Japan begins departure tax to fund inbound tourism promotion

Japan started collecting a 1,000 yen ($9) departure tax on Monday from each traveler leaving the country in an effort to fund measures to attract more foreign visitors in the run-up to and beyond the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.The new tax, which applies to both air and sea travel, will be tacked on to transportation fares of passengers regardless of their nationality. Toddlers under the age of 2 and transit passengers leaving Japan within 24 hours of their arrival will be exempted.The tax income will be allocated mainly for three purposes -- providing smoother travel services, faci…READ FULL ARTICLE