TOKYO (Reuters) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will hold a briefing on Wednesday on brand new measures to handle COVID-19, the Kyodo information agency reported.
Kishida is anticipated to announce the easing of border measures, including a waiver of pre-departure COVID tests for vaccinated inbound passengers and an increase in the quantity of daily arrivals.
The briefing can be expected at 0430 GMT, Kyodo mentioned.
Japan has some of the strictest pandemic border measures among major economies, requiring travellers to present an adverse coronavirus test used within 72 hours of departure.
The government may quickly waive tests intended for vaccinated passengers, with all the change taking impact in a few weeks, Nikkei reported late Mon. A daily cap of inbound travellers may be raised from 20, 000 to 50, 000 as early as the following month, Fuji News System said on Tuesday.
Kishida, who might be recuperating from COVID at his standard residence after testing positive on Sunday, said in May that he wanted to bring Japan’s border measures a lot more in line with those of other Group of Seven countries.
Japan within June opened up to tourists for the first time within two years, but requirements that they apply for visas and stick to guided, package tours have got kept actual numbers of inbound visitors small.
(Reporting by Rocky Swift; Modifying by Tom Hogue)