Tokyo filing guide
Applying for an E-2 visa in Tokyo
The submission process, document format and interview steps for applications filed through the U.S. Embassy Tokyo.
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Your Tokyo E-2 visa application at a glance
- Submission
- Email Submission
- Document format
- Japan Tabbed System
- File limit
- 50 MB
- Page limit
- 70 pages
- TCN policy
- Limited TCN processing
- Interview location
- U.S. Embassy Tokyo
Open the official application portal(opens the official site in a new tab)
Requirements reviewed August 2026 · Sources: U.S. Embassy Tokyo(opens the official site in a new tab) and U.S. Department of State(opens the official site in a new tab)
Process
How to apply for an E-2 visa in Tokyo
Read this as a sequence, not a menu. Each step depends on the one before it.
- 01
Complete the DS-160
Fill in the DS-160 nonimmigrant visa application online, upload your photo, and print the confirmation page with the barcode. Every applicant needs their own DS-160, including dependants.
Consular Electronic Application Center(opens the official site in a new tab)
- 02
Pay the MRV fee
Pay the machine-readable visa fee through the visa services portal for this post. You cannot book an interview until the payment clears.
- 03
Schedule the interview
Book your appointment at U.S. Embassy Tokyo through the same portal. E-visa cases are often handled by a dedicated unit, so appointment availability differs from other visa categories.
- 04
Email the application package
Send the complete PDF package to JapanEVisa@state.gov ahead of your interview date, and keep the confirmation.
Submissions go to JapanEVisa@state.gov.
- 05
Attend the interview
Present your case at U.S. Embassy Tokyo. Bring the originals behind your evidence and expect questions about the business, the money and how you will run it. Answers that contradict your file are what cause trouble.
Documents
E-2 visa document requirements in Tokyo
Submit your application package via email to the consulate.
File requirements
- Format
- ZIP archive of PDFs
- Page limit
- 70 pages
- File size
- 50 MB
Documents submitted separately
These sit outside the formatted package and do not count toward any limit.
- Tab 1 (Forms & Admin) documents
Important Tokyo instructions
- Build a top folder named after the U.S. company, with subfolders Tab 1 to Tab 5, then compress it as a ZIP.
- Email the ZIP as a single attachment to JapanEVisa@state.gov, using the U.S. company name as the subject line.
- Do not send a link to documents stored in the cloud — the package must be attached.
- The 70-page limit applies where the ultimate parent is unlisted or a sole proprietorship. If the parent is exclusively listed on a Japanese exchange, the limit is 50 pages.
- File names should be short and alphanumeric, and documents saved as PDFs in portrait orientation.
- Full instructions: ustraveldocs.com/jp — Treaty Traders and Treaty Investors Visas, Step 4.
Format
The Tokyo tabbed ZIP format
Tokyo accepts one ZIP archive containing a folder per numbered tab. Every file inside must be a PDF, and images are converted automatically before submission.
The 5 tabs
- Tab 1Basic Documents
- Tab 2Corporate Structure
- Tab 3Investment
- Tab 4Real and Operating
- Tab 5Marginality
What the format requires
- Tab 1 is exempt from the 70-page limit.
- The remaining tabs are capped at 70 pages combined.
- The ZIP archive must stay under 50 MB.
- Email the ZIP as a single attachment to JapanEVisa@state.gov. Do not send a link to cloud storage.
From Portunus
Turn your business case into a consular-ready plan
Assembling to U.S. Embassy Tokyo's requirements is a formatting problem. Making the business case is the hard part — that is what we build.
- Business plan and five-year financials £99
- A FAM 402.9-aligned plan with projections, job-creation analysis and proportionality — the document the whole application rests on. Editable and regenerable as your plans change.
- Complete evidence-binder assembly £140
- Everything in the plan, plus your full binder assembled to the Japan Tabbed System — ordered, page-numbered and ready to file.
One-time payment, no subscription. Portunus is document-preparation software, not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice.
Third-country nationals
Applying for an E-2 visa in Tokyo as a third-country national
Tokyo processes a limited number of third-country national cases, and may ask you to justify filing here rather than in your country of citizenship or residence.
A third-country national is someone who applies at a U.S. post outside their country of citizenship — for example, a treaty-country citizen who lives and works elsewhere. Consular practice now expects applicants to file where they hold citizenship or permanent residence, so filing elsewhere is the exception rather than the norm. Compare every post by how readily it takes outside applicants.
We rate this post 1 out of 3 for third-country processing, meaning it takes a limited number, often with justification. That rating is our own reading of published guidance and applicant reports — it describes willingness to schedule an appointment, not your eligibility for approval, and it carries no official standing.
