Japan to Reduce Quarantine for Business Travelers from 10 to 3 Days Starting April 8, Easing Entry Restrictions

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] The Japanese government has decided to shorten the quarantine period from the existing 10 days to 3 days starting from the 8th, but only for entrants with business purposes.

Initially, the Japanese government required a 14-day quarantine for all entrants, but since last month, the quarantine period was shortened to 10 days for those who met certain conditions such as having received two doses of the vaccine. This time, the quarantine period will be further shortened to 3 days exclusively for business entrants.

According to Nihon Keizai Shimbun and NHK on the 2nd, the Japanese government is reportedly reviewing this relaxation plan for COVID-19 prevention measures.

For entrants with business purposes, from the 4th day onward, if a negative COVID-19 test is confirmed and the company managing the individual supervises them, use of public transportation and outings for company dinners will be permitted.

Additionally, under the condition that companies or universities managing short-term business visitors or international students take responsibility for their behavior, the government plans to allow new foreign entries, which had been basically suspended.

Earlier, the Japanese government had strengthened entry restrictions in January this year due to the spread of variant viruses. Currently, entry is permitted only for foreigners with special circumstances such as those who have previously entered Japan or have Japanese spouses, and new entries are basically prohibited.

The Japanese government is also considering increasing the daily entry cap from 3,500 to 5,000 starting late this month.

The Japanese government's move to ease entry restrictions, albeit limited, appears to be due to the recent significant decrease in new domestic COVID-19 cases and growing calls from various sectors for easing regulations.

On the 30th of last month, Nihon Keizai Shimbun criticized in an editorial that while major countries are easing COVID-19 related entry restrictions due to expanded vaccination, Japan continues to maintain exceptionally strict restrictions, calling it a "closed country policy."

According to Nihon Keizai, as of October 1st, there are 370,000 foreigners with long-term residency status who cannot enter Japan due to entry restrictions.

Seventy percent of these are technical interns or international students, and there are many complaints demanding the allowance of new entries, especially from the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors facing labor shortages and universities unable to accept foreign students.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.