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© KYODORuling camp finalizes plan to introduce departure tax from Jan 7, 2019
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Dango bong
hope you enjoyed your expensive stay. before you leave, fork over another excess fee, we understand if you NEVER COME BACK AGAIN. thanks for visiting
garypen
Wouldn't the huge increase in tax revenue from the additional visitors' spending at hotels, restaurants, omiyagi shops, transit, and airfare cover the additional expenses incurred for such measures?
Ah_so
Is this charge only going to be paid by foreigners?
Yubaru
No, anyone foreigner or Japanese, leaving Japan, will be forced to pay the "exit" tax.
maybeperhapsyes
I love living in Japan but honestly, I wouldn’t visit here.
Interest that local newspapers, magazines etc carry ads for trips to “the Far East”
visit Thailand, Vietnam... but you rarely, if ever, see ads for Japan.
Guess it’s because folk think it’s too expensive.
Yubaru
Will likely be used...? So they are giving themselves an out when they tell everyone they used the tax money for some improvements on a road to no where!
Oh and this article needs to be more specific, there was a previous article here on JT that stated this was for Tokyo airports only, yet this comes across as being for the entire country!
domtoidi
I think they should go back to the old days and make everyone, Japanese included, go to the local immigration office to fill out a form and buy stamps.
Alfie Noakes
There's the weasel word, slipped in because everyone knows the pigs will have their noses in this money trough as soon as it begins. Just like all that money earmarked for Fukushima ended up supporting whaling, training prison inmates and even funded nuclear research.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/9564820/Japanese-earthquake-recovery-money-going-to-whaling.html
Only a fool would believe anything the LDP says.
Wallace Fred
And there's plenty of those unfortunately.
Aly Rustom
Right on the money.
Very true.
>
bones
Won’t be the least bit surprised if they start a welcome to Japan tax next, and the %10 will probably get pushed to 15 in the near future.
thepersoniamnow
Some old men will now buy new cars and their wives will have new Louie Vuitton bags.
zizou2016
Will Abe pay everytime he will leave?
Kobe White Bar Owner
greed!
MarkX
Funny, when this was first proposed they said the money would be used for more campaigns to attract even more visitors, but now it has been switched to an even more nebulous definition of English signage and more immigration officers, all of which cannot be accounted for. Who is going to go to Haneda or Narita and count the number of foreign language signboards they have?
theResident
Why doesn't everybody calm down. Most countries have a departure tax that is alreatdy incorporated into the price of the ticket these days. Until 'fairly' recently most SE Asian countries collected this at the airport before you went through immigration. Japan just didn't have a departure tax - Simple. I would suggest that you all do some research on the amount of departure tax elsewhere before you complain about 1000 Yen.
dcog9065
Most countries have this tax, so this is not controversial in the slightest. I applaud this tax on foreign visitors and actually would like to see it much higher than a measly 1,000 yen, that won't cover much. If you have visitors complaining about a 1,000 yen departure fee, I would say they can't afford the stay in the first place and shouldn't be let in
Tokyo-Engr
@dcog - I am a foreign Permanent Resident of Japan so this will not only impact foreign "visitors". I pay enough taxes to Japan.
I am a taxpayer (personally and through a business I own) and I am complaining about this fee. I believe thos of us living here pay enough taxes already. Consider excluding residents (which is not hard to do with today's technology) and have an accurate accounting of what the money is used for and I would consider changing my thoughts on this.
papigiulio
Hey good idea, so the consumption tax increase can be left alone now right?
Disillusioned
Will 'likely' be used for? What a huge crock of poop! It's just a blatant cash-grab for the Olympics! They rushed the approval through with no plan of how to use the revenue or solid reason for introducing it. It's just a cash0grab! Scum bags!
Middleoftheroad
I remember having to pay such a fee back in the 80's, been grounded here since. So is this different from what you used to have to pay or are they just bringing it back? Please forgive my ignorance!
Middleoftheroad
Never mind, it was the Passenger Service Facility Charge.
theResident
Correct @Middleoftheroad, Which is now incorporated into the ticket. You clearly remember the ticket machines at Narita before you went downstairs to Immigration
Nessie
So what happens to the taxes from all the foreign visitors? Consumption tax for...hotels, restaurants, konbini purchases...
Cricky
Well they have reduced the seating for the Olymipcs that's a net loss. A further tax on wait for it arrivals, departure tax at the moment, bet it will be increased. Tourism Japan style, tax you on every purchase, tax you on accomodation then tax you when you leave. Next because you actually visited Japan there is a yearly tax on having visited Japan. And all this tax money goes? Well answering that is embarrassing.
Eppee
theResidentToday 08:53 am JST
Why doesn't everybody calm down. Most countries have a departure tax that is alreatdy incorporated into the price of the ticket these days. Until 'fairly' recently most SE Asian countries collected this at the airport before you went through immigration. Japan just didn't have a departure tax - Simple. I would suggest that you all do some research on the amount of departure tax elsewhere before you complain about 1000 Yen.
You have to agree that rushing it before 2020 is a bit ... suspect.
u_s__reamer
New, dreamed up sources of revenue extracted from helpless punters are like catnip to salivating politicians. Just like candy from a baby, innit?
pacint
Nessie.
How would they differentiate between who paid what tax at a combini, where All purchases are taxed.
Most Foreigners don't pay taxes at duty-free shops, Hotels, etc but that generates paperwork that slows boarding, etc.
I am not upset about the 1000yen fee, there are way more hidden costs this days for a flight.
GW
Oh & I bet the ldp will easily find ways to spend a lot more than is collected ENSURING more debt for Japan...........
NUTS!
Goodlucktoyou
So train fare, plus expensive food, fuel tax, restrictive airport security so no personal stuff, seat allocation fee, ¥500 for a beer...now another ¥1000 just for leaving your house. 20% of the world live on under ¥400 a day.
Slickdrifter
Tax tax and more taxes.....Taxes out of your pay. Taxes at the register. Taxes on your house. Taxes at the post office. Taxes everywhere. Japan come on. I miss Koizumi and the good ole days.
Dan Lewis
How about a tax every time you enter/leave any given town? It's not a new idea for Japan. They were called sekisho. Tolls, tolls, tolls!
Wakarimasen
"Ruling camp"?? This is such a scam. They are already squeezing locals so hard on taxes - this is mainly aimed at taking more foreigners money , especially the influx at Olympics time.
mmwkdw
Wonder if it will apply to Domestic departures ?
theResident
@Goodlucktoyou: Just fly ANA then! No fuel tax, No seat allocation fee, generous baggage allowance (all classes) and FREE beer! Kind of missing your point. If you can afford to fly..you can afford 1000 Yen Departure tax.
metaterapin
And the newest planes, better food than similarly priced competition, good in-flight entertainment options, and most of all the hottest young stewardesses in its price range. There really isn't anything to dislike about ANA.
Scrote
Try taking a long haul trip on one of their 9 seats across 787s. It's awful.
The "departure tax" will mostly be used to re-employ useless retired bureaucrats. That's why the plan doesn't contain any costed items of expenditure, just vague statements about what might be done.