Japan to allow long-term residents entry more freely starting from 1 October
The above is being confirmed by Japanese economy minister, Yasutoshi Nishimura. Adding that Japan is also to expand immigration entry worldwide starting from 1 October.
For some context, Japan has already allowed long-term residents entry since 1 September under strict entry procedures and permission had only been granted in limited situations. So, this will allow more new arrivals into the country at least.
Besides this, Japan will also now allow residents who have permission to stay in the country for longer than three months to enter, regardless of where they come from, but must quarantine for two weeks upon entry. The change will not cover tourists though.
Earlier reports suggest that the government will limit entry to 1,000 persons per day but I'm not seeing any other details about that so far.
In any case, this is a big first step for Japan to open up its borders so only time will tell how this plays out with regards to the virus developments in the country.