Policy at individual posts changes without much notice. Confirm the current position before you build a filing plan around it — U.S. Embassy Tokyo(opens the official site in a new tab).
How Tokyo wants the package built
Tokyo is the only post in our registry that takes the application as a ZIP archive rather than a single PDF, and the structure inside it is prescribed. Build a top-level folder named after the U.S. company, put one subfolder per tab inside it — Tab 1 through Tab 5 — then compress the whole thing.
Email the archive as a single attachment to the E-visa unit, using the U.S. company name as the subject line. Links to documents in cloud storage are not accepted: the package has to be attached.
- File names should be short and alphanumeric.
- Documents go in as PDFs, in portrait orientation.
- The archive must stay under 50 MB.
- Tab 1 is exempt from the page count.
The page limit depends on the parent company
Tokyo publishes two page limits, and which applies turns on the ultimate parent rather than on the applicant. Where the parent is unlisted or a sole proprietorship, the limit is 70 pages. Where the parent is exclusively listed on a Japanese exchange, it drops to 50.
This is worth checking before assembly rather than after. A package built to 70 pages for a client whose parent turns out to be listed is 20 pages over a limit nobody mentioned, and the difference is a fact about corporate structure that an applicant may not think to volunteer.
For attorneys filing a Tokyo case from the United States
Japan issues more E-2 visas than any other country — 15,521 in FY2024, more than a quarter of the worldwide total — so a U.S. immigration practice is more likely to meet a Tokyo filing than any other single post. The mechanics above are where cases go wrong: a package that would be accepted anywhere else arrives as a PDF, or as a cloud link, or with the folder structure flattened.
The substantive standard is unchanged. 9 FAM 402.9 governs whether the investment is substantial, at risk and more than marginal, exactly as it does at every other post. Tokyo's particularity is entirely in the container.
Primary sources
Sources
- Visas — U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Japan — U.S. Mission Japan
- 9 FAM 402.9 — Treaty Traders, Investors and Specialty Occupations — U.S. Department of State
- USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 2, Part L, Chapter 4 — Treaty Investors — U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
- Treaty Countries — Nonimmigrant Visas for Treaty Traders and Treaty Investors — U.S. Department of State — Bureau of Consular Affairs
- E-2 Treaty Investors — Visa Information — U.S. Department of State — Bureau of Consular Affairs
Questions
E-2 visa in Tokyo: common questions
How do I submit my E-2 visa application to U.S. Embassy Tokyo?
U.S. Embassy Tokyo accepts the application package by email to JapanEVisa@state.gov. Send the complete PDF before your interview date, and keep the confirmation.
What document format does U.S. Embassy Tokyo require for E-2 visa applications?
U.S. Embassy Tokyo uses a defined structure rather than a free-form bundle: Tab 1 (Basic Documents), Tab 2 (Corporate Structure), Tab 3 (Investment), Tab 4 (Real and Operating), Tab 5 (Marginality). Tab 1 is exempt from the 70-page limit.
What is the page limit for E-2 visa applications at U.S. Embassy Tokyo?
The page limit is 70 pages. The submission is capped at 50 MB. Some documents are exempt from the count, including Tab 1 (Forms & Admin) documents. Check the requirements section on this page for the full list before you assemble.
Can third-country nationals apply for an E-2 visa at U.S. Embassy Tokyo?
Sometimes. U.S. Embassy Tokyo processes a limited number of third-country national cases, and may ask you to justify why you are filing here rather than in your country of citizenship or residence. Acceptance and appointment availability change, so confirm the current position with the post before you build a filing plan around it.
How long does an E-2 visa take at U.S. Embassy Tokyo?
We do not publish an estimate for U.S. Embassy Tokyo, because a number invented for a page like this would be worse than none. travel.state.gov publishes current visa appointment wait times by post, and that is the figure to check. Total time is appointment availability plus any administrative processing after the interview. Book flights and shipping only once the visa is in your passport.
What should I bring to my E-2 visa interview at U.S. Embassy Tokyo?
Bring your passport, the DS-160 confirmation page, the MRV fee receipt, your appointment confirmation, and the originals behind your evidence — financial statements, business registration, lease and purchase agreements. Bring a printed copy of the package you uploaded, so you can refer to it during the interview. Expect questions about how you found the business, where the money came from, and how you will run it.
Ready to prepare your Tokyo E-2 application?
Portunus builds the FAM 402.9-aligned business plan and five-year financials your case rests on, and can assemble the complete evidence binder formatted to the Japan Tabbed System — so what you submit matches what the post asks for.
Preparing an E-2 case for a client? See our tools for immigration attorneys. Portunus is document-preparation software, not a law firm, and provides no legal advice.