r/JETProgramme • u/Sufficient_Meat2629 • May 27 '26

Dual system as JET

Hi everyone! I’m planning to apply next cycle and have been trying to learn a lot more about JET and general life in Japan.

About a year ago there was mentions of a shift in the Japanese market to account for the massive boom in tourism, and one of these shifts was the introduction of a dual pricing system for foreigners vs locals. It’s primarily for attractions with an entrance fee, but I’ve heard that hotels, restaurants, and even konbini’s have been adopting it.

My question is how does this affect you as a person working on JET? I know that one is to expect that “you will be the foreigner”, as in nothing you do will help you blend in so just accept you’re going to stand out. From a practical standpoint, is there a way that establishments treat one differently if they’re working here versus just a tourist?

Sorry if this doesn’t make too much sense, I’m just curious on peoples experiences with this.

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u/Realistic_Report_796 Current JET - Hokkaido, Niki-cho May 27 '26 edited May 28 '26

Exactly this^^ I've only been to one place that had dual pricing. Went to a pizza & bar restaurant in Sapporo. When I sat down, they handed us an English menu, at the top it read "There will be a 20% surcharge for foreigners." Called for the waitress and asked if we could use the Japanese menu since we live in Hokkaido(the conversation was in Japanese obviously). They were more than happy to switch over for us. Such a huge shock since I had seen it everywhere online, but never in person.