Japan wants to increase its visa fees for foreign nationals by up to 2,900% according to new government plans.
The government hopes that the increase in fees will help with "the administrative costs of managing the country's growing foreign population," The Japan Times said.
The plan is to increase the cap on a number of different visa fees. For example, the current maximum fee for changing or extending a visa is 10,000 yen — $63. But that will go up to a maximum of 100,000 yen — $630.
And right now, the maximum fee for applying for permanent residence is 10,000 yen. But the new maximum will be 300,000 yen — $1,880.
The government wants to make these changes before the end of March 2027.
Japan has seen its population of foreign residents increase over the last few years. By the end of 2025, there were more than 4.1 million foreign residents living in Japan. This was a new record.
Besides helping with administrative costs, the government said the new fees would also help pay for more Japanese-language programs for foreign residents.
There are also plans to increase the amount that tourists have to pay for their visas from 3,000 yen to 15,000 yen — $19 to $94.
Not everyone thinks these changes would be good for the country.
Lawyer Ryoji Tanishima told The Japan Times that the new plans would hurt companies with large numbers of foreign workers because they will have to pay more. And he said that the plans could also mean people thinking of applying for permanent residence will change their minds.