Mar 5, 2020, 5:17 pm
Last edit by: CPH-Flyer
This thread is for discussion of the coronavirus / COVID-19 pandemic as it relates to Japan. Non-Japan-related discussion should be taken either to the most relevant forum, the Coronavirus and Travel forum, or the OMNI forums.
UPDATE FOR TOURISTS LOOKING TO VISIT JAPAN AFTER COVID-19 BORDER RESTRICTIONS EASE
Japan does currently not allow entry for general tourism purposes. Most visa waivers are suspended, and travel to Japan for non resident foreigners generally require a visa. And quarantine as described for the countries and territories below.
UPDATE FOR PEOPLE WITH VISAS THAT ALLOW ENTRY INTO JAPAN
The quarantine requirements mentioned below will generally apply to entrants in Japan. As the conditions of who can obtain a visa for entry on exceptional circumstances are not clearly listed anywhere, it is necessary to confirm entry requirements with your local Japanese diplomatic representatives
Spouses and children of foreign permanent residents or Japanese nationals, can obtain visas for short term stays (up to 90 days) by applying in person or by mail at an overseas Japanese consulate. Required documentation includes application form, letter with reason for purpose of visit, bank statement and Koseki Tohon. Processing times have been reported as on the spot to up to one week.
From March 1st, business travelers, students and technical trainees can again enter Japan. There is a need to have a receiving organisation to apply for the visa. For business travelers, there will be one point of contact with the Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare. Though the full details are not published yet (as of typing on the 27th of February, please add them if you have seen them)
Business travelers must have a Japanese company or organization apply for a Certificate for Completion of Registration to the MHLW ERFS system. This is a two step process. The company must first register and then apply for the Certificate for the traveler. These can both be done online and completed in less than an hour.The website for doing this is https://entry.hco.mhlw.go.jp/.
After getting the certificate the traveler must apply for visa at the Japanese Consulate or Embassy with jurisdiction for where they reside. (They are quite strict about this. E.g. you can't apply while traveling in a foreign country.) The information on the Consulate pages state that you need Letter of Guarantee, Invitation Letter, etc when applying for the visa. In fact, however, if you have the EFRS certificate, all you need is the visa application, your passport and a photo. The Consulate will issue the visa within 5 days.
UPDATE JAPANESE CITIZENS AND RETURNING FOREIGN JAPAN RESIDENTS
All people travelling to Japan has to present a negative PCR test taking no earlier than. 72 hours before departure to be able to board the flight. The certificate has to meet the information requirements and test types from the Japanese government.
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/000799426.pdf
From the 7th of June, passport number, nationality, signature and stamp from the doctor/medical institution are no longer required.
The requirement for pre-departure test will be removed for passengers on flights landing after the 7th of September 00:00 provided that they have received a full bases vaccination and a booster vaccination. Accepted vaccines are Moderna, Pfizer, Astra, Zeneca, J&J, Novavax, Covaxin.
Uploading documents in advance via the mysos app or via the mysos website is required. For details please see https://www.hco.mhlw.go.jp/en/
The arrival process is as follows. Countries will be grouped in red, yellow, and blue.
Red countries:
Albania, Sierra Leone
Yellow countries:
Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Botswana, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Cook Island, Cuba, Cyprus, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Macau, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Namibia, Nauru, Nicaragua, Niger, Niue, North Korea, North Macedonia, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Portugal, Republic of Burundi, Republic of Congo, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Republic of Vanuatu, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Solomon, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Tajikistan, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Ukraine, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vatican, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zimbabwe
Blue countries:
Afghanistan, Algeria, Argentine, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote d’lvoire, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyz, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Sudan, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, Western Sahara, Zambia
For updates to the lists of countries and territories and changes to the rules check the website of the ministry of foreign affairs https://www.mofa.go.jp/ca/fna/page4e_001053.html and ask in the thread for clarifications and experiences of entering Japan.
UPDATE FOR TOURISTS LOOKING TO VISIT JAPAN AFTER COVID-19 BORDER RESTRICTIONS EASE
Japan does currently not allow entry for general tourism purposes. Most visa waivers are suspended, and travel to Japan for non resident foreigners generally require a visa. And quarantine as described for the countries and territories below.
