A Japan Visa Center Is Opening This April 2025

(SPOT.ph) Great news, travel bugs! The Japanese Embassy in the Philippines just announced that a new Japan Visa Application Center is opening this April. 

Starting April 7, Japanese Visa Applications must be submitted through the soon-to-open Japan Visa Application Center (JVAC) through VFS Service Philippines. If you plan to visit Japan soon or are already in the middle of applying for a visa, you might want to check how these new developments might affect you.

Here's what you need to know about the new Japan Visa Application Center

Five visa application centers are opening in different locations in the country: Parañaque City, Makati City, Quezon City, Cebu City, and Davao City, says the Embassy of Japan in the Philippines through a statement on their website.

The new visa centers will be open on Mondays to Fridays from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., but note that application hours vary from center to center.

• Parañaque, Makati, and Quezon City application hours: 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Cebu and Davao application hours: 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. 

Meanwhile, those who applied can claim their passports (and hopefully, granted visas) during the JVAC's operating hours.

Appointments for visa applications and renewals have officially opened today through the VFS website. Simply choose the visa center where you want to process your application and make an appointment. Once your appointment date has arrived, just bring all your visa application requirements and pay the P520 application fee, and you're all set.

The website also allows applicants to track their application and avail of premium services like access to an applicant's lounge where they can wait for their turn conveniently, courier services for passport releasing, and even form-filling services in which staff from the center can help you with the tedious process of answering the visa application form. 

Note that the JVAC will only take over the visa process starting on April 7, when they open. Applicants who need to apply before then would still have to go through the old visa application process through accredited travel agencies. 

Hopefully, this move will speed things up for prospective travelers to Japan. The Embassy of Japan made this move in response to the overwhelming influx of visa applicants since last year, which has since resulted in longer wait times for visa results and seemingly neverending queues in travel agencies.

Also read: 
US Embassy to Launch New Visa Application Center in Parqal Mall

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