Foreign Visitors to Japan: Updated Jan. 25, 2026.

Foreign visitors to Japan in 2025 top 40 mil. for 1st time; spending surges to record high

Article source:  https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20260120/p2a/00m/0bu/008000c

Ideas

Back in the early 2,000 teens the then Prime Minister came up with the idea of increasing the number of countries that could enter Japan on a visa free entry to increase foreigner spending as way to increase in increase the Japanese economy. 

It seems to have worked and with the Japanese yen being very weak it gives foreign tourists more purchasing power to buy more things in Japan to stay longer in Japan as they technically have more money.

So, while the weak Japanese yen is a positive for foreign tourists and also for Japanese export companies that sell their products overseas it is a negative for the domestic economy as a weak yen drives up the price of import products.

But at the same time, as the weak yen helps foreign tourists to spend more in the Japanese domestic economy it is actually helping that sector too.

With that said, the Bank of Japan has to be very cautious about doing anything to lesson the weak yen as tourism is always a very fragile sector and can change very quickly if tourists see or perceive their purchasing power has been reduced in Japan.

Japan has had up and down relations with China and South Korea for the better part of the last 50 plus years, Every time Japan does something good or positive toward the two countries it finds a way to do something not so good which puts them back into the same frame as before where diplomacy is challenged.

In this case Japan, the powers to be in the government said something about Taiwan that China apparently didn't like so they told their citizens its not safe to visit Japan and as always Chinese citizens being somewhat nationalistic headed what the government said and are not traveling to Japan at this time.

Some might say some areas of Japan have already reached the saturation point and just can't handle any more foreign tourists. Some in Japan has suggested adding a foreign tourist tax to places like hotel in those areas such a as Kyoto where there seems to be too many tourists at time as a way to either dissuade more tourists or using the tourist tax to help pickup trash that foreigners leave on the ground or help with hiring workers to help foreigner in places like Kyoto.

And then there are the ultra nationalists in Japan who are suggesting limiting the number of foreign residents Japan as some areas or places in Japan are weary of foreign residents.

The problem with that approach is, because of Japan's low birth rate and increased ageing society, Japan actually needs foreigners to work in Japan and contribute to the pension system along with spending in the Japanese economy.

But Japan, and the powers to be have resisted, for the most part of opening up immigration enough to really benefit the Japanese economy as some have suggest too many immigrants in Japan will dilute the fragile Japanese culture and all immigrants do is send their money home and not use or spend it in Japan.

Foreign visitors to Japan are good and needed but its not going to really help the Japanese economy as Japan needs more sustained economic drivers such as more immigration strategies that can bring in all levels of skills into Japan and not just focus on the most skilled workers as all workers, if given a chance, can significantly be contributors to the Japanese economy in the future.

Have a nice day!