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]
May 10, 2022, 8:21 pm
#8491
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 813
or they could have flown to canada with nothing and driven across the border if you are close and picked up a flight from SEA or BUF.
May 10, 2022, 8:23 pm
#8492
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Tokyo
Programs: JAL Metal Card (OWE), SAS Eurobonus Gold (*G), Marriott Titanium (LTP), Tokyu Hotels Platinum
Posts: 21,153
As the test needs to be taken the day before departure, and even with the Abbott test being super easy, people rarely take them days in advance as it would require additional tests within the window. But whether you get the positive test the day of the flight, or 3 days before it does not change the potentially costly need to stay longer time in Japan until a negative test can be taken.
May 10, 2022, 8:27 pm
#8493
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 813
Yes, about 90,000 foreign tourists entered per day average in 2019 (actually more like 85,000), however total entrants on an average day in 2019 was about 135-140,000 people (the exact statistic is vague), which means about 50-55,000 non-foreign-tourist daily entrants like returning citizens, residents, new workers, students, diplomats, etc (essentially, all of those who can currently enter). So upping it to 20,000 daily would still be well below half of what was needed for non-foreign-tourism arrivals in 2019.
Also, this 135K was via multiple ports of entry (a dozen+ airports with int'l flights as well as sea ports for cruises, etc), yet currently only Narita, Haneda and Kansai airports are really open for int'l entry by anyone. And until they start scrapping the arrival testing and potential quarantine, I doubt many other airports will be able re-open to int'l arrivals.
I'd also be curious how they plan to offer easily available, widespread multi-lingual testing for foreign tourists to depart Japan since many countries still require this for them to go home. Getting tested in Japan can still annoying, especially if looking to do so within a fixed 24-48hr window, and especially on a weekend or holiday, and even more especially if looking to do so outside of Tokyo or a few other major cities. An increasing number of places offer tests, but to give some perspective, the most number of tests (antigen and PCR) ever given on any day in Tokyo by all medical institutions during the past 2+years was earlier this year of about 47,000, but this was an outlier day (the previous day was 8,000 tests). And on only about 15 days total, all of which during the worst of the Omicron outbreak, did the number of daily tests ever go above 30,000 (this is for a city of 14 million). Simply put, to properly re-open the borders, Japan's rigid policy of limited "focused" testing also needs to be scrapped in order to allow foreign tourists to go home and/or simply find out if they have contracted the virus while traveling.
Also, this 135K was via multiple ports of entry (a dozen+ airports with int'l flights as well as sea ports for cruises, etc), yet currently only Narita, Haneda and Kansai airports are really open for int'l entry by anyone. And until they start scrapping the arrival testing and potential quarantine, I doubt many other airports will be able re-open to int'l arrivals.
I'd also be curious how they plan to offer easily available, widespread multi-lingual testing for foreign tourists to depart Japan since many countries still require this for them to go home. Getting tested in Japan can still annoying, especially if looking to do so within a fixed 24-48hr window, and especially on a weekend or holiday, and even more especially if looking to do so outside of Tokyo or a few other major cities. An increasing number of places offer tests, but to give some perspective, the most number of tests (antigen and PCR) ever given on any day in Tokyo by all medical institutions during the past 2+years was earlier this year of about 47,000, but this was an outlier day (the previous day was 8,000 tests). And on only about 15 days total, all of which during the worst of the Omicron outbreak, did the number of daily tests ever go above 30,000 (this is for a city of 14 million). Simply put, to properly re-open the borders, Japan's rigid policy of limited "focused" testing also needs to be scrapped in order to allow foreign tourists to go home and/or simply find out if they have contracted the virus while traveling.
May 10, 2022, 8:29 pm
#8494
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 813
As the test needs to be taken the day before departure, and even with the Abbott test being super easy, people rarely take them days in advance as it would require additional tests within the window. But whether you get the positive test the day of the flight, or 3 days before it does not change the potentially costly need to stay longer time in Japan until a negative test can be taken.
May 10, 2022, 8:29 pm
#8495
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Programs: Hyatt Discoverist, SEIBU PRINCE CLUB Silver, Marriott Gold
Posts: 20,434
I don't follow such matters at all, as it matters not to me personally, so I was only going by what I was told. For whatever reason, they decided to get a PCR test at the airport before their scheduled flight, and that is where and when they found that they tested positive.
