Japan Visa Documents for UK Residents: The Embassy Checklist

TL;DR

The Embassy of Japan in the UK publishes a one-page checklist for each purpose of visit. For tourism it wants a passport with two blank pages, the form signed in ink with a glued 35 x 45 mm photo, proof of UK status, an employer or college letter under three months old, a day-by-day Schedule of Stay, three months of bank statements, and bookings if made. Visiting friends or business adds an invitation letter. Nothing but the passport comes back.

The checklist is the embassy's, not ours

Everything below comes from the embassy's own checklists for tourism, visiting friends and relatives and business, conference or short study, read on 23 October 2026. The consulate in Edinburgh uses the same lists. Where we add a note from the desk, we say so. If you are not yet sure you need a visa at all, start with who needs a Japan visa from the UK.

Every checklist ends with the same six notes, and they shape the whole file: the embassy cannot accept an application "more than 3 months before the date of arrival in Japan"; the passport, form and photo must be originals; the embassy "does not return any of the documents submitted (aside from your passport)"; processing is in principle 5 working days from acceptance; and personal details on every certificate must match the passport.

The core list for every applicant

Valid passport, original. At least two blank pages. The embassy FAQ explains why: the visa takes a full page and the landing stamps half a page, so one and a half pages is the floor. There is no fixed rule on remaining validity, but the FAQ recommends a passport "valid for longer than your planned period of stay". Desk note: if you have six months or less left, renew first; a visa in a passport that expires mid-trip helps nobody.

Completed visa application form. Downloaded from the embassy's application form page. Every field is completed, in ink or typed, with "N/A" or "None" where a question does not apply. The signature must be in ink: "Digital signatures will not be accepted." Citizens of Russia and the former Soviet states listed on the checklist submit two forms and two photos.

One passport-size photo. 35 mm by 45 mm, taken within the last six months, plain background, "printed on photo quality paper stuck to the application form using a glue stick". The checklist names blu tack and double-sided tape as the things not to use. Desk note: a supermarket booth photo on a white background is fine; a cropped holiday photo is not.

Proof of UK immigration status. Either the "Your immigration status" page printed from gov.uk, showing your name, ID photo, status and the share code, or a valid UK entry clearance or indefinite leave to remain in your passport plus a photocopy. The embassy sets no minimum remaining validity; it must be valid when you apply. Desk note: we advise leave that runs beyond your return date, because a visa section looking at leave that expires during the trip will ask what you plan to do next. That is our advice, not the embassy's rule.

Letter from your employer or academic institution. Issued within the last three months, certifying your employment or enrolment. The embassy's eVisa checklist spells out what does not count: a job offer letter, a contract, a payslip or a tuition fee receipt. Self-employed applicants have no line on the checklist; the desk sends an accountant's letter and the last tax return, and labels them as supporting evidence.

Schedule of Stay. The embassy's own form, with a sample on the form page. The checklist asks for a "detailed Schedule of Stay that covers each day of the proposed trip, including places and activities planned". Desk note: one line per day, with the city, what you will do and where you sleep. "Tokyo, sightseeing" repeated ten times is the single most common reason a file is handed back at the counter.

Proof of funds. "Bank statements covering the last 3 months with sufficient funds for the proposed trip. Credit card statements are not acceptable." The FAQ gives no minimum: decisions are "not based on the amount of funding only". Desk note: statements should show your name and the account number on every page and be continuous, with no gaps between months. Print-at-home PDFs from online banking are accepted at the counter in our experience; a balance certificate on its own is not what the list asks for.

Flight information, if booked. For the journey to and from Japan. Hotel information, if booked. The booking confirmation for your accommodation. Neither has to be bought before you apply; the eVisa FAQ says an itinerary from a booking is enough and the paper checklist says "if booked". Desk note: a refundable reservation is the sensible middle ground.

What visiting friends or family adds

The visiting friends checklist keeps the core list and adds two items. An invitation letter written by your friend or relative in Japan, on the embassy's invitation form or in their own words. And proof of the inviter's residence status in Japan: a copy of the front and back of their residence card, or a certificate of residence if they are a Japanese national. Desk note: ask for these early. A friend in Osaka who has to visit a ward office for a certificate can add a week to your timeline, and the three-months-before-arrival rule means you cannot bank that week in advance.

Note the change of category. A visit to a friend cannot be dressed up as tourism to use the eVisa; the eVisa FAQ says plainly that "visiting acquaintances" must be applied for on paper.

What a business trip or conference adds

The business checklist adds an invitation letter from the company, event organiser or school in Japan, and evidence of your planned activity: details of the inviting company, the conference or event, or a school enrolment certificate. Proof of funds can be either a letter from your employer or school "stating that they will cover your costs" or, if you are paying your own way, the usual three months of bank statements. Desk note: an employer letter that both certifies your job and confirms it pays for the trip does two jobs on one page, and the embassy's own Letter of Guarantee and Overview of Company forms exist for the Japanese side.

What the embassy may still ask for

Every checklist says "In some cases, additional supporting documents may be required", and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs FAQ explains that each applicant's circumstances differ and some documents are only requested once a file is being examined. If the visa section asks, the processing clock stops until it has them. Desk note: the requests we see most are a marriage or birth certificate when a family member's statements are used, an old passport showing past travel, and a letter explaining a long gap in employment.

What is not on the list

Travel insurance is not on any checklist. The embassy has an advice page about overseas travel insurance and we recommend cover, but that is advice. A police certificate, a sponsorship letter from a UK relative, a cover letter and a return ticket are not asked for either. A short cover letter that explains anything unusual, such as a recent job change, is our habit rather than a requirement, and we label it as such in the pack.

Putting the file together

Hand in originals in the order of the checklist, with the photo already glued on. Scan everything first with the Bundler so you keep a copy of what the embassy keeps, and use the Compressor if a bank PDF is too large to email. Remember the three-month window: the embassy will not take the file more than three months before you land, however ready it is.

You can do all of this yourself. The embassy publishes the checklist and the form, the appointment is free to book, and applying yourself costs only the official fee: £77 for most nationalities, £4 for Indian nationals, nothing for Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Filipino nationals. If you would rather have the form, the Schedule of Stay and the pack built for you and the appointment booked in your name, our prepared-for-you Japan visa service does that for a £99 service fee, plus £69 for each extra traveller on the same trip up to five, with your file ready within 24 hours of complete documents or your fee back. You attend, you pay the official fee, and the visa section decides. Full refund if you cancel before we start work. WayaNerd Ltd, company 16269713. Start at the plan step.