Japan to adopt U.S.-style entry system for foreign visitors

Asahi Shimbun

24-05-2025

Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki explains the proposed Electronic System for Travel Authorization program at his May 23 news conference. (Yuki Nikaido)
The government announced plans to introduce more rigorous online screening to root out undesirable foreign visitors and eventually reduce the number of illegal aliens in Japan to zero.
Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki told a May 23 news conference that 'strong measures' were needed, citing public disquiet over a barrage of media reports about foreign visitors behaving badly.
The Japanese version of the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) that was introduced in the United States in 2009 will be up and running in fiscal 2028.
Canada and New Zealand operate a similar program, and the European Union is planning to introduce its own version in 2026.
The Japanese system consists of seven major policy planks intended to prevent foreign nationals with criminal records from entering Japan as well as to swiftly deport those who have been denied refugee status.
Records show there were 2,122 foreign nationals at the end of 2024 who had received final confirmation for deportation.
One goal of the plan announced May 23 is to halve that number by the end of fiscal 2030, according to the Immigration Services Agency.
Under JESTA, prospective visitors to Japan from 71 nations and regions who are exempted from visas for short pleasure or business trips will have to apply online beforehand.
Immigration authorities will check whether applicants have a criminal record or previously were in Japan illegally.
Those who do not receive authorization will not be allowed to board flights bound for Japan.
The ministry is expected to expand the program to cover those who might arrive by sea to enter Japan.
DOUBTS ABOUT PROGRAM RAISED
Just how effective JESTA will be in reducing the number of illegal aliens is already open to question.
Naoko Hashimoto, an associate professor of international refugee law at International Christian University in Tokyo, accepted that there is a need for policies to reduce the number of illegal aliens. However, she pointed out that those who end up with that status may not necessarily come from nations that are exempted from visas for short-term visits.
She said the government may be needlessly stirring up public emotions about unruly foreign elements by implementing policies based on impression rather than statistics.
'The number of crimes committed by foreigners has remained the same in recent years and the government has not released figures for the visa status of those arrested,' she added.
Another component of the electronic screening system is to more swiftly process refugee applications, an area in which Japan has been heavily criticized for not allowing more people to settle.
In 2015, the Immigration Services Agency classified refugee applications into four categories. Since 2018, for example, those who ended up in the case B file, meaning they were clearly not refugees, remained ineligible for the 'designated activities' visa.
In 2018, case B applications made up about 20 percent of all applications, but that figure had been reduced to 0.6 percent in 2024.
Agency officials said the sharp decrease may be due to applications being classified as case D, a dumping ground for all others that do not neatly go into the other three cases, rather than case B. As a result, immigration authorities decided to review how case B applications are decided.
Suzuki said applications that are found to contain erroneous information or were deliberately misused will be swiftly classified as case B to increase the number of individuals denied the designated activities visa. That, in his view, will deter rank dishonesty in filling out applications.
In the past, case B applications concerned people facing economic difficulties or who cited vague unease with the policies of their home government or were not considered in danger of having their rights violated.
Agency officials declined to divulge what the new conditions would be in deciding case B applications on grounds publicizing that information would only lead to more applications submitted with the intention of avoiding a case B decision.
The ICU's Hashimoto pointed out that the move to expand the number of case B decisions would lead to an increase of illegal aliens, thereby contradicting the program's stated goal.
Another aspect of the plan will be to increase government funding to allow immigration marshals to escort deportees back to their native land.
Individuals who have made at least three failed refugee applications or have a record of committing major crimes would be covered under the program.
Authorities said 249 deportees were escorted back to their homeland by air marshals in 2024. They said the government is seeking to double that figure in three years.
'I have doubts as to whether the plan to improve immigration control will be an effective strategy in the medium- to long-term,' Hashimoto said.