Covid-19: No border restrictions in Japan from May 8

According to the government’s announcement on Monday, Japan will make a significant move toward normalizing social and economic activities by ending the current border controls on foreign travelers on May 8 in accordance with its decision to classify COVID-19 as a common disease that same day.

In order to find new infectious diseases, the government will simultaneously launch a new genomic surveillance program in which participants who exhibit symptoms like fever are tested voluntarily.

Currently, all participants must show proof of three COVID-19 vaccinations or a negative result from a coronavirus test performed within 72 hours of departure.

The COVID-19 border management protocols, which were initially implemented in February 2020 and which are also considered as the most stringent among the Group of Seven industrialized nations, are expected to be lifted, which will help boost inbound tourism to Japan, where foreign visitor spending fell to a record low of 4.8 trillion ($36 billion) in 2021.

As the country started to record cases of omicron variant of coronavirus from the November 2021, Japan tightened border controls by prohibiting entry of the non-resident foreigners as well as asking returning Japanese citizens, foreign residents to quarantine at specific facilities.

The control measures were initially put into place for a month, but were later prolonged, prompting opposition from businesspeople and foreign exchange students. The daily entry cap was first lowered gradually in March 2022 before being fully lifted in October of that same year.

The new framework, which is scheduled to begin when legal status of the virus is downgraded as seasonal influenza expected early next month, will apply to travelers arriving at five major airports: which include Narita, Haneda, Chubu, Kansai, and Fukuoka.

Prior to the general easing of border controls, Japan will ease them starting on Wednesday for all arrivals from mainland China and give them the option to enter the country by providing documentation of having received three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Currently, travelers from the Chinese mainland are required to show documentation of a negative coronavirus test performed not early than 72 hours before departure.

Hirokazu Matsuno, the chief cabinet secretary, said at a news conference that “we have decided to alter tentative measures currently in place in light of infection status at abroad, as well as the border control steps taken by other Group of Seven nations.” He also said government will continue its sample testing for arrivals from mainland China at airports.

After Beijing drastically relaxed its strict “zero-COVID” policy, which had involved lockdowns and quarantines, there was an explosion in infections in Japan by late December, prompting the introduction of blanket COVID-19 testing for all arrivals from the mainland.

Beginning in early January, it increased border security measures for local visitors by requiring documentation of a negative test.

However, after discovering that fewer people were testing positive for COVID-19, the government stopped conducting blanket testing for these visitors and instead instituted random testing at airports.

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