Key Takeaways
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For a Japan visa status check, track your application on VFS Global’s site using the reference number on your VFS receipt and your date of birth; the Embassy of Japan does not answer status queries (VFS Global, Track your application, visa.vfsglobal.com , accessed 2026-09-17). VFS runs Japan’s visa application centres in India as the Embassy’s official partner, so Japan visa tracking works the same way whether your application ends in an eVISA or a sticker.
This guide is maintained by Zurich Kotak General Insurance, an IRDAI-registered general insurer in India and part of the Zurich Insurance Group. It covers tracking; for the visa itself, see our guide to the Japan visa for Indians .
Last verified: 2026-09-17.
How to check your Japan visa status on VFS Global
Open the “Track your application” page on VFS Global’s Japan site, follow its link to the tracking service, and enter your reference number and date of birth. As the pages read on 2026-09-17:
1. Type the address of VFS Global’s Japan site for India yourself: visa.vfsglobal.com/ind/en/jpn/ .
2. Open Track your application from the menu.
3. Click track your visa application status online. It opens a form headed “Track your application” on visatracking.vfsglobal.com .
4. Fill in the two fields below, type the characters shown in the image, and submit.
Field on the form | What to enter | Where it comes from |
Application Reference Number | Your reference number | The invoice or receipt the Visa Application Centre gives you when you submit |
Date Of Birth | The applicant’s date of birth | Your passport |
Both the reference number and the date of birth are mandatory, so a passport number alone will not find your application. The Embassy of Japan in India “does not take any enquiry regarding the application status, documentation, reason of refusal, etc.” (Embassy of Japan in India, Visa, accessed 2026-09-17), and the consulates in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Kolkata say the same.
Travelling to Japan? Get covered before you fly. Travel insurance for Japan is on no Japanese visa checklist, but the approval you are tracking pays nothing towards a hospital bill in Japan, where medical costs can be very high.
Where your reference number comes from
The reference number is printed on the invoice or receipt the Visa Application Centre issues when you hand in your application, so keep that receipt safe. VFS asks for “the Reference Number present on the invoice/receipt issued by the Visa Application Centre along with your DOB”. You need the same receipt to collect your passport.
· If someone else submitted for you. The Kolkata centre accepts an application handed in by an agent or relative with an authorisation letter. The receipt is then with them.
· If you have lost it. Contact the centre that took your application, or the VFS call centre (below).
What the tracker can and cannot tell you
VFS publishes no list of what its tracking messages mean, so read the message as it stands and ask VFS if it is unclear. The one update VFS promises is the email: “You will receive an email update when your decision has been returned to the Visa Application Centre.” Check the inbox and spam folder of the address you gave.
The JAPAN eVISA website ( evisa.mofa.go.jp ) has its own status labels for account holders, but Indian residents cannot apply there themselves: India is on MOFA’s list of countries that apply through an accredited agency. Those labels may not be what the VFS tracker shows. Nor will the tracker give a reason for a refusal: Japan’s missions do not give one.
How long to wait before you follow up
Give the mission at least five working days from the day after it receives your application, and longer in the Mumbai jurisdiction, before you chase. VFS’s Mumbai page gives 10 processing days for Mumbai and 12 for Pune, Ahmedabad and Goa, and the Embassy says processing times “can vary significantly”. The full timeline is in Japan visa processing time .
What to do if your status does not move
Once your centre’s published time has passed, check your email and the tracker again, then contact VFS; do not file a second application.
· Allow for a longer examination. If there is a problem with an application, the mission sends it to MOFA in Tokyo, and “issuance of a visa may take more than a month” (MOFA, Visa Processing Time, mofa.go.jp , accessed 2026-09-17).
· Answer any request for documents quickly. The Bengaluru Consulate says extra documents may be needed and the examination then takes longer; VFS Kolkata allows at least five more working days after they are submitted.
· Do not apply again elsewhere. MOFA lists an application pending at another mission as a reason a new one is not accepted.
When to contact the centre, and who else to call
VFS, which holds your application, is the contact for anything about its progress; the Japanese missions take no status enquiries.
Situation | Who to contact |
Your centre’s published time has passed with no change | VFS call centre, +91-(0)22-6786-6016 |
A general question about Japanese visa rules | Japan Visa Information Hotline, +91-(0)11-71816614 (24x7, English only) |
Someone asks for money to speed things up | Nobody: do not respond. The Embassy never asks for payment by phone or email to expedite a visa, and suggests reporting such contact to the police and to jpemb-visa@nd.mofa.go.jp |
When the decision comes back
What you receive depends on the visa: a single-entry tourist visa is issued as an eVISA, while a multiple-entry visa, or a visa for any other purpose, is a sticker in your passport. For how the application itself is made, see how to apply for a Japan eVISA .
