Yesterday, one of the most hotly-anticipated border reopening occurred, as Japan finally resumed allowing individual tourists in, and reinstating visa-free entry for nationals of previously exempt countries pre-Covid. This is great news for many who love travelling to Japan, myself included. In fact, Japan was recently named as the number one country Singaporeans want to travel in a recent survey. It’s also a good time to visit Japan, given the currently weak Japanese Yen, which makes spending in Japan much cheaper.
Prior to 11 October, foreign nationals had to go through a complicated process to be able to enter Japan. Firstly, a sponsoring business or tour agency had to register foreigners in the Entrants, Returnees Follow-up System (ERFS). All foreign nationals then had to apply for a business or tourist visa.Tourism was limited to tour groups, or “self-guided” tours where flights and hotels technically had to be arranged by a tour agency. I say technically, because there were many agencies that could apply for an ERFS for a fee, based on a self-created, self-booked itinerary.
What are the border entry rules now?
Effective 11 October, all the complicated rules regarding ERFS and packaged tours are gone. The rules are almost back to pre-Covid times. Individual tourists can enter, and are no longer required to make arrangements through agencies. Visa exemption for short stays for the 68 previously exempt countries, including Singapore, has been reinstated. For travellers from these countries, travel to Japan is now almost as simple as rocking to check-in and immigration in Japan. For non-exempt countries, the usual visa process would apply as per pre-Covid.
What about testing and quarantine?
Of course, the entry process isn’t totally back to normal. While arrival testing and quarantine have been removed for all arrivals, there is still a vaccination or pre-departure testing (PDT) requirement. All arrivals must either be vaccinated under Japan’s definition, or undergo a pre-departure nucleic acid amplification(e.g. PCR) or quantitative antigen test (e.g. CLEIA/ECLIA) test within 72h before departure.
To be considered vaccinated under Japan’s definition, the following criteria must be met:
- The certificate must be issued by a government or public institution
- Must be stated in Japanese or English
- Traveller must have received 3 doses of any vaccine on the WHO’s Emergency Use Listing (EUL), except for JCOVDEN/Janssen and COONVIDECIA/CanSino Biologics where each dose in the primary series is considered equivalent to two doses
Of note is that Japan has now included CoronaVac/Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines, which previously did not meet their defintion. I had a family member travel to Japan on a business visa a few weeks ago, and he had to undergo a PDT having taken the Sinovac vaccine.
Besides the vaccination/PDT requirements, there’s also a health questionnaire to be completed. This can be done online, or through the MySOS app. Japan is encouraging all arrivals to use MySOS, either the app or the web version, to complete all pre-arrival formalities, including the questionnaire. On MySOS, travellers can register their travel details, passport and vaccination certificate or PDT result. If all submissions are completed and validated successfully, travellers will get a blue screen and no further paperwork checks should be required on arrival. Therefore the arrival process should smoother and similar to pre-Covid times. There’s probably been a surge of vaccination certificates to review, as the Japanese authorities have put a notice on MySOS stating they are prioritising the review by arrival date.
Of course, visitors are also expected to comply with any local health and hygiene measures that are in place. Japan is also strong on societal norms, so I’d personally recommend observing and following the practices of the locals. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Let’s all try not give foreigners a bad rep straight after reopening.
My own Japan travel plans
As I mentioned at the start, I’ve been looking forward Japan’s reopening. I’ve transited Japan a couple of times this year, which was good for stocking up on snacks from duty-free, but it’s not the same as an actual trip.
I’ve been betting on Japan reopening in the second half of 2022, and while it’s been later that I’d hoped, I’m just glad it’s finally happened. Because I’d been anticipating a 2H 2022 reopening, I put in place some rough travel plans many months ago. I’ve had to cancel hotel stays for July and August, but at least my November bookings have stuck. I’ve also got hotels and a return flight booked for Sakura season in 2023.
It’s a good thing I managed to get these in early, because demand for air tickets and hotels will probably keep going up. For my November trip I’ll be staying at the Conrad Tokyo for 6 nights across two stays, and on some of my dates the Conrad is now showing as sold out. It certainly helped that I made use of a Hilton Impresario 3-for-2 offer, which is flexible and comes with a USD100 credit per stay. For my 6 nights, which are split by a stay near Tokyo Disney, I’m paying around JPY235,000 total (~SGD2,300). Not a bad deal for the Conrad, especially with the hotel credit.
November had been planned to be my first post-reopening trip to Japan, but an alignment of factors has enabled me to head to Osaka this weekend. A pilot friend of mine is operating a flight to Osaka and has a couple days layover, so I’m flying up on his flight and we’ll hang out. I also managed to score a JAL business class redemption through Alaska Mileage Plan to get home from Osaka, with a one night stopover in Tokyo. For accommodation, I’ll be staying at the Hilton Osaka, then the Conrad Tokyo for my one night stopover. Do look out for the reviews of these properties.
In terms of the pre-arrival formalities, I did the submissions in MySOS the afternoon of 4th October, 12 days before my arrival, including submitting my Vaccination HealthCert (the one from Notarise). The MySOS turned blue sometime overnight, so that was a pretty quick turnaround. I won’t be surprised if the situation might have changed since. Personally, I’d recommend submitting the documents 1-2 weeks before arrival.
Conclusion
Japan has finally reopened, and it’s great news for the hordes of people who have been waiting for this day. I’m personally very excited to be heading soon, and I’ll be sure to share my thoughts and experience from my trips.
Anyone else excited for Japan’s reopening? Or already have travel plans for Japan? Let me know in the comments!