Japan eases border controls amid criticism as exclusionist

Japan will ease its tough COVID-19 border controls by increasing the number of people allowed to enter each day and reducing quarantine requirements following criticism that its current policy is unscientific and xenophobic

TOKYO -- Japan announced Thursday it will ease its tough COVID-19 border controls by increasing the number of people allowed to enter each day and reducing quarantine requirements following criticism that its current policy is unscientific and xenophobic.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the daily entry cap will be raised to 5,000, including Japanese citizens and foreign residents, from the current 3,500 beginning March 1. The decision is good news for foreign scholars, exchange students, business travelers and technical internship workers who have been unable to enter, but does not cover tourists.

“It’s not realistic to ease the measures all at once,” Kishida said. He said Japan will study when it can start allowing in foreign tourists while gradually expanding entries of non-tourists. He did not give a timeline.

He said quarantine requirements for entrants will be shortened to three days from the current seven, and those with proof of a negative COVID-19 test and a booster shot can skip self-isolation.