There has been a lot of buzz on this board about Europe’s entry/exit system (and related troubles). Some suggest using some VIP service to expedite the process.
I have heard that you can book a VIP service to get through the entry/customs process in Japan, but I don’t know whether you really need it. Are there delays getting into Japan and is a VIP service worth it? This is only for my wife and I and not a family.
Thanks.
Unless something has changed (we were there in Sep/Oct 2025), you should not need VIP services.
As noted in the other thread, the EU issues are due to the haphazard rollout of the EES system beginning earlier this year.
I agree VIP escort wouldn’t be necessary. A friend of a friend paid $262K(!) for a 14-day custom tour of Japan for 4 couples in November (not including airfare, and with lots of “free activity” time), and even that only included a greeter at the airport arrival lobby (after Immigration and Customs). So, really, it’s not needed.
On the other hand, if you haven’t heard, you can get pre-cleared for Immigration and Customs at Visit Japan Web.
You create a free acount (one per family), then create an entry for each trip .You’ll then get a QR code you can scan at one of the kiosks at the airport, which will let you bypass regular lines. (Though there are times regular lines are quicker, in which case you can just do that).
You can also pre-register for tax-free shopping at the same website, which will save you the hassle of having to carry your passport while shopping (you show a QR code on your phone instead). Just make sure to get a temporary victor sticker (“landing permit stamp”) on your passport before you leave the Immigration area at the airport. You’ll have to scan it on your phone to finalized the tax-free registration process.
You won’t need any special service. Though lines can be long, they always move quickly and efficiently, as one would expect in Japan. Everyone follows directions patiently. It’s wonderful. “Let’s line up” was, to my amusement, a phrase considered important enough to appear early on in one of my first Japanese language courses. 
Italians have no such phrase
The queue at Narita when we arrived last month was pretty long, and I think it probably took us an hour. We had pre-cleared and that made zero difference. It seemed to me that some of the self-serve tech may not have been working properly. I don’t love queues, but happy to be on my feet for a bit after a long flight, and we weren’t going to be able to do much with the evening other than hit the bed. So I wasn’t that put out.