What Is JESTA (Japan Electronic System for Travel Authorization)? How Short-Term Stays Will Change

Japan has now created, by statute, a pre-travel online authorization scheme similar to the United States’ ESTA. Its official abbreviation is JESTA (Japan Electronic System for Travel Authorization). This article sets out who JESTA covers, when it starts, and what it means for foreign nationals living in Japan and for companies that invite family members or business partners on a short-term stay, based strictly on published official materials.

Sources: Immigration Services Agency of Japan, “Zero Illegal Residents Plan for the Safety and Security of the People” (published May 23, 2025) / “On the 2026 Amendment to the Immigration Control Act and Related Acts” (Outline of the Amendment Act) / e-Gov Law Search, “Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act”

What JESTA Is

JESTA is a system under which foreign nationals exempt from the visa requirement provide prescribed information online before travelling to Japan and undergo screening prior to entry. The Immigration Services Agency describes the purpose of the system in the “Zero Illegal Residents Plan” as follows.

Screening will be conducted based on information provided online in advance, so as to prevent in advance the arrival in Japan of undesirable foreign nationals. (Immigration Services Agency of Japan, “Zero Illegal Residents Plan for the Safety and Security of the People”)

The Outline of the Amendment Act sets out the purpose in more concrete terms. Where prescribed conditions are met — such as holding a valid passport and the activities to be conducted in Japan not being false — an authorization to that effect is granted. This allows screening before entry, prevents the entry of foreign nationals who intend to overstay illegally, and at the same time streamlines the landing examination procedure. To achieve strict immigration control, authorization is required each time a person makes a new entry.

The background is a sharp increase in short-term visitors. According to the Outline, the number of foreign nationals newly entering Japan in 2025 (Reiwa 7) reached a record high of approximately 39.18 million, of whom approximately 38.46 million were granted landing under the short-term stay status for tourism and similar purposes — and approximately 80% of those were visa-exempt. Because visa-exempt travellers enter without visa screening at an overseas mission, checks at the border were concentrated in the single step of the landing examination.

Electronic travel authorization is not a uniquely Japanese idea. The Immigration Services Agency conducted research before introduction and has published that it studied comparable systems in the United States (ESTA), Australia, Canada, and the EU (ETIAS).

The First of the Seven Pillars of the “Zero Illegal Residents Plan”

JESTA did not appear in isolation. The “Zero Illegal Residents Plan for the Safety and Security of the People,” published by the Immigration Services Agency on May 23, 2025 (Reiwa 7), sets out seven pillars across three stages — entry control, residence management and refugee screening, and departure and removal. JESTA is the first of them.

Stage	Pillar
Entry control	(1) Early introduction of the electronic travel authorization system (JESTA)
Entry control	(2) Approaches to countries with many foreign nationals subject to finalized deportation orders
Residence management / refugee screening	(3) Expediting the examination of refugee recognition applications
Residence management / refugee screening	(4) DX (digital transformation) of immigration and residence management
Departure and removal	(5) Promotion of escorted, state-funded repatriation
Departure and removal	(6) Promotion of voluntary return using the new systems under the amended Act
Departure and removal	(7) Prevention of illegal work by persons on provisional release

The order of the pillars follows the flow of tightening the entrance, managing the period of residence, and making the exit reliable. JESTA comes first because it is positioned as the measure that stops illegal residence at the earliest possible point. Under pillar (4), the Plan also states that after JESTA is introduced, information from entry through to departure will be managed in an integrated manner, with consideration given to using it to identify illegal residents. JESTA is therefore conceived both as a gate at entry and as the starting point of data linking entry to departure.

Pillar (7) states that, in cooperation with the police, the authorities will actively detect illegal work by persons on provisional release and the promotion of illegal work by employers. For companies employing foreign nationals, it is important to note that the entrance (JESTA) and the exit (crackdowns on facilitating illegal work) are being strengthened at the same time.

Who Is Covered

The Outline of the Amendment Act sets out three categories of persons covered by JESTA.

Category	Persons covered
(1)	Foreign nationals not required to hold a visa who intend to stay in Japan for a short period to conduct tourism and similar activities
(2)	Foreign nationals and others who arrive aboard a cruise ship (designated passenger ship) and wish to land in Japan for sightseeing
(3)	Certain foreign nationals who enter Japan temporarily in order to transfer between vessels or aircraft

Category (1) also includes persons specified by Cabinet Order under a special Act (a members’ bill), which currently means residents of Taiwan.