UPDATE FOR PEOPLE WITH VISAS THAT ALLOW ENTRY INTO JAPAN
The quarantine requirements mentioned below will generally apply to entrants in Japan. As the conditions of who can obtain a visa for entry on exceptional circumstances are not clearly listed anywhere, it is necessary to confirm entry requirements with your local Japanese diplomatic representatives
Spouses and children of foreign permanent residents or Japanese nationals, can obtain visas for short term stays (up to 90 days) by applying in person or by mail at an overseas Japanese consulate. Required documentation includes application form, letter with reason for purpose of visit, bank statement and Koseki Tohon. Processing times have been reported as on the spot to up to one week.
From March 1st, business travelers, students and technical trainees can again enter Japan. There is a need to have a receiving organisation to apply for the visa. For business travelers, there will be one point of contact with the Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare. Though the full details are not published yet (as of typing on the 27th of February, please add them if you have seen them)
Business travelers must have a Japanese company or organization apply for a Certificate for Completion of Registration to the MHLW ERFS system. This is a two step process. The company must first register and then apply for the Certificate for the traveler. These can both be done online and completed in less than an hour.The website for doing this is https://entry.hco.mhlw.go.jp/.
After getting the certificate the traveler must apply for visa at the Japanese Consulate or Embassy with jurisdiction for where they reside. (They are quite strict about this. E.g. you can't apply while traveling in a foreign country.) The information on the Consulate pages state that you need Letter of Guarantee, Invitation Letter, etc when applying for the visa. In fact, however, if you have the EFRS certificate, all you need is the visa application, your passport and a photo. The Consulate will issue the visa within 5 days.
UPDATE JAPANESE CITIZENS AND RETURNING FOREIGN JAPAN RESIDENTS
All people travelling to Japan has to present a negative PCR test taking no earlier than. 72 hours before departure to be able to board the flight. The certificate has to meet the information requirements and test types from the Japanese government.
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/000799426.pdf
From the 7th of June, passport number, nationality, signature and stamp from the doctor/medical institution are no longer required.
The requirement for pre-departure test will be removed for passengers on flights landing after the 7th of September 00:00 provided that they have received a full bases vaccination and a booster vaccination. Accepted vaccines are Moderna, Pfizer, Astra, Zeneca, J&J, Novavax, Covaxin.
Uploading documents in advance via the mysos app or via the mysos website is required. For details please see https://www.hco.mhlw.go.jp/en/
The arrival process is as follows. Countries will be grouped in red, yellow, and blue.
- Group “Red”：On-arrival test is required. 3-day quarantine at a government-designated facility is required, however, those who obtain a valid vaccination certificate may have 5-day home quarantine (or 3-day home quarantine + negative result of a voluntary test) instead.
- Group “Yellow”：On-arrival test and 5-day home quarantine (or 3-day home quarantine + negative result of a voluntary test) are required, however, those who obtain a valid vaccination certificate are not required to have on-arrival test, home quarantine and other measures.
- Group “Blue”：Regardless of the vaccination status of the entrants/returnees, on-arrival test, home quarantine and other measures are not required.
Red countries:
Albania, Sierra Leone
Yellow countries:
Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Botswana, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Cook Island, Cuba, Cyprus, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Macau, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Namibia, Nauru, Nicaragua, Niger, Niue, North Korea, North Macedonia, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Portugal, Republic of Burundi, Republic of Congo, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Republic of Vanuatu, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Solomon, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Tajikistan, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Ukraine, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vatican, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zimbabwe
Blue countries:
Afghanistan, Algeria, Argentine, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote d’lvoire, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyz, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Sudan, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, Western Sahara, Zambia
For updates to the lists of countries and territories and changes to the rules check the website of the ministry of foreign affairs https://www.mofa.go.jp/ca/fna/page4e_001053.html and ask in the thread for clarifications and experiences of entering Japan.
Coronavirus impact in Japan [consolidated]
Apr 18, 2021, 8:51 pm
#3646
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Osaka governor has announced his intention to request an emergency declaration for his prefecture.
Tokyo governor announced that she intends to make a decision on that within the next two or three days.
Tokyo governor announced that she intends to make a decision on that within the next two or three days.
Apr 19, 2021, 5:59 pm
#3647
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Monday seems to be the official day when new strictions or loosenings come into effect in Japan. Anyone want to make a prediction on what will happen next week?
Here's my breakdown of what I see are the four possibilities:
* 10% chance any change will be limited to quasi-emergency declarations in new hot spots, like Ehime and Wakayama. Individual governors currently under quasi-emergency may also expand the measures to additional regions of their control.
* 50% chance that, in addition to that, Osaka and Hyogo will be placed under a full-blown emergency. This will be stronger than the last one, with many businessesforced asked to shut down (including USJ, which should be big news that would hammer home the point to people)
* 30% chance that, in addition to that, most other prefectures currently under quasi-emergency will be added to the full emergency, especially Okinawa, Aichi, and the Kanto prefectures.
* Finally, a 10% chance that Suga goes the full monty and declares an emergency for the entire country. Personally, I think that this is the last chance to get things under some semblance of control before the Olympics. Even if vaccinations pick up significantly going forward, no country has yet vaccinated its way out of trouble without accompanying hard core lockdown measures to get them there.
But I don't think that he has the balls to do that, so my pick is that he will declare an emergency for Osaka and Hyogo, and pray that everyone else gets the message (spoiler: they won't)
Here's my breakdown of what I see are the four possibilities:
* 10% chance any change will be limited to quasi-emergency declarations in new hot spots, like Ehime and Wakayama. Individual governors currently under quasi-emergency may also expand the measures to additional regions of their control.
* 50% chance that, in addition to that, Osaka and Hyogo will be placed under a full-blown emergency. This will be stronger than the last one, with many businesses
* 30% chance that, in addition to that, most other prefectures currently under quasi-emergency will be added to the full emergency, especially Okinawa, Aichi, and the Kanto prefectures.
* Finally, a 10% chance that Suga goes the full monty and declares an emergency for the entire country. Personally, I think that this is the last chance to get things under some semblance of control before the Olympics. Even if vaccinations pick up significantly going forward, no country has yet vaccinated its way out of trouble without accompanying hard core lockdown measures to get them there.
But I don't think that he has the balls to do that, so my pick is that he will declare an emergency for Osaka and Hyogo, and pray that everyone else gets the message (spoiler: they won't)
Apr 19, 2021, 6:11 pm
#3648
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Get ready for round 2 of toilet paper panic buying as surely round one last year was not enough. I personally expect to see department stores , malls , sports/entertainment events to cancel/close , grade schools to take a break and move to more online learning, and Universities to go back to online learning for any new emergency period. It is probably the only way to stop the day-trippers from moving around on weekends and the business/students to go back to remote work/learning again. Also watch for the goal-posts to be moved around to be able to lift the next emergency. I would expect the emergency to be called for all major population centres and the provincial capitals will be able to decide on what form measures they need to place ( this of course step by step as this is Japan ).
Apr 19, 2021, 6:28 pm
#3649
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The mayor of Osaka (not to be confused with the governor of Osaka) has said that he thinks a two week emergency is sufficient. I have no idea what gives him the idea that that will be sufficient...hospitals are already beyond full and the spillover has already begun to fill the hospitals of nearby Shiga Prefecture. As it is they are averaging over 1000 new cases a day, at least 50-60 of which can be expected to become critical. The situation won't fix itself in two weeks even if new cases magically becomes zero from today onward.
Apr 19, 2021, 8:07 pm
#3650
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The mayor of Osaka (not to be confused with the governor of Osaka) has said that he thinks a two week emergency is sufficient. I have no idea what gives him the idea that that will be sufficient...hospitals are already beyond full and the spillover has already begun to fill the hospitals of nearby Shiga Prefecture. As it is they are averaging over 1000 new cases a day, at least 50-60 of which can be expected to become critical. The situation won't fix itself in two weeks even if new cases magically becomes zero from today onward.
Q Shoe Guy - I hope you're right, but I am not convinced yet, as it sends a pretty negative message before the Olympics. But it's really now or never, so I hope they implement something along the lines of what you described.
Apr 19, 2021, 8:12 pm
#3651
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So, in this case, it's bureacracy chosen by the people.
Apr 19, 2021, 8:29 pm
#3652
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Agree with your opinion. Also, I thought the mayor was the governor. Guess we learn something new every day. Wow, more, likely redundant bureaucrats to suck up our tax dollars? Who would have guessed!
Q Shoe Guy - I hope you're right, but I am not convinced yet, as it sends a pretty negative message before the Olympics. But it's really now or never, so I hope they implement something along the lines of what you described.
Q Shoe Guy - I hope you're right, but I am not convinced yet, as it sends a pretty negative message before the Olympics. But it's really now or never, so I hope they implement something along the lines of what you described.
Apr 19, 2021, 8:36 pm
#3653
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Getting way off topic, but the City of London (not to be confused with London) is also a very interesting and archaic story that's worth some of your free time.
Apr 19, 2021, 10:18 pm
#3654
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Join Date: Sep 2003
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Agree with your opinion. Also, I thought the mayor was the governor. Guess we learn something new every day. Wow, more, likely redundant bureaucrats to suck up our tax dollars? Who would have guessed!
Q Shoe Guy - I hope you're right, but I am not convinced yet, as it sends a pretty negative message before the Olympics. But it's really now or never, so I hope they implement something along the lines of what you described.
Q Shoe Guy - I hope you're right, but I am not convinced yet, as it sends a pretty negative message before the Olympics. But it's really now or never, so I hope they implement something along the lines of what you described.
Apr 19, 2021, 11:10 pm
#3655
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Japan tightens rules on COVID test certificates for travelers
https://japantoday.com/category/national/Japan-tightens-rules-on-COVID-test-certificates-for-travelers
That headline is a misnomer. The article itself doesn’t say the rules for the certificates themselves changed, just that if you don’t have one, you no longer have the option of the three day government facility quarantine. I guess the airline just doesn’t let you board the flight to Japan without one now, or if you slip through, perhaps they deny you entry and put you on a flight back to your point of origination.
Curious if any articles in Japanese specify any other changes.
https://japantoday.com/category/national/Japan-tightens-rules-on-COVID-test-certificates-for-travelers
That headline is a misnomer. The article itself doesn’t say the rules for the certificates themselves changed, just that if you don’t have one, you no longer have the option of the three day government facility quarantine. I guess the airline just doesn’t let you board the flight to Japan without one now, or if you slip through, perhaps they deny you entry and put you on a flight back to your point of origination.
Curious if any articles in Japanese specify any other changes.
Apr 19, 2021, 11:21 pm
#3656
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Japan tightens rules on COVID test certificates for travelers
https://japantoday.com/category/national/Japan-tightens-rules-on-COVID-test-certificates-for-travelers
That headline is a misnomer. The article itself doesn’t say the rules for the certificates themselves changed, just that if you don’t have one, you no longer have the option of the three day government facility quarantine. I guess the airline just doesn’t let you board the flight to Japan without one now, or if you slip through, perhaps they deny you entry and put you on a flight back to your point of origination.
Curious if any articles in Japanese specify any other changes.
https://japantoday.com/category/national/Japan-tightens-rules-on-COVID-test-certificates-for-travelers
That headline is a misnomer. The article itself doesn’t say the rules for the certificates themselves changed, just that if you don’t have one, you no longer have the option of the three day government facility quarantine. I guess the airline just doesn’t let you board the flight to Japan without one now, or if you slip through, perhaps they deny you entry and put you on a flight back to your point of origination.
Curious if any articles in Japanese specify any other changes.
Unless as you say, there is a Japanese version that gives other more specific details.
Apr 19, 2021, 11:33 pm
#3657
Join Date: Jan 2006
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With everyone's experiences so far, any thoughts on whether an overnight in Narita, or a same day HND-NRT airport transfer would be allowed for a eijuuken holder? Or is that wishful thinking?
Apr 20, 2021, 1:00 am
#3658
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You would need the right to enter Japan. Which under the current rules PR has, so I guess you would even as a PR not currently residing in Japan. You would of course need to go through the hoops of the full immigrations show so plan with at least 3 hours just for airport processing, and then the transfer between airports on top of that. Max amount if time I have heard of was at the end of new year's break where one of my team members spend almost 6 hours getting through the airport processing. And, you need to book a private car between airports, as public transport is not allowed. And finally, if you come from one of the "wrong" countries, you'd need 3 days hotel quarantine before being able to fly on.
Apr 20, 2021, 2:53 am
#3659
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You would need the right to enter Japan. Which under the current rules PR has, so I guess you would even as a PR not currently residing in Japan. You would of course need to go through the hoops of the full immigrations show so plan with at least 3 hours just for airport processing, and then the transfer between airports on top of that. Max amount if time I have heard of was at the end of new year's break where one of my team members spend almost 6 hours getting through the airport processing. And, you need to book a private car between airports, as public transport is not allowed. And finally, if you come from one of the "wrong" countries, you'd need 3 days hotel quarantine before being able to fly on.
Apr 20, 2021, 6:01 am
#3660
Join Date: Jan 2006
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Thanks very much for the replies. Yes; I think inter-airport may be a no go because of the required processing (the connection time I’m looking at is around 5-6 hours but that’s probably not enough in this case), but overnight in Narita could work then if I can find no other connection option.