Japan Looks to Scrap Group Tours and Loosen Rules on Foreign Tourists

Japan is looking to scrap most of its Covid-related restrictions on foreign tourists, including ending visa requirements and allowing individual tourism ahead of the autumn travel season.

The restrictions would be lifted for tourists who have had three vaccine doses or provide proof of a negative Covid test, without specifying where it got the information. The government is also planning to abandon its daily limits on entry from overseas, currently set at 50,000, and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida may make the final decision as soon as this week, the report said.

The report came after Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara, a close aide to Kishida, told a TV program on Sunday that the weak yen would help the tourism industry and that the country must not fall behind the rest of the world. He said the restrictions would be lifted at “an appropriate time.”

Travel stocks rose in Tokyo trading. Japan Airlines Co. and ANA Holdings Inc. climbed at least 3.1% intraday, while travel agency HIS Co. gained as much as 3.8%.

The cap on arrivals from overseas would end by October. While Japan had gradually raised the cap to 50,000, non-resident foreigners are currently required to obtain visas for short-term stays and may enter for tourism only as part of approved package tours, severely restricting the number of visitors.

Japan had about 246,000 foreign visitors last year, far from a record 31.9 million in 2019.

The government is seeking to take advantage of the weak currency ahead of the autumn tourist season. Fall, known for mild weather and colorful foliage, is one of the peak tourism seasons in Japan.

Agencies