No visa needed. Australians can enter Japan for up to 90 days without applying for anything in advance — no form, no fee, no embassy appointment. The visa exemption between Australia and Japan has been in place for decades and is confirmed in effect through 2026.

That said, there are two things at the airport in 2026 that most first-time Japan visitors do not know about, and skipping them means joining the slowest queue in the arrivals hall. This guide covers both.

The exemption is for tourism, visiting family or friends, and short business trips like conferences or meetings. It does not cover paid work, long-term study, or any income-generating activity inside Japan — those require a visa applied for before you leave Australia.

Your passport needs to be valid for the full length of your stay. Japan does not require the standard six-months-beyond-departure-date that many countries enforce — just enough validity to cover your actual trip. Carry a confirmed return ticket and have your first night's accommodation address on hand, as immigration officers sometimes ask for it.

Start with flights to Tokyo (Narita or Haneda), Osaka Kansai, Sapporo, or Okinawa — compare across airlines before locking in dates, as routes to Japan fill up fast during cherry blossom season and Golden Week.

Visit Japan Web (vjw-lp.digital.go.jp) is Japan's pre-arrival digital registration system. It is optional — paper forms are still handed out on the plane — but if you land at Narita or Haneda on a busy weekend morning when multiple long-haul flights arrive at once, the difference between registering in advance and not can be 45 minutes to an hour of queue time.

The system covers three things:

Once registered, you get a QR code per person. In 2026, Narita, Haneda, and Osaka Kansai have all rolled out Joint Self-Service Kiosks — one scan handles both immigration and customs at the same machine. Register at least six hours before landing, not at the departure gate. The QR code needs to be loaded live from the app or website, not saved as a screenshot. Up to 10 family members on the same itinerary can be registered under one account.

The 90-day stay cannot be extended for tourism inside Japan — you must leave before your period expires. Re-entry is allowed, but Japanese immigration has grown noticeably stricter on travellers who string back-to-back 90-day visits with no clear evidence of life continuing elsewhere. If your plans involve staying in Japan for an extended period, it is worth looking into visa options before you go rather than trying to manage it from inside the country.

For longer stays, the main options are:

Japan is easier to enjoy when you pre-book the things that sell out — Universal Studios Japan, Tokyo Disneyland, and Shinkansen seats on popular routes during peak periods all benefit from advance purchase. Browse things to do in Japan before you go.

Check JR Pass or Shinkansen tickets as well to ease your travel between cities while in Japan.

Traveloka is Southeast Asia's leading travel aplikasi with strong Japan inventory across flights, hotels, and experiences. You can search hotels from Shinjuku capsules to Hakone ryokan, compare flights across multiple airlines in one search, and pre-book things to do — all with local Australian payment methods and everything stored in one account. Check deals on Traveloka regularly — Japan promotional pricing is available across peak and shoulder seasons. Download the Traveloka app to manage your entire itinerary in one place.