The countdown to raising the sales tax officially began Friday with the Diet passing the necessary legislation, but the move is just the start of a long road that still lies ahead.

Even the welfare ministry acknowledges that the consumption tax must be increased to 17.1 percent by 2075 if public pension reforms and a basic pension payout to raise benefits for low-income households are implemented as planned.

Some economists go as far as to argue that pushing the levy to between 20 and 25 percent will be necessary to dig Japan out of its deep fiscal hole.