Japan to ease COVID-19 induced border controls amid criticism as exclusionist

Set to announce easing of strict border controls by increasing daily quota for foreign arrivals and shortening the quarantine requirement beginning in March

Japan is set to announce easing of its strict border controls by increasing the daily quota for foreign arrivals and shortening the quarantine requirement beginning in March, following criticisms that the country’s policy is unscientific and xenophobic.

Senior officials of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s governing party recently said they are considering raising the daily entry cap to 5,000 from the current 3,500 beginning March 1 as one way of relaxing the border measures for foreign scholars, students and business people. The measure will not include tourists for now.

Shortening the self-isolation period after entry to three days from the currently required seven is being considered, Japanese media reported. Officials are also considering eliminating the self-isolation requirement for non-resident foreigners carrying proof of negative COVID-19 test results and booster shot.

Kishida is expected to announce a plan and explain details at a news conference later Thursday.

Kishida on Saturday said he was considering easing border measures based on a scientific assessment of the omicron variant, infection levels in and outside Japan and quarantine measures taken by other countries.

Most of Japan is currently under virus-related restrictions. Infections only recently started to show signs of slowing, likely because of delayed booster shots.

Nationwide, Japan reported 91,006 new cases on Wednesday, down slightly from a week earlier, after the caseloads exceeded 100,000 on Feb. 5.