Japan issues record numbers of visas in 2015

 Japan issued over 4 million visas to foreign visitors last year, recording the largest number ever, with China ranked as the top recipients of Japanese visas, showed statistics released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday.

The total number of visas issued at the diplomatic missions of Japan abroad in 2015 was 4.77 million, up 66 percent from a year earlier.

Ranked by nationalities and regions, the top three recipients of Japanese visas were China, Philippines and Indonesia, which accounted for around 90 percent of the total number of visas issued.

The number of visas issued to Chinese nationals in 2015 was 3.78 million, which accounted for around 80 percent of the total number of visas issued and exceeded the total number of visas issued to all nationals in 2014 (approximately 2.87 million).

Of the diplomatic missions of Japan abroad that issued visas, Consulate-General of Japan in Shanghai, Embassy of Japan in China, Consulate-General of Japan in Guangzhou were top three issuing missions. "7 missions out of the top 10 are those in China," said the ministry.

According to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), the number of foreign visitors exceeded 19.74 million last year, sharply up 47 percent from the previous year.

"Along with this, the total number of visas issued marked a record high," said the foreign ministry.

Japanese government and private sectors have made joint efforts to promote Japan as a tourism-oriented country, including relaxation of visa requirements, continuous inbound travel promotion, expansion of the consumption tax exemption program, and expansion of low-cost carrier (LCC) routes, said the ministry.

source : xinhua