Japan Shopping and Travel Notes

For nights from April 1, 2027, Tokyo charges 3% of the room-only price per person, per night, nothing under ¥13,000, and hostels and Airbnb-type stays are added. A ¥66,000 room for two (10% consumption tax included) pays ¥1,800 a night (about $11.36), up from ¥400 (about $2.53) today. The change is already law, not a proposal.
Until March 31, 2027 it is ¥100 or ¥200 per person, per night at hotels and ryokan, and nothing under ¥10,000 per person. Jump to the calculator.

The short version: take your nightly room price, remove the 10% consumption tax and any meals, and divide by the number of guests (unless the hotel sets a separate price for each guest). Until March 31, 2027 that number puts you in the ¥0, ¥100 or ¥200 tier. From April 1, 2027, if it is ¥13,000 or more, round it down to the nearest ¥100 and take 3%. Multiply by guests and nights. The hotel or host collects it.

Dollar figures use US$1 = ¥158.40 (ExchangeRate-API, November 4, 2026), rounded.

Tokyo accommodation tax: now vs April 1, 2027

	Nights up to March 31, 2027	Nights from April 1, 2027
Rate (room-only price per person, per night, before 10% tax)	¥10,000 to ¥14,999: ¥100 (~$0.63) ¥15,000 or more: ¥200 (~$1.26)	3% of the price, rounded down to the nearest ¥100 first
No tax below	¥10,000 (~$63)	¥13,000 (~$82)
Where it applies	Hotels and ryokan in Tokyo	Hotels, ryokan, simple lodgings (簡易宿所, the license many hostels use) and home-shares (民泊, Airbnb-type stays)
Who collects	The place you stay, which pays it to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government

Is the 2027 change final? Yes. The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly passed the amended ordinance on March 27, 2026 as proposed, Japan’s Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications gave consent on June 30, 2026, and the ordinance was promulgated on July 1, 2026. It takes effect on April 1, 2027 and covers stays from that night onward.

What it means for you: the change is not just “more tax.” A couple in a mid-priced hotel can go from ¥100 each to nothing, while a solo traveler or anyone in a pricier room pays several times more.

Sources: Tokyo Bureau of Taxation, for guests; Tokyo Metropolitan Government press release, June 30, 2026; Tokyo Bureau of Taxation, accommodation tax review (checked Nov 4, 2026).

Which night counts: booked now, staying in 2027

The night you stay decides, not the day you book. Tokyo’s handbook for hotels says the stay date written in your booking contract decides which rule applies. Its own example: if your booked night is March 31, 2027, it is a March stay even if you check in at midnight on April 1.

A stay checking in March 30 and out April 2, 2027 is 3 nights, split by rule: the nights of March 30 and 31 use ¥100/¥200, and only the night of April 1 uses 3%. The calculator below splits this for you from your check-in date.
Booking a cherry-blossom trip for spring 2027 now? Price your April nights with the 3% rule, not today’s tiers.

Source: Tokyo Bureau of Taxation, accommodation tax handbook for operators, April 2027 edition (PDF), example 14 (checked Nov 4, 2026).

What counts as the “room price”

It is the room-only charge plus service charges, without meals and without taxes. Tokyo’s FAQ and handbook list:

Included: room charge, the service charge on it (many upscale hotels add 10% to 15%, so keep it in the price), and charges you cannot refuse such as bedding, cleaning, bathing and air conditioning. A mandatory cleaning fee charged once per stay is spread over the nights.
Not included: meals and drinks, banquets, parking, laundry, phone, consumption tax and the hot-spring bathing tax (入湯税), and tips you choose to give.
Breakfast “included for free”: if no meal price is set, the whole rate counts as the room price.

Per person: if the booking sets a price for each guest, that price is used. If not, the room price is divided by the guests in the room. Tokyo’s handbook uses a ¥32,550 twin room (before tax). From April 2027, one guest pays ¥975 (¥32,500 × 3%). Two guests pay ¥486 each, ¥972 total (¥32,550 ÷ 2 = ¥16,275, rounded down to ¥16,200, × 3%).

Kids, extra beds, discounts and points

Kids: children are taxed like adults when their per-person price is at or above ¥10,000 now, or at or above ¥13,000 from April 1, 2027. A child sharing a bed with no extra bedding and no extra charge is left out of the count.
Extra bed: added to the room total and split across everyone. In the handbook, ¥32,550 + a ¥6,000 extra bed for three people = ¥12,850 each, so no tax in 2027.
Baby cot or child rate charged separately: taxed as that child’s own stay (a ¥3,000 cot is far under the line).
The hotel’s own discount lowers the price that is taxed. Booking-site points do not if the site pays the hotel back: the handbook taxes the full ¥15,000, ¥450, even though the guest paid ¥12,000.
Different nightly prices: each night is judged on its own price. A lump discount for the whole stay is averaged over the nights.

Sources: Tokyo Bureau of Taxation FAQ Q3, Q4, Q6, Q7; Tokyo handbook for operators, April 2027 edition (PDF), pages 5 to 10 (checked Nov 4, 2026).

