Visitors face immediate fines for making one big mistake in crowded destination

One ofTokyo’s most visiteddistricts has begun issuing on-the-spot fines to people caught littering as local officials attempt to address growing overtourism challenges.

As of June 1, people caught improperly disposing of trash in public areas can face an immediate 2,000-yen fine, or roughly $13, under revised rules adopted by Shibuya Ward officials, Japan Today reported.

The move comes as Japan continues to see a sharp increase in tourism following thepost-pandemic travel boom.

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Japan welcomed a record 42.7 million international visitors in 2025, Reuters reported.

Shibuya, home to the world-famous Shibuya Crossing, remains one of Tokyo’s most popular destinations for international visitors.

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The region of Shibuya, Tokyo, has begun issuing immediate on-the-spot fines to people caught littering as local officials attempt to address growing overtourism challenges.(Andrzej Iwanczuk/NurPhoto)

The area’s daytime population regularly exceeds more than twice its resident population of roughly 240,000 people, according to the Japan outlet.

Asvisitor numbers continue to climb, officials said littering is increasingly noticeable around train stations, entertainment districts and other popular tourist areas.

Educational campaigns encouraging people to take their trash home have not been enough to keep pace with growing crowds, officials said.

With tourist numbers continuing to rise, officials say littering has become more prevalent around train stations, entertainment districts and other popular attractions.(Kentaro Takahashi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The district plans to increase the number of patrol officers enforcing the rules and will deploy multilingual staff who speak English, Chinese and Korean. 

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Officials will also accept both cash and cashless payments for fines.

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“Shibuya is an international city visited by many people in Japan and fromaround the world,” Shibuya Mayor Ken Hasebe said in a statement.

“We must … fulfill our responsibility to protect the urban environment.”

“While that vibrancy is something we take pride in, we must also fulfill our responsibility to protect the urban environment.”

“We ask everyone who visits Shibuya, regardless of nationality, to follow the city’s rules,” he added.“Shibuya will continue to make responsible choices as a city where vibrancy and order coexist.”

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The new littering fines are part of a broader effort by Japanese officials to address overtourism issues, as visitor numbers continue to rise.

The introduction of littering fines reflects a wider campaign by Japanese officials to mitigate the effects of overtourism.(Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP)

com/travel/tourist-chaos-erupts-cherry-blossom-festival-shut-down-officials-triple-tax-curb-crowds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">triple its international tourist taxfrom 1,000 yen, or about $6, to 3,000 yen, or about $18, per visitor as officials work to balance tourism growth with the quality of life for local residents.

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Japanese officials said the goal is not to discourage tourism, but to bettermanage the impactof record visitor numbers on local communities, infrastructure and public spaces.

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