It was just a week ago that Japan made the initial announcement teasing the end to inbound travel restrictions related to Covid-19. Today, Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida further clarified the end of restrictions will begin from next month. He made the announcement from New York City where he is attending the United Nations General Assembly and promoting Japan tourism on the back of historically low exchange rates for the Japanese Yen.
As reported by TBS News, “From this month, it was not necessary to obtain a negative [PCR test] certificate, but will further ease border entry measures from next month” he said.
While not yet officially detailed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, this announcement is confirmation that the caps on visitors per day, restriction on individual travel, and suspension of visa waivers for short-term stays are all coming to an end.
It is expected that once all travel restrictions are removed, there will be a surge of inbound tourism to Japan. The combination of historically low exchange rates, as well as the long time since hassle free entry to Japan has been possible, should guarantee a sharp increase compared to the past few years.