I am an Indian. I have got my Japan tourist visa. It is valid from Feb 4th 2025 to May 4th 2025, and it says the duration of stay is 15 days. I'm new to all this, what does all of this mean?
Also, my trip is planned from 24th April (arriving into Japan) to May 5th (leaving Japan at 2:00pm). I submitted flight tickets for these dates during my visa application. Does this mean I have to rebook my flight to leave on May 4th and other May 5th?
A Japanese visa has a validity of 3 months from the date of issue. Yours was issued on February 4th, and is valid until May 4th.
However, these dates of validity are only relevant for entry into Japan. As long as you enter before May 4th (which is your case), you are fine.
For reference, note that this is not a general rule for all countries: some like Japan or the US require the visa to be valid only on entry, others require the visa to remain valid for the whole duration of stay.
Once you enter, you can stay for the maximum duration listed on the visa, which is 15 days. Since you plan to stay for 12 days, you are fine.
So your visa is perflectly valid for your intended travel:
The validity of visa (4 Feb 2025 to 4 May 2025) means you must reach Japan within this period. Then you can stay in Japan for 15 days (entry day consider day 0). Your trip is legal.
Quote from Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
Visas are only valid for entering Japan on one occasion. The period of validity of the single-entry visa is three months. Please make sure that the bearer of visa apply for landing with an immigration inspector at the port of entry where he/she seeks to land and undergo an examination for landing before the visa is expired.
