-off in applying for Japan e-visa, thus the varying lengths of approval times. And it takes some amount of patience to take you through.
I and my friend’s applications took 18 and 25 days respectively to get approved. But we weren’t worried because we made it sure that we’ll apply visa early, at least 1.5 to 2 months before our respective travels.
So if there are take-aways in applying for a worry-free visa via the Japan e-visa route, make sure you apply early, submit correct and complete documents and bring in some patience in waiting for the results.
Totally agreed Dan, I have updated my post to manage expectations as well.
Prabhas saysWould you be able to share average time for the visa to get approved via eVisa vs embassy visit (Singapore)?
eVisa : yy days
Embassy submission : xx days
I don’t work at the Japan visa consular so I’m not able to share this. Previously when I used to apply via the embassy it always took 5 business days though.
Prabhas saysThank you Melissa. Ofcouse, I asked based on your experience. Appreciate your inputs
Melissa saysI have written a section about how long it took me to get the evisa. Please take a look at the post above.
Savior saysHi Fellow Travelers,
Let me share my experience applying e-visa for Japan.
I noticed some, if not all, of the page visitors, only ask questions, but never shared their own experience of obtaining Japan e-Visa. Hence me, the Savior, instead of asking and asking and asking – worrying about my own problem, will share another experience.
Background: Indonesian Passport (non e-passport, so I need visa. Indonesian with e-passport can apply for exemption instead).
Live in Singapore: Yes. I’m a Singapore PR, live and work in Singapore. Hence, I am eligible to apply Japan e-visa.
Since the inception of e-visa application by the Japan MOFA, I have applied Tourist Visa twice, and both of them are successful.
1st Application:
Submitted Application: 15 September 2023. (Status: “Temporarily Received”)
Got Response by embassy: 26 September 2023. They asked me to provide ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS. (Status: “Temporarily Received”)
Submitted additional documents: 27 September 2023. (Status: “Under Examination”)
Asked to pay for Visa Issuance: 3 October 2023. (Status: “Fee Payment”)
Visa Issued: 3 October 2023.
Days Total: 20 Days (13 Working Days), including the day I submitted the Application.
From my 1st Application, through the “additional documents” request, I learnt that:
1. Schedule of Stay: when I first apply the e-Visa, I’m not sure what a “Schedule of Stay” meant. I simply uploaded my accommodation/hotel bookings, as my stupid brain thought that well, hotel is my place of stay in Japan XD. However, Schedule of Stay is a day-by-day trip detail. You can google “japan visa schedule of stay” and look for the first entry in google.
2. Flight itinerary: you HAVE TO provide the flight from Singapore, and come back to Singapore, even if you have a transit in between with different flight booking. Last year, I found that flying from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, would give me a cheaper air ticket roundtrip to Japan, compare to flying from Singapore directly to Japan. Therefore, I decided to book my Singapore-Malaysia trip and Malaysia-Japan trip separately, and only submit the Malaysia-Japan booking, as I thought the Immigration Officers should only concern about our entry and leaving ports and days. So I was wrong on this, and they asked me to provide the flights on leaving and entering Singapore as well.
2nd Application:
Submitted Application: 5 February 2024. (Status: “Temporarily Received”)
Got Response by embassy: NONE. I did not get any response back from the Embassy, then suddenly, after a long time waiting, my status changed to “Under Examination”
Status Changed: 21 February 2024. (Status: “Under Examination”)
Asked to pay for Visa Issuance: 28 February 2024. (Status: “Fee Payment”)
Visa Issued: 29 February 2024.
Days Total: 25 Days (17 Working Days, including Weekends, Chinese New Year and Japan’s National Holiday on 23rd Feb), including the day I submitted the Application.
From my 2nd Application, I learnt that:
1. Since I learnt from my mistake in the first application last year, I provided the documents more completely, including the flights itinerary and schedule of stay. Therefore, the status changed to “Under Examination” without them asking for additional documents, because my documents are totally acceptable and complete. The problem is, because they did not email for additional docs, I would not know my application status has been changed to “Under Examination” if I didn’t log-in to the e-visa website everyday :’). But I guess it’s ok.
2. This time around, I didn’t book the flight ticket before applying for e-Visa. I just screenshot the flight I intended to take, and apparently it was ok (I’m not sure if other people have done the same, but in the MOFA website FAQ, they stated purchasing air ticket is not required).
3. This time around, the application period took longer than my first applications. I guess it does make sense as more people want to travel to Japan, especially during Cherry Blossom period. There was Chinese New Year holiday (12 Feb) and Japan’s National Holiday (23 Feb) as well.
4. For the proof of income/proof of fund, I used Notice of Assessment from IRAS of the year 2023, since NoA for year 2024 has not come out yet. I understand someone commented in this page that they were asked for bank statement since they submitted NoA of 2023, but for me, they didn’t ask for my bank statement. I guess this is the example of “not everyone application is the same”.
So that’s it. Those are my 2 experiences of applying Japan e-Visa. For those asking in this page, please please please share your experience too after getting the e-Visa. For those asking “what should I do I’ve wait for some time already” yes you just need to wait. Everyone wants to travel during Cherry Blossom. Give it some time and be patient. Apply more than 1.5 months ahead of your planned travel day.
Gonzmsalva saysI received my Visa now. However, I need to confirm regarding my name. In eVisa application, I input my “Given Name and Middle Name” while on the issued Visa the Given name has it’s middle names too.
example my
Given Name: Anita
Middle Name: Santos
Surname: Mendoza
In evisa application
Surname: Mendoza
Given and middle names: Anita Santos
Then, on my issued visa
Surname/Given Name Mendoza Anita Santos
Is the Given name part correct? Is it same as yours?
Melissa saysIt’s the same for my visa. I think it’s correct.