Japan Passport

Passport rankings out of 198 countries

Freedom of travel10

Asset protection21

Quality of life11

"Plan B"12

Afghanistan

Visa is required

Albania

Visa-free for 90 days

Algeria

Visa is required

Andorra

Visa-free for 90 days

Angola

Visa-free for 30 days

Antigua & Barbuda

Visa-free for 180 days

Argentina

Visa-free for 90 days

Armenia

Visa-free for 180 days

Australia

eTA

Austria

Visa-free for 90 days

Azerbaijan

Visa upon arrival

Bahamas

Visa-free for 90 days

Bahrain

Visa upon arrival

Bangladesh

Visa upon arrival

Barbados

Visa-free for 90 days

Belarus

Visa-free for 30 days

Belgium

Visa-free for 90 days

Belize

Visa-free for 90 days

Benin

eTA

Bhutan

eTA

Bolivia

Visa-free for 90 days

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Visa-free for 90 days

Botswana

Visa-free for 90 days

Brazil

Visa-free for 90 days

Brunei

Visa-free for 90 days

Bulgaria

Visa-free for 90 days

Burkina Faso

eTA

Burundi

Visa upon arrival

Cambodia

Visa upon arrival

Cameroon

eTA

Canada

eTA

Cape Verde

Visa upon arrival

Central African Republic

Visa is required

Chad

Visa is required

Chile

Visa-free for 90 days

China

Visa-free for 30 days

Colombia

Visa-free for 90 days

Comoros

Visa upon arrival

Congo - Brazzaville

Visa is required

Congo - Kinshasa

eTA

Costa Rica

Visa-free for 180 days

Croatia

Visa-free for 90 days

Cuba

eTA

Cyprus

Visa-free for 90 days

Czechia

Visa-free for 90 days

Côte d’Ivoire

eTA

Denmark

Visa-free for 90 days

Djibouti

Visa upon arrival

Dominica

Visa-free for 180 days

Dominican Republic

Visa-free

Ecuador

Visa-free for 90 days

Egypt

Visa upon arrival

El Salvador

Visa-free for 180 days

Equatorial Guinea

eTA

Eritrea

Visa is required

Estonia

Visa-free for 90 days

Eswatini

Visa-free for 30 days

Ethiopia

Visa upon arrival

Fiji

Visa-free for 120 days

Finland

Visa-free for 90 days

France

Visa-free for 90 days

Gabon

eTA

Gambia

Visa is required

Georgia

Visa-free for 360 days

Germany

Visa-free for 90 days

Ghana

Visa upon arrival

Greece

Visa-free for 90 days

Grenada

Visa-free for 90 days

Guatemala

Visa-free for 90 days

Guinea

eTA

Guinea-Bissau

Visa upon arrival

Guyana

Visa-free for 90 days

Haiti

Visa-free for 90 days

Honduras

Visa-free for 90 days

Hong Kong SAR China

Visa-free for 90 days

Hungary

Visa-free for 90 days

Iceland

Visa-free for 90 days

India

Visa upon arrival

Indonesia

Visa upon arrival

Iran

Visa-free for 15 days

Iraq

Visa upon arrival

Ireland

Visa-free for 90 days

Israel

Visa-free for 90 days

Italy

Visa-free for 90 days

Jamaica

Visa-free for 30 days

Japan

Jordan

Visa upon arrival

Kazakhstan

Visa-free for 30 days

Kenya

eTA

Kiribati

Visa-free for 90 days

Kuwait

Visa upon arrival

Kyrgyzstan

Visa-free for 60 days

Laos

Visa-free for 15 days

Latvia

Visa-free for 90 days

Lebanon

Visa upon arrival

Lesotho

Visa-free for 90 days

Liberia

Visa is required

Libya

eTA

Liechtenstein

Visa-free for 90 days

Lithuania

Visa-free for 90 days

Luxembourg

Visa-free for 90 days

Macao SAR China

Visa-free for 90 days

Madagascar

Visa upon arrival

Malawi

Visa upon arrival

Malaysia

Visa-free for 90 days

Maldives

Visa upon arrival

Mali

Visa is required

Malta

Visa-free for 90 days

Marshall Islands

Visa upon arrival

Mauritania

Visa upon arrival

Mauritius

Visa-free for 90 days

Mexico

Visa-free for 180 days

Micronesia

Visa-free for 30 days

Moldova

Visa-free for 90 days

Monaco

Visa-free for 90 days

Mongolia

Visa-free for 30 days

Montenegro

Visa-free for 90 days

Morocco

Visa-free for 90 days

Mozambique

Visa-free for 30 days

Myanmar (Burma)

