In the news from December 26, 2025, since Japan’s Prime Minister Koichi’s statement about “issues related to Taiwan” last month, the Beijing government has continued to urge citizens to “temporarily suspend travel to Japan”. Not only that, according to sources, authorities have clearly instructed domestic travel agencies to reduce the number of visa applications for Japan and cut the number of visitors to Japan by 40%.
Several Japanese media outlets reported on the 25th that multiple sources revealed that the Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism summoned the heads of several large travel agencies and demanded a reduction of visitors to Japan by 40%, and instructed those involved not to disclose the content of this directive.
It is reported that this directive was issued at the end of November after Prime Minister Koichi Sanae mentioned in a parliamentary debate that the situation in Taiwan may pose a crisis, citing Japan’s deteriorating public safety as the reason, with the measures initially set to last until December. However, in December, it was requested that the relevant measures be extended until March next year. Currently, all travel agencies have ceased accepting group tours to Japan.
In response, Japanese government officials pointed out that although a thorough assessment of the impact is needed after further data analysis, this move clearly aims to increase pressure on Japan.
Hiroshi Mizohata, Chairman of the Osaka Tourism Bureau, stated that indeed many Chinese tour groups have recently canceled their travel plans, but individual travelers from China continue to visit.
He also mentioned that the industry will continue to monitor the situation and plans to expand efforts to attract tourists from countries other than China and domestic travelers in Japan to further broaden the tourist market.
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