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As the visa waiver agreement between Qatar and Japan went into effect during the first week of this month, the Japanese Embassy in Qatar has seen a significant increase in the number of applications and advised Qatari passport holders that if the need for a visa is not urgent, they should apply after a month.
Ambassador of Japan to Qatar, H E Satoshi Maeda told The Peninsula that: “We have received several hundred applications for visa waiver procedure.”
The envoy said that the embassy is getting a large number of requests for the visa waiver, resulting in a longer wait time. “It is recommended to apply after May if the visa is not urgent.”
“I think the new system is going pretty well so far and it indicates there are a lot of potential visitors to Japan in Qatar, after the pandemic,” explained Maeda and stressed that the new agreement will “positively affect tourism of both countries.”
Even before the agreement was put into force, the embassy has noticed an immense spike in demand for Qatari visa waiver requests since January.
The ambassador revealed that during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, 6,000 Japanese citizens travelled to Qatar to watch the tournament.
With the implementation of the mutual visa waiver on April 2, Qatari passport holders who want to visit Japan for a period of up to 30 consecutive days are no longer required to obtain a visa. Qatari nationals will receive free registration certificates that are good for three years in order to avoid the need for a visa.
Qatar is one of the 68 countries that do not require visas for travel to Japan for purposes such as business, conferences, visiting family and friends, and tourism.
Meanwhile, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the development will increase people-to-people exchange between Japan and Qatar.
This will consequently contribute to the Government of Japan’s goal of promoting Japan as a tourism-oriented country and supporting regional revitalisation.
Maeda stated in a previous interview that the collaboration between Japan and Qatar goes far beyond energy security. “Both countries also agreed to collaborate on efforts to achieve carbon neutrality, which Japan hopes to achieve by 2050. I believe our relations have progressed to the point where the two countries can develop new strategic relationships beyond energy security.” The two countries enjoy strong bilateral relations for over five decades now. It established diplomatic ties in May 1972, and the following month of this year, Qatar and Japan will commemorate 52 years of cooperation.
