Japan eases its border restrictions

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Are you looking forward to ticking Japan off your bucket list or do you want to head back to the Land of the Rising Sun? Well, here’s some good news for travel bugs out there: Japan will allow short-term business travelers, foreign students, and other visa holders to enter the country. Tourists are still barred from entering the country’s borders though.

Read: Travel in the Time of COVID-19

The Foreign Ministry of Japan said that business visitors fully inoculated with an authorized vaccine will need to quarantine for only three days, down from a minimum of 10 days. If you’re heading to Japan for business, that’s great news, right? 

The announcement comes after the number of cases in Japan dwindled down to 200 after it peaked at more than 25,000 new cases in August this year. While the vaccination campaign in Japan started a bit slow, the country has been able to fully inoculate 75% of its population. 

Interestingly, Japan has seen comparatively few virus deaths–around 18,000–despite never having imposed stay-at-home orders. Since the onset of the pandemic, the nightlife in Japan has taken a dip plus large events have been closed down. This is why there was no live audience present in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. 

As per Japanese media, around 370,000 visa holders are waiting to enter the country and will be gradually let in. Business travelers remain the responsibility of their firms while in Japan and need to provide actionable plans for each trip, the foreign ministry said.

Just a heads up though that people from Trinidad and Tobago, Peru, and Venezuela are still prohibited from entering the country. On the flip side, travelers from the Philippines can now head to Japan. Like most countries, the tourism sector of Japan has taken a huge hit. However, this news means that it’s only a matter of time before tourists get to have their own Japanese adventures. 

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