eTA

Namibia

Visa-free for 90 days

Nauru

Visa is required

Nepal

Visa upon arrival

Netherlands

Visa-free for 90 days

New Zealand

eTA

Nicaragua

Visa-free for 90 days

Niger

Visa is required

Nigeria

eTA

North Korea

Visa is required

North Macedonia

Visa-free for 90 days

Norway

Visa-free for 90 days

Oman

Visa upon arrival

Pakistan

eTA

Palau

Visa upon arrival

Palestinian Territories

Visa-free

Panama

Visa-free for 90 days

Papua New Guinea

eTA

Paraguay

Visa-free for 90 days

Peru

Visa-free for 180 days

Philippines

Visa-free for 30 days

Poland

Visa-free for 90 days

Portugal

Visa-free for 90 days

Qatar

Visa upon arrival

Romania

Visa-free for 90 days

Russia

eTA

Rwanda

Visa upon arrival

Samoa

Visa upon arrival

San Marino

Visa-free for 90 days

Saudi Arabia

Visa upon arrival

Senegal

Visa-free for 90 days

Serbia

Visa-free for 90 days

Seychelles

Visa-free for 90 days

Sierra Leone

Visa upon arrival

Singapore

Visa-free for 30 days

Slovakia

Visa-free for 90 days

Slovenia

Visa-free for 90 days

Solomon Islands

Visa upon arrival

Somalia

eTA

South Africa

Visa-free for 90 days

South Korea

Visa-free for 90 days

South Sudan

eTA

Spain

Visa-free for 90 days

Sri Lanka

Visa upon arrival

St Kitts & Nevis

Visa-free for 90 days

St Lucia

Visa-free for 42 days

St. Vincent & Grenadines

Visa-free for 90 days

Sudan

Visa is required

Suriname

Visa is required

Sweden

Visa-free for 90 days

Switzerland

Visa-free for 90 days

Syria

eTA

São Tomé & Príncipe

Visa-free for 15 days

Taiwan

Visa-free for 90 days

Tajikistan

Visa-free for 30 days

Tanzania

Visa upon arrival

Thailand

Visa-free for 60 days

Timor-Leste

Visa upon arrival

Togo

eTA

Tonga

Visa upon arrival

Trinidad & Tobago

Visa-free for 90 days

Tunisia

Visa-free for 90 days

Turkey

Visa-free for 90 days

Turkmenistan

Visa is required

Tuvalu

Visa upon arrival

UAE

Visa-free for 30 days

Uganda

eTA

Ukraine

Visa-free for 90 days

United Kingdom

eTA

United States

eTA

Uruguay

Visa-free for 90 days

Uzbekistan

Visa-free for 30 days

Vanuatu

Visa-free for 120 days

Vatican City

Visa-free for 90 days

Venezuela

Visa-free for 90 days

Vietnam

Visa-free for 45 days

Yemen

Visa is required

Zambia

Visa-free for 90 days

Zimbabwe

Visa upon arrival

About Japan

An island state in East Asia. It is located in the Pacific Ocean, on the Japanese archipelago. It borders with Russia, the Republic of Korea and China. A great economic power, it ranks third in the world in terms of nominal GDP and fourth in terms of GDP at purchasing power parity.

Japan produces cars, electronics, machine tools, ships, chemicals, textiles and food products. Approximately three-quarters of GDP comes from the service sector. Tourism is developing: foreigners come to get acquainted with the culture and history of the country.

Population

125.6 million

Capital

Tokyo

Official language

Japanese

GDP per capita

$40.146

Time zone

UTC+9

Currency

Japanese yen

Japan passport ranking and benefits

  • 1

    Access to 192 countries

    A Japanese passport provides visa-free access to the Schengen countries, the United Kingdom, China, Hong Kong, Japan and others. To travel to the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, a passport holder only needs a digital entry permit.

  • 2

    Life in Japan

    Citizenship allows one to live, work, and study in Japan without restrictions. The country is in top 10 states in terms of quality of life Japanese cities of Kyoto, Fukuoka, Chiba and Tokyo are recognised as one of the most comfortable places in the world for birthing and raising children.

  • 3

    Education and healthcare in Japan

    he University of Tokyo ranks 23rd in terms of quality of education among 1,300 educational institutions in the world. Another 15 Japanese universities are in the top 500 of the QS World University Rankings. It is easier for a Japanese national to enroll in a local university than for a foreigner. Citizens of the country can also receive a state scholarship for studying, as well as healthcare benefits.

Grounds for obtaining a Japan passport

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Birth to citizens of the country

marriage icon

Marriage to a citizen of the country

government icon

Work for the country's government

naturalization icon

Naturalization

Estimated time: 5 years

repatriation icon

Repatriation

adopt icon

Adoption

family icon

Parents citizenship

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Special conditions

investment icon

Special services to the state

Obtaining a Japan passport by naturalization: requirements for applicants

Knowledge of state language

Assimilation or cultural knowledge

Stable financial status

Good health

No criminal records

Frequently asked questions

  • How to get a Japanese passport?

    Japanese citizenship is obtained through the right of blood or descent, adoption, marriage, or naturalisation.

    To obtain Japanese citizenship by naturalisation, you must have lived in the country for at least 5 years, prove the knowledge of basic Japanese, have a stable income or a sponsor (such as a spouse or parent), and have no criminal record, as well as get an approval from the Japanese Ministry of Justice.

    A Japanese passport can be obtained through marriage if at least three years have passed since the relationship register. At the time of applying for citizenship, a foreign spouse must have lived in Japan for at least a year.

  • Does Japan recognize dual citizenship?

    No, therefore, when you obtain Japanese citizenship, you need to give up your first passport.

  • How to live in Japan with citizenship of another country?

    Japan does not recognize second or dual citizenship. However, a foreigner can get a temporary residence permit in the country, such as for studying, working or family reunification. After three years, one can obtain permanent residence, which will be valid for life.

    For short-term trips to Japan or initial entry into the country, options like a Portuguese or Malta passport are eligible. Citizens of these countries have the right to visa-free stays in Japan for 90 days every half-year.

  • Who can get Japanese citizenship by birthright?

    Japanese citizenship can be obtained by right of blood if:

    • a child is born in a family where at least one of the parents has Japanese citizenship;

    • the father is a Japanese citizen who had died before the child was born;

    • A child was born in Japan to unknown or stateless parents.

Japan Passport in comparison with other passports