In short, JESTA is centred on visa-exempt short-term visitors. Mid- to long-term residents who already hold a residence status in Japan are not listed among the covered categories. For the basics of the residence status framework, please also see What Is Residence Status? Let’s Cover the Basics.

What Happens Without an Authorization

The Act makes holding an authorization a condition for landing and prohibits the entry of foreign nationals who hold neither an authorization nor a visa. It also imposes two obligations on carriers such as airlines and shipping companies (breach is subject to a non-penal fine).

• Reporting obligation — When issuing a boarding pass or air ticket, the carrier must report the name and other details of the person holding the reservation to the Commissioner of the Immigration Services Agency by the prescribed time.
• Prohibition on carriage — Where the carrier receives notice from the Commissioner that it is not appropriate to allow a person to enter Japan, it must not carry that person into Japan aboard a vessel or aircraft.

This is the same structure as the United States’ ESTA, where a traveller cannot board an aircraft without authorization. In Japan’s case, the carrier reports reservation details in advance, and a person for whom the Immigration Services Agency returns a “not appropriate” notice must not be boarded. The key practical point is that this is not something that can be sorted out on arrival at the airport.

Faster Procedures for Those Who Hold an Authorization

JESTA is not only about tightening controls. Where a person in category (1) holds an authorization and meets the conditions for landing, the seal of verification for landing in the passport is to be omitted, and walk-through gates are envisaged in practice. The Act also provides that a fee in an amount specified by Cabinet Order will be collected when applying for and receiving an authorization, that the current Registered Person Card will no longer be issued, and that the scope of permission for landing due to distress will be expanded.

When It Starts

This is where Japanese era years and Western years are easily confused, so the dates are set out below.

The Act creating JESTA — the “Act Partially Amending the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act and the Act on Special Provisions for Applications for Landing by Foreign Nationals Holding Passports Referred to in Article 2(v)(b) of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act” — was passed on May 29, 2026 (Reiwa 8) at the 221st Extraordinary Session of the Diet and promulgated on June 5 of the same year (Act No. 32 of 2026).

Item	Date
Passage of the Amendment Act	May 29, 2026 (Reiwa 8)
Promulgation of the Amendment Act	June 5, 2026 (Reiwa 8) (Act No. 32 of 2026)
Entry into force of the provisions on authorization (JESTA)	A date to be set by Cabinet Order, no later than March 31, 2029 (Reiwa 11)
Entry into force of the provisions on fees	A date to be set by Cabinet Order, no later than March 31, 2027 (Reiwa 9)
Target stated in the Zero Illegal Residents Plan	During fiscal 2028 (brought forward from a planned 2030 introduction)

[Important] The specific date of entry into force has not yet been decided. The provisions on authorization take effect from a date to be set by Cabinet Order, no later than March 31, 2029 (Reiwa 11), and the actual start date will be fixed by a future Cabinet Order. The “Zero Illegal Residents Plan” states the aim of introducing the system during fiscal 2028, bringing forward the previously planned 2030 introduction.

Fiscal 2028 runs from April 2028 to March 2029 (Reiwa 10 fiscal year). The statutory deadline of March 31, 2029 (Reiwa 11) falls precisely on the last day of fiscal 2028, so the Plan’s target and the statutory deadline are consistent with one another.

Impact on Foreign Residents and Companies in Japan

Inviting Family Members or Business Partners on a Short-Term Stay

If you have occasion to invite family members or business partners from overseas on a short-term stay, you should plan on one additional step before travel. Authorization is required for each new entry, so “we obtained one last time, so we are fine this time” does not apply.

It is also worth reconfirming the scope of activities permitted under short-term stay. Appendix I(3) of the Immigration Control Act defines short-term stay as “activities to be engaged in during a short stay in Japan such as sightseeing, recreation, sports, visiting relatives, inspection tours, participating in lectures or meetings, business contact, or other similar activities.” Business contact — attending meetings, negotiations, and discussions — is included, but nothing beyond that.

Entry on a Short-Term Stay for the Purpose of Working Is Not Permitted

This is very widely misunderstood. Article 19(1)(ii) of the Immigration Control Act provides that a person residing under a status of residence listed in Appendix I(3) (which includes short-term stay) must not engage in activities operating a business involving income or activities for which they receive remuneration. The approach of “let them come first on a short-term stay, start working, and sort out the residence status afterwards” runs directly against this provision.

