Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that visas issued for international visitors to Japan by all Japanese diplomatic offices were up 12.9% year on year to record-high 5,381,433 in 2016. Visas for Chinese travelers were up 11.8% to 4,225,832, including 306,376 multiple visas (+96.6%). Multiple visas for wealthy Chinese travelers remarkably skyrocketed by 266% to 141,321.
Individual tourist visas for Chinese travelers were also up 44.5% to 1,626,813, while group tourist visas were down 10.4% to 1,744,818. The result shows that the Chinese travel trend has shifted from group travel to FIT.
The table below shows change of visas issued in the last six years and visas issued by country or region:
The table below shows change of visas issued for Chinese travelers in the last six years:
