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]
Sep 21, 2021, 6:17 pm
#5956
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Pacific Wonderland
Programs: ʙᴏɴᴠo̱ʏ Au, IHG Au, HH Dia, Nexus, Pilot FlyingJ Preferred
Posts: 5,336
Sep 21, 2021, 11:08 pm
#5957
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: UA GS>1K>Nothing; DL DM 2MM; AS 75K>Nothing>MVP
Posts: 9,341
To me the numbers that would be interesting for Japan are.... a) the vaccination rate for the 18 to 64 year old cohort, and b) the vaccination rate for people with school age children. I think you can back into the first because there are data for the 65+ cohort and we know the vax rate for 18 and under is zero. Outside of the big cities, I think the vax rate for 18 to 64 is still quite low. This is the cohort that is most mobile and most likely to transmit the disease.... so going forward as this group gets vaccinated, it should have a magnified effect on reducing transmission.
Sep 22, 2021, 6:49 am
#5958
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Cape Cod
Programs: Free agent
Posts: 1,535
Updated international flight schedules for JAL today tell a tale. https://www.jal.co.jp/jp/en/info/2022/inter/220101_02/
All routes are staying low frequencies through Jan 31st 2022 and the 800X XXX-NRT sub flights are sticking around. We've been shunted on to one for now. I don't think it's a stretch now to say that Japan won't be reopening to tourists until at least Feb 2022.
All routes are staying low frequencies through Jan 31st 2022 and the 800X XXX-NRT sub flights are sticking around. We've been shunted on to one for now. I don't think it's a stretch now to say that Japan won't be reopening to tourists until at least Feb 2022.
Sep 22, 2021, 6:56 am
#5959
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: TYO / WAS / NYC
Programs: American Express got a hit man lookin' for me
Posts: 4,596
Another thing that is quite interesting is that in the U.S., the infection rate for children as percentage of the un-vaccinated population has dropped significantly. Put another way, children now make up a much larger percentage of the un-vaccinated population, but the ratio of child infections to total infections has not changed much.
The 13-18 cohort is getting vaccinated in significant numbers. Many schools in the US are now requiring COVID vaccination to participate in interscholastic athletics, among other things. Also, Dr. Fauci remarked yesterday that vaccination for 5-12 is likely to start in the coming weeks, possibly even by the end of the month.
Sep 22, 2021, 8:17 am
#5960
Join Date: May 2009
Location: AMS
Posts: 2,064
Digression - but I'm hearing the opposite, that cases among children in the US are up significantly. For example: "Since the pandemic began, children represented 15.7% of total cumulated cases. For the week ending September 16, children were 25.7% of reported weekly COVID-19 cases (children, under age 18, make up 22.2% of the US population)." https://www.aap.org/en/pages/2019-no...l-data-report/
Sep 22, 2021, 9:44 am
#5961
Join Date: May 2012
Location: ORF, RIC
Programs: UA LT 1K, 3 MM; Marriott Titanium; IHG Platinum
Posts: 6,958
Baidu translation
On September 20, 16:00:00:00am (Japan time), the measures taken by the director of the quarantine station to continue to take measures for three days, etc., and the immigration after the said time is outside the measure.
Sep 22, 2021, 11:17 pm
#5962
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Tokyo
Programs: JAL Metal Card (OWE), SAS Eurobonus Gold (*G), Marriott Titanium (LTP), Tokyu Hotels Platinum
Posts: 21,171
In the LDP leadership debate yesterday, the 4 candidates were asked when alcohol could be served normally again. Their prediction was the coming spring.
I think I predict riots and revolution if that holds true. But I wonder if they feel this appeals to the general electorate? Or they think a hard-line will appeal to the LDP hawks that have to elect one of them first.
I think I predict riots and revolution if that holds true. But I wonder if they feel this appeals to the general electorate? Or they think a hard-line will appeal to the LDP hawks that have to elect one of them first.
Sep 23, 2021, 4:51 am
#5963
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Tokyo
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Posts: 21,171
The 22nd of September was the day MOFA finally got around to posting an English version of the September 17th announcement. And they fixed the Japanese announcements so the text actually reflects the list of countries that requires hotel quarantine. Reading the new version, the old one was literally wrong.
Interestingly the handy one page PDF summarising the hotel quarantine requires is only available in Japanese.
Interestingly the handy one page PDF summarising the hotel quarantine requires is only available in Japanese.
Sep 23, 2021, 6:37 pm
#5964
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Thanks for the Memories !!!
Posts: 10,657
In the LDP leadership debate yesterday, the 4 candidates were asked when alcohol could be served normally again. Their prediction was the coming spring.
I think I predict riots and revolution if that holds true. But I wonder if they feel this appeals to the general electorate? Or they think a hard-line will appeal to the LDP hawks that have to elect one of them first.
I think I predict riots and revolution if that holds true. But I wonder if they feel this appeals to the general electorate? Or they think a hard-line will appeal to the LDP hawks that have to elect one of them first.
Sep 23, 2021, 7:06 pm
#5965
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Programs: Hyatt Discoverist, SEIBU PRINCE CLUB Silver, Marriott Gold
Posts: 20,436
It's really quite impressive how Japan has cut transmission of the Delta variant over the past month. Especially Tokyo, where diagnosed cases are down almost 90%! I did not think that possible, so credit where credit is due.
My biggest concern for Tokyo at the moment is the increasing percentage of transmission amongst 65 and over. Back at the start of this latest wave, those people made up under three percent of the total cases, sometimes getting down to single digit daily numbers. But yesterday the percentage was over double that (35 of 537 cases, or ~6.5% of the total). No doubt some of that is due to the increasing percentage of vaccination among those under 65, but I can't help thinking that another component is the waning efficacy of the vaccine over time. It seems that booster shots won't be made available until at least December, so if that trend accelerates, then we risk a sixth wave that, while lower in total numbers, will be made up of a higher percentage of the elderly that could once again compromise the hospital system.
My biggest concern for Tokyo at the moment is the increasing percentage of transmission amongst 65 and over. Back at the start of this latest wave, those people made up under three percent of the total cases, sometimes getting down to single digit daily numbers. But yesterday the percentage was over double that (35 of 537 cases, or ~6.5% of the total). No doubt some of that is due to the increasing percentage of vaccination among those under 65, but I can't help thinking that another component is the waning efficacy of the vaccine over time. It seems that booster shots won't be made available until at least December, so if that trend accelerates, then we risk a sixth wave that, while lower in total numbers, will be made up of a higher percentage of the elderly that could once again compromise the hospital system.
Sep 23, 2021, 9:46 pm
#5966
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: UA GS>1K>Nothing; DL DM 2MM; AS 75K>Nothing>MVP
Posts: 9,341
Waning vaccine efficacy might be problem, but don't forget most of the elderly got their last shot in the last two or three months. To me, the big issue is serving alcohol, there's room for debate on this, but IMHO the only policy lever (other than vaccines) that has a significant impact on transmission is restrictions on serving alcohol.
Sep 23, 2021, 10:52 pm
#5967
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
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It is also just important to remember that vaccines while highly effective are not 100% effective. We are to expect some breakthrough infections, even without it being surprising or necessarily cause for concern. 35 out of 537 does not really say much in itself. How many of the 35 were vaccinated, how many had underlying conditions, etc. etc.
Sep 23, 2021, 11:08 pm
#5968
formerly wunderpit
Join Date: Dec 2009
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Posts: 1,342
Sep 23, 2021, 11:27 pm
#5969
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Thanks for the Memories !!!
Posts: 10,657
Sep 24, 2021, 2:31 am
#5970
Join Date: Sep 2009
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Posts: 9,341