Sayonara Tax – You will now have to pay to leave Japan

Tourists may be forced to pay a "Sayonara Tax" when they leave Japan.

The new tax has a purpose. Raise money for the Japan Tourism Agency to bolster its overseas public relations campaigns and expand multilingual services in Japan. The exit tax will be a proposal on the table to help the government meet its target of attracting 40 million foreign tourists by 2020.

Sayonara tax - now you will have to pay to leave japan

In 2016, Japan saw the number of foreign arrivals surpass 24 million, an increase of 20% year-on-year. But, it is proving to be a huge challenge to reach the 2020 target.

The agency argues that it will need to raise Japan's global profile to attract more visitors. Therefore, the proposed tax will provide funds to allow this. Obviously, this type of tax is sure to draw criticism from tourists and the aviation industries.

How is this "Sayonara Tax" being collected?

The tax will be charged for both Japanese and foreigners. Anyone leaving Japan. But, a departure tax may only apply to foreign visitors, as the number has increased in recent years.

In contrast, the number of Japanese travelers abroad has stagnated due to terrorist attacks in Europe and elsewhere. Not to mention the devaluation of the yen, which did not help.

The Japan Tourism Agency says a wide range of measures must be implemented to reach the 2020 target. This includes holding more PR events abroad and offering services in multiple languages in Japan.

Sayonara tax - now you will have to pay to leave japan

The initial tourism-related budget request for fiscal 2018 was 24.7 billion yen. An increase of 17% over 2017.

Suppose foreigners and Japanese were each charged 1,000 yen in tax when they left Japan. Eventually, that would bring about 40 billion yen into national coffers. In 2016, around 17 million Japanese people left the country.

But, major Japanese airports are already collecting between 1,000 yen and 3,000 yen tax per passenger on international flights.

Furthermore, in addition to the expected negative reception from tourism-related industries, skeptics say there is no guarantee that expanded overseas public relations campaigns and multilingual services will ensure a sharp increase in foreign tourists to Japan.

And you, dear reader? What do you think? Should Japan charge any tourist leaving Japan? Leave your opinion in the comments.

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