Tokyo is facing growing calls from regional tourism sectors to relax visa rules for Chinese travellers, but rising political wariness towards foreign arrivals and public frustration over overtourism are keeping the plan on ice, despite its economic promise.

A long-anticipated proposal to grant 10-year multiple-entry visas to high-income Chinese tourists, extend group tour stays from 15 to 30 days, and ease paperwork for elderly travellers has yet to be implemented.

As the roll-out was expected in spring, the delay has drawn scrutiny from Japanese media and diplomatic sources. On September 20, Kyodo News reported that the government had been forced to “push back the spring start” after a “sharp reaction within the ruling party”, quoting a diplomatic source.

The plan, announced by Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya during a visit to Beijing in December, was described by another government source as “a card played to get China to resolve pending issues”, referring to Beijing’s then-unresolved ban on Japanese seafood imports.

The popular Shinsekai area in Osaka’s Naniwa ward is crowded with tourists on September 30. Photo: AFP

The popular Shinsekai area in Osaka’s Naniwa ward is crowded with tourists on September 30. Photo: AFP

But members of the foreign affairs committee of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) criticised the move as “premature” and warned it could exacerbate overtourism. A senior Foreign Ministry official confirmed the visa easing timeline remained “undecided”, saying only that the government “will continue careful examinations”.