Worked examples in yen and dollars

These are made-up bookings to show the math, not real prices. “Tax included” means Japan’s 10% consumption tax.

Couple, business hotel, 3 nights: ¥22,000 a night, tax included → ¥20,000 → ¥10,000 each. Now: ¥100 × 2 × 3 = ¥600 (~$3.79). From April 2027: under ¥13,000, so ¥0.
Same room, solo traveler, 3 nights: ¥20,000 for one person. Now: ¥200 × 3 = ¥600 (~$3.79). From April 2027: ¥600 × 3 = ¥1,800 (~$11.36).
Couple, upscale hotel, 4 nights: ¥66,000 a night, tax included → ¥60,000 → ¥30,000 each. Now: ¥200 × 2 × 4 = ¥1,600 (~$10.10). From April 2027: ¥900 × 2 × 4 = ¥7,200 (~$45.45).
Couple, luxury hotel, 2 nights: ¥150,000 a night before tax, service charge included → ¥75,000 each. Now: ¥200 × 2 × 2 = ¥800 (~$5.05). From April 2027: ¥2,250 × 2 × 2 = ¥9,000 (~$56.82).
Couple, Airbnb-type apartment, 4 nights: ¥30,000 a night plus an ¥8,000 cleaning fee per stay (no consumption tax shown). ¥30,000 + ¥2,000 = ¥32,000 → ¥16,000 each. Now: home-shares are not taxed, ¥0. From April 2027: ¥480 × 2 × 4 = ¥3,840 (~$24.24).
Family of 4, Airbnb-type apartment, 4 nights: ¥40,000 a night plus a ¥12,000 cleaning fee → ¥43,000 → ¥10,750 each. Under ¥13,000, so ¥0 now and in 2027.

Compare Kyoto, which charges fixed tiers from ¥200 to ¥10,000 per person on every type of lodging: see our Kyoto accommodation tax guide and calculator.

Calculator

Check-in date (first night):
Room price per night, meals removed (¥):
Mandatory cleaning fee per stay (¥, 0 if none):
Prices include Japan’s 10% consumption tax
Home-share (Airbnb-type) or hostel / simple lodging
Guests using bedding: Nights:

One room at a time, same price every night. “Consumption tax” means only Japan’s 10% tax: keep any service charge in the price. It does not handle separate child or baby-cot prices; leave out a child sharing a bed with no extra bedding and no extra charge. Uses US$1 = ¥158.40.

Where you pay: hotel desk, host or booking site

The hotel or host collects the tax and pays it to Tokyo. Tokyo’s guest page says you may be asked to pay it at the front desk, separately from what you paid for the trip, using whatever payment methods the hotel accepts.

Look for “accommodation tax”, “city tax”, “local tax” or 宿泊税 on your confirmation. If it is listed as paid, it is part of what you already paid.
If it is not listed, confirm payment timing with the property (check-in or check-out). How you can pay is up to each property; for cards, cash and ATMs see using US credit and debit cards in Japan.
From April 2027, Airbnb-type hosts and hostels must register and collect it too. Check the platform’s price breakdown for your listing and ask the host if the tax is not shown.

It is a tax, not a service charge or tip. For other lines you may see on bills in Japan, see tipping and service charges in Japan for Americans.

Sources: Tokyo Bureau of Taxation, for guests, Q8; Tokyo press release, June 30, 2026, section 3 (checked Nov 4, 2026).

FAQ

Do foreign tourists pay more than Japanese residents?

No. Tokyo says the tax is on the stay, so it does not separate guests by nationality or residence, and it decided to keep it that way in the 2027 review.

Is a hotel outside Tokyo, such as in Yokohama, included?

No. This tax covers lodgings inside Tokyo Metropolis only (all of it, including the Tama area and the islands). Yokohama is in Kanagawa Prefecture, so a hotel there is outside this tax. Check the address on your booking if a hotel is marketed with “Tokyo” in its name.

Does the price exactly at ¥13,000 get taxed?

Yes. “Under ¥13,000” is exempt, so ¥13,000 per person pays ¥390. ¥12,999 pays nothing. The price is rounded down to the nearest ¥100 before taking 3%.

Can I get it refunded with tax-free shopping?

No. It is a local tax on your stay, separate from the consumption tax refund on goods. See how tax-free shopping works since November 1, 2026.

What is the money used for?

Tourism programs. In the fiscal 2026 budget, Tokyo lists ¥8.1 billion of tourism spending funded by the tax, including ¥1.1 billion for its TOKYO Cleanup Movement and ¥0.3 billion asking visitors to take their trash home.

Sources (checked Nov 4, 2026)

Tokyo Bureau of Taxation, accommodation tax for guests (FAQ Q1 to Q9); Tokyo Bureau of Taxation, accommodation tax review and schedule; Tokyo Metropolitan Government press release, June 30, 2026; Tokyo accommodation tax handbook for operators, April 2027 edition (PDF); ExchangeRate-API, USD/JPY.