If an eVISA is issued
An eVISA reaches you as a “visa issuance notice” that you open live on your phone at the departure airport; there is no sticker. MOFA’s guide for agency applications describes the steps (JAPAN eVISA, How to display Visa issuance notice (PDF), accessed 2026-09-17):
1. The application centre, as your proxy, downloads the notice as a PDF carrying a two-dimensional code and passes you the data or a printout. Ask your centre how it hands this over.
2. At check-in at your departure airport, you scan that code, enter the details asked for, and the live notice appears on your phone with a countdown timer at the top right.
3. You show that live screen, with internet access. The Embassy: “In the form of PDF, photo, screenshot or printed copy will not be accepted.” The printout only opens the notice; it is not the visa.
Point | The rule |
Validity | Three months, counted from the day after issue; one entry; cannot be extended |
Stay | 15, 30 or 90 days, decided by the mission from your itinerary |
Passport | Travel on the passport you applied with; a passport renewed after issue needs a new visa |
Arrival | By air, or by scheduled ferry from Busan or Shanghai; a cruise arrival is not covered |
Visa issue number | Can be entered in Visit Japan Web to pull in your visa details; see our guide to the visa number |
A visa does not guarantee entry: MOFA calls it only one requirement for the landing permission an immigration officer grants on arrival.
If a paper visa is issued
A sticker visa comes back inside your passport, which you collect from the centre or receive by courier. VFS allows collection in person with your receipt and a government ID, by a representative carrying your signed authorisation letter, your receipt and their own ID, or by courier if you paid for it (INR 550 per application). If you applied for multiple entry, check which visa you were given: MOFA’s procedure for Indian nationals says, “Please note that we may issue a single entry visa after visa examination.”
If the visa is refused
Japan’s missions do not give reasons for a refusal, and they do not accept a new application for the same purpose within six months unless circumstances have changed significantly. MOFA also makes an exception on humanitarian grounds, and asks applicants to consult the mission first. VFS refunds the visa fee if the visa is not approved, but the INR 800 service charge and any courier charge are not refunded.
Where travel insurance fits
Travel insurance is not a requirement for a Japanese visa or for entry, but Japan’s Foreign Ministry calls it highly recommended (MOFA, VISA, accessed 2026-09-17). A policy has no bearing on the decision you are tracking. Japan’s consulates in India advise cover with support for hospital referrals and medical interpretation, and since 2026-04-01 an unpaid medical bill of JPY 10,000 or more (about INR 6,170 at 1 JPY = INR 0.617 on 2026-09-17) can be reported to Japan’s immigration agency and lead to strict screening on your next visit (MHLW notice, accessed 2026-09-17).
Zurich Kotak’s Smart Travel plans treat Japan as Asia geography: Excel, with sum insured up to USD 100,000, and Prime, up to USD 500,000. The Asia plans accept travellers up to age 70, with no Senior Citizen plan on this geography; travellers aged 71 or over can see travel insurance for senior citizens . Emergency medical treatment is the core, with baggage, trip delay, trip cancellation, passport loss and medical evacuation covered up to plan limits. Claims are handled by Europ Assistance India, and in Japan most run on reimbursement, so keep every bill. See travel insurance for Japan .
FAQs
Q: How can I check my Japan visa status from India? A: On VFS Global’s Japan site: open Track your application, follow the link to the tracking service, and enter the reference number from your VFS receipt and your date of birth. The Embassy and consulates do not answer status enquiries.
Q: Can I check my Japan visa status with my passport number? A: No. The VFS tracker needs the reference number printed on the Visa Application Centre’s invoice or receipt, together with your date of birth.
Q: How will I know my Japan visa decision is ready? A: VFS sends an email update when your decision has been returned to the Visa Application Centre. You can also check the tracker at any time.
Q: How do I get my Japan eVISA once it is issued? A: The application centre downloads a visa issuance notice with a two-dimensional code and passes you the data or a printout. At the departure airport you scan the code and show the live notice on your phone; a PDF, photo, screenshot or printout is not accepted.
Q: Can I call the Japanese Embassy to ask about my visa status? A: No. The Embassy does not take enquiries about application status, documentation or refusal reasons. Call the VFS call centre on +91-(0)22-6786-6016, or the Japan Visa Information Hotline on +91-(0)11-71816614 for general visa questions.
Q: What should I do if my Japan visa status has not changed? A: Wait until your centre’s published time has passed: at least five working days after the mission receives the application, and longer in the Mumbai jurisdiction. An application referred to Tokyo can take more than a month. After that, contact VFS rather than applying again.