Furthermore, the proviso to Article 20(3) of the Act provides that an application to change the status of residence filed by a person residing under short-term stay shall not be approved unless it is based on unavoidable special circumstances. Changing from short-term stay to a work status is, as a matter of law, exceptional.

The Difference from a Certificate of Eligibility (COE)

Another decisive difference between short-term stay and other statuses is the Certificate of Eligibility (COE). Article 7-2 of the Immigration Control Act expressly excludes from those who may apply for a COE any foreign national “who intends to engage in the activities listed in the right-hand column of the short-term stay section of Appendix I(3).” In other words, there is no COE procedure for short-term stay at all.

Item	Short-term stay (covered by JESTA)	Work / residence-based statuses
Advance procedure	Visa, or (once in force) JESTA authorization	Application for a Certificate of Eligibility (COE)
Legal basis	Immigration Control Act, Appendix I(3)	Immigration Control Act, Article 7-2
Activities receiving remuneration	Not permitted (Article 19(1)(ii))	Permitted according to the status of residence
Residence card	Not issued (Article 19-3(ii))	Issued to mid- to long-term residents
Deciding authority	Visa screening at overseas missions / authorization by the Immigration Services Agency	Regional Immigration Services Bureau

The process for recruiting talent from overseas is explained in How to Recruit Foreign Workers from Overseas: Engineer Visa COE Application Guide, and the procedure for bringing a spouse living abroad in How to Bring Your Overseas Spouse to Japan: A Guide to the Certificate of Eligibility (COE) Application. For dependants, please also see Bringing Family to Japan on an Engineer Visa: Dependent Visa Guide.

The Same Amendment Also Raises the Fee Ceilings

The same Act that created JESTA also raises the statutory maximum fees under the Immigration Control Act.

Procedure	Current maximum	Maximum after the amendment
Permission to change the status of residence	10,000 yen	100,000 yen
Permission to extend the period of stay	10,000 yen	100,000 yen
Permanent residence permission	10,000 yen	300,000 yen

These are maximum amounts, not the amounts actually payable. The specific amounts continue to be delegated to Cabinet Order and are to be set according to the period of stay. Under the current Cabinet Order, the fee for permission to change the status of residence and to extend the period of stay is 6,000 yen (over the counter), and the fee for permanent residence permission is 10,000 yen. The amendment also allows the fee to be reduced or waived for persons requiring particular humanitarian consideration who are unable to pay due to economic hardship. For the permanent residence procedure, please see Guide to Permanent Residence Applications: Requirements, Processing Period, Required Documents.

How to Prepare in Practice

Since the date of entry into force is still undecided, there is no need to rush any application now. There are four things to prepare for.

1. Allow more time in your invitation schedule. Once JESTA is in force, authorization will be required before travel. It is safest to review internal business-trip and invitation procedures on the assumption that the authorization is obtained at the same time as the air ticket.
2. Separate short-term stay from employment. Business contact falls within short-term stay; activities for which remuneration is received do not. Where the purpose of the visit is to work, build the plan around a COE application from the outset.
3. Keep entry/departure records consistent with the reality of residence. The Plan states that, after JESTA is introduced, integrated management of information from entry through to departure will be considered. Making notifications and renewals reliably becomes all the more important.
4. Be conscious of stronger enforcement against facilitating illegal work. Checking the residence card and confirming eligibility to work should be mandatory steps at the time of hiring.

Summary

JESTA is a system requiring visa-exempt short-term visitors to obtain online authorization before travelling to Japan. Holding an authorization becomes a condition for landing, and carriers bear an obligation to report reservation details and a prohibition on carriage. At the same time, for those who hold an authorization, the seal of verification for landing in the passport is omitted, streamlining the landing examination.

The Act creating the system was passed on May 29, 2026 (Reiwa 8) and promulgated on June 5 of the same year, but the provisions on authorization take effect on a date to be set by Cabinet Order no later than March 31, 2029 (Reiwa 11), and that date is not yet fixed. The “Zero Illegal Residents Plan” states the aim of introducing the system during fiscal 2028.

For foreign nationals living in Japan and companies employing them, the two most important practical points are the principle that you cannot work on a short-term stay, and the procedural order that a visit for the purpose of working begins with a COE. Because JESTA tightens the check at the entrance, approaches that depart from these principles should be expected to succeed even less often than before.

How We Can Help

For advice on JESTA, short-term stay, and the Certificate of Eligibility (COE), please rely on the Kaneko Hidetaka Administrative Scrivener Office.

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