Chinese tourists carry packages of Panasonic Corp.'s washlet along Tokyo's Ginza Shopping District on May 16, 2014. (Photo : Reuters)
Chinese nationals will be enjoying longer visits to the "Land of the Rising Sun" as the Japanese government announced softer visa rules in efforts to attract 40 million foreign visitors by 2020, told The Japan Times.
The country's ministry of foreign affairs said that the 5-year multi-entry visa for Chinese applicants will be stretched to 10 years. Eligibility conditions for this type of entry will also be softened.
Additionally, application for single-entry visa will be eased for scholars from 75 universities that are being supervised by China's ministry of education.
A multi-entry Japan visa was issued previously to wealthy Chinese and effective only for five years.
The revised measures were part of the tourism action plan rolled out at a meeting of the Ministerial Council on the Promotion of Japan as a Tourism-Oriented Country, said The Japan Times.
Undoubtedly, China remains a key driver in Japan's tourism sector.
Chinese tourists to Japan more than doubled in 2015 to five million, said the International Business Times, citing figures from Japan National Tourism Organization.
China, along with the Philippines, Russia, India and Vietnam, made up about 28 percent of Japan's foreign visitors in 2015, translating to 5.61 million tourists.
Chinese visitors' purchasing power is also said to be an attractive factor to the tourism sector of other countries. In Japan alone, China accounted for over 40 percent of the total spending of foreign visitors last year, reported China Daily.
Aside from Chinese, Indians and Russians are also expected to benefit from Japan's relaxed visa measures.
Some students from India will be given simplified procedures to apply for a visa. Tourists coming from Russia will also be given softened eligibility requirements. Validity period of their visa will likewise be extended from three to five years.
The new rules are targeted for implementation before summer. Students, artists, businesspeople and leisure travelers are all set to gain from the relaxed measures.
