The government will ease tourist visa application rules for Indian university undergraduates, recent graduates and postgraduate students on Feb. 1, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said.

The change will allow the students to use their enrollment or graduation certificates in place of proof of financial means required to apply for tourist visas.

"We hope this measure will further promote interpersonal exchanges between Japanese and Indian young people," Suga said Monday.

The relaxation of visa rules was announced in November when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was visiting Japan.