May 10, 2022, 8:37 pm
#8496
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite
Posts: 1,968
Just to be clear, it requires a rapid antigen with telehealth consultation, rather than the regular rapid antigen you can get at walgreens/rite aide, to verify that it's actually you taking the test. Specifically the BinaxNow Covid19 Ag Card Home Test works.
May 10, 2022, 8:48 pm
#8497
Join Date: Apr 2022
Location: Kanto
Posts: 151
Just imagine someone flying in from the opposite side of the planet, maybe being in motion for the past 20+ hours from their home, to finally arrive but to be denied their reserved room because they are are a little ill, perhaps from such a long trip? And then being left out on the street, its dark, humid, maybe raining, where few if anyone around speaks english, and where no hotel will take them due to an inflated temperature which could have been from for a slew of reasons that have nothing to do with covid?.
So obviously, not just immigration policy or views on mask wearing, but then entire covid mindset of the country needs to change to allow normal tourism.
May 10, 2022, 8:58 pm
#8498
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Programs: Hyatt Discoverist, SEIBU PRINCE CLUB Silver, Marriott Gold
Posts: 20,434
Just imagine someone flying in from the opposite side of the planet, maybe being in motion for the past 20+ hours from their home, to finally arrive but to be denied their reserved room because they are are a little ill, perhaps from such a long trip? And then being left out on the street, its dark, humid, maybe raining, where few if anyone around speaks english, and where no hotel will take them due to an inflated temperature which could have been from for a slew of reasons that have nothing to do with covid?.
May 10, 2022, 9:02 pm
#8499
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite
Posts: 1,968
Just imagine someone flying in from the opposite side of the planet, maybe being in motion for the past 20+ hours from their home, to finally arrive but to be denied their reserved room because they are are a little ill, perhaps from such a long trip? And then being left out on the street, its dark, humid, maybe raining, where few if anyone around speaks english, and where no hotel will take them due to an inflated temperature which could have been from for a slew of reasons that have nothing to do with covid?.
May 10, 2022, 9:11 pm
#8501
Join Date: Apr 2022
Location: Kanto
Posts: 151
Its been officially announced. The daily cap will rise to 20,000 in June, but no mention of removing any other requirements.
Story in English here
https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2...s-in-june.html
Story in English here
https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2...s-in-june.html
May 10, 2022, 9:57 pm
#8503
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 617
Its been officially announced. The daily cap will rise to 20,000 in June, but no mention of removing any other requirements.
Story in English here
https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2...s-in-june.html
Story in English here
https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2...s-in-june.html
May 10, 2022, 10:16 pm
#8504
Join Date: Apr 2022
Location: Kanto
Posts: 151
The first requirement is that you can't be a tourist.
The second is that you need a sponsor in Japan, like a company for a business trip, a school for study, or direct family member who lives there.
The 3rd is that you need to apply in person at a Japanese embassy.
The second is that you need a sponsor in Japan, like a company for a business trip, a school for study, or direct family member who lives there.
The 3rd is that you need to apply in person at a Japanese embassy.
May 10, 2022, 10:24 pm
#8505
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Programs: Hyatt Discoverist, SEIBU PRINCE CLUB Silver, Marriott Gold
Posts: 20,434
In tangentially related news:
New Zealand to fully reopen borders for first time since Covid pandemic started
I think this data point provides a good lower bound of three months from the time that the return of unrestricted tourism is announced to the point where it actually begins. This being Japan, much preparation will be required to make this acceptable to everyone.
New Zealand to fully reopen borders for first time since Covid pandemic started
New Zealand will fully reopen to the world two months earlier than originally planned, prime minister Jacinda Ardern has announced as part of a wider shake-up to immigration settings.
From 11.59pm on 31 July, tourists and visa-holders from the rest of the world will also be allowed back for the first time in over two years. The original date had been set for October, but the government long maintained the opening could be brought forward if it was deemed safe to do so.
“It also provides certainty and good preparation time for airlines and cruise ship companies planning a return to New Zealand in the peak spring and summer seasons.”
From 11.59pm on 31 July, tourists and visa-holders from the rest of the world will also be allowed back for the first time in over two years. The original date had been set for October, but the government long maintained the opening could be brought forward if it was deemed safe to do so.
“It also provides certainty and good preparation time for airlines and cruise ship companies planning a return to New Zealand in the peak spring and summer seasons.”