Calls for Japan to relax COVID-19 entry restrictions intensify

Feb 10, 2022 | News On Japan

Feb 10, 2022 (Japan Times) - Disappointed and angry over Japan's stringent entry restrictions that have been prolonged for months amid the spread of the omicron variant, some of the nation's most prominent foreign business lobby groups and student representatives stuck abroad have called for a relaxation of the visa rules, warning that keeping the door shut tightly is damaging the economy and Japan’s international reputation.

“Japan's ban on entry by business and student travelers has really posed an increasing economic and human cost. The ban and the moratorium on the issuance of new visas have prevented Japanese and global companies from bringing in the talent they need. It's separated spouses and other family members, and it's definitely set back efforts to revive Japan's economy," Christopher LaFleur, a special adviser to the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ), told a Wednesday afternoon news conference at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan.

LaFleur spoke with other Japan-based foreign business groups, the president of Temple University Japan and an Italian student stuck at home due to the ban.

“In the long term, the ban has put a real obstacle in Japan's future growth by restricting the supply of the new talent that all our businesses will need to be recruiting to maintain and grow our businesses here in Japan,” he added.

In January, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that an entry ban on nonresident foreign nationals would be extended until the end of February. The ban has been in place since Nov. 30, after the first case of the highly transmissible omicron variant of the coronavirus was confirmed in Japan.

"The infection situations regarding omicron are clearly different at home from abroad, so the framework (of the current border controls) will be maintained until the end of February," Kishida told reporters when he announced the extension on Jan. 11.

Under the restrictions, nonresident foreign nationals are not allowed to enter, and there is a cap of around 3,500 on the number of people arriving in Japan each day. ...continue reading

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