After the Games – A Possible Trajectory to Reopening?

Background

The Japan immigration experience has been traditionally characterised by a relatively streamlined and consistent application and adjudication process. In recent months, and coinciding with the end of the Olympic Games in Tokyo (held July-August 2021), the Japanese government has hinted at a previously uncharacteristic flexibility in accommodating exceptions to the official prevailing entry restrictions that were put in place at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Such departures from the regular COVID-19 restrictions were seen in the recent Olympic and Paralympic Games, where the government implemented a number of special arrangements to allow safe and efficient entry into Japan for Olympians, Paralympians, supporting personnel and other stakeholders to prepare for and participate in the Games.

Current situation

Following the conclusion of the Games in August, speculation has been rife as to when Japan may reopen her borders to travellers other than Japanese nationals and foreign nationals who are already resident in Japan.

During the recent lead-up to the lower-house elections in Japan on 31 October, rumblings on the ground as to the possible reopening have substantially evolved, ranging from, on one end of the spectrum, a prohibition on any new business travel (let alone foreign tourism) for the foreseeable future, to a possible reopening, with priority given to international students and technical trainees.

Collectively, this category of would-be entrants accounts for approximately 70% (259,000 out of 371,400) of the Certificates of Eligibility (COE) issued by the Immigration Services Agency (ISA) since the beginning of the pandemic in January 2020. A COE holder is effectively pre-approved to hold the respective Status of Residence after entering Japan.

The latest State of Emergency in Japan was instituted in May and concluded at the end of September, prompting cautious optimism that new entry into Japan may be in the cards. Expectations have been raised even higher due to the government’s recent actions and commentary on the importance of the aforementioned international students’ ability to enter Japan; cooperation with other G7 nations on standardising border controls; and promoting domestic and (perhaps to a lesser degree) international tourism. 

Political context

The polling results of Japan’s recent general election (held on 31 October) saw the incumbent Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in Japan retaining a sole majority, securing 259 out of the 465 seats in the lower house of parliament (excluding the 32 won by Komeito, LDP’s junior coalition partner). Despite a significant and sustained decrease in COVID-19 cases in Japan, the incumbent government received much criticism for its handling of the unfolding pandemic situation. As part of their platform, the LDP explicitly included electronic COVID-19 vaccination passports and vigorous investment into crisis management and economic growth. It also confirmed the LDP’s desire to resume the entry of international students, while taking the appropriate epidemic prevention measures.

Against this political backdrop, it seems much more likely than not at this stage that the borders will be opened from both official and non-official standpoints in the near future.

Options for reopening

From this perspective, the foregoing seem to be strong indicators – individually and collectively – that Japan may open her borders at least gradually in the coming weeks along either or both of the following routes:

(1) ‘Official’ Reopening – Infrastructure already in place

In July 2020, the Japanese government implemented the Phased Measures for Resuming Cross-Border Travel (Phased Measures), which included the Residence Track and Business Track with various countries.  The Phased Measures allowed for some exceptional entry into the country. However, due to the emergence of the COVID-19 variants (Delta in particular), the Phased Measures have been (and are currently) suspended until further notice.

On 01 September 2020, the Japanese government confirmed separately that testing capacity at Japan’s airports had been enhanced accordingly. On 27 September, the government also updated its quarantine rules to allow eligible fully vaccinated returning residents of Japan (including foreign nationals) to serve a shorter 10-day quarantine period (reduced from the standard 14-day period). This marked the first time that vaccination status (‘vaccine passport’) would be taken into consideration in Japan’s quarantine rules. Furthermore, Japan has also begun to streamline the pre-departure, on-arrival and post-arrival administrative procedures (such as the various declarations, contact-tracing requirements, etc.).

The gradual introduction of key infrastructure and procedures augurs well for new entry for COE holders or business travellers.

(2) ‘Unofficial’ Reopening – Relaxation of official exemptions to border control measures

Around June 2020, the ISA began announcing specific examples of cases where certain foreign nationals could be permitted to enter due to exceptional circumstances. Initially, these circumstances were based on when the individual had left Japan and/or for humanitarian reasons. They then evolved and broadened in scope around the time of the Olympics to include those involved in the Games as well as those engaged in COVID-19 vaccine development. As of this writing, the specific examples remain quite broad, including those whose entry is deemed to be in the public interest.

In our experience with recent cases, when the foreign national’s circumstance is not specifically laid out in the particular examples, the authorities may still be willing to grant an exemption depending on the situation (e.g., where a foreign national has been separated from their family for a protracted period or other exigent circumstances). Although this review is on a case-by-case basis, it does point to greater flexibility on the part of the authorities.

The way forward

The dust should soon settle following the results of the general election, although the incoming administration is likely to focus more on its domestic policy agenda, rather than immigration per se.

The ‘need of the hour’ according to the incoming administration is to bring back some semblance of normality to institutes of higher learning in Japan by reopening the borders to Student COE holders. Indeed, scarcely a day after the conclusion of the general elections, the new administration indicated that students and technical interns may again be allowed to enter Japan from as early as this month, with a formal announcement expected soon.

Beyond the prioritization of students, however, it remains unclear how aggressive the new administration will be in reopening Japan’s borders. Much will depend on Japan’s interactions and agreements with its fellow G7 member countries; its overarching and long-term goal of welcoming back tourists to the country; and its approach to reopening in phases and based on priority (beginning with students and technical intern trainees, followed by others). For example, while there have also been positive indications that the quarantine duration for eligible incoming business travellers may be reduced to 3 days (from the current 10-day period), this assumes that the visa rules will be relaxed and that the consular posts resume granting visas (or at least the Phased Measures are resumed).

How the new administration will tackle these and other pressing concerns is difficult to predict at this point. It is perhaps fortunate that these discussions are now taking place against the backdrop of a relatively high vaccination rate (recently crossing the 70% mark) with daily infections continuing to decline. If Japan continues on the present course, for the first time in the last year there may be cause for cautious optimism by work visa COE holders and their dependents (the next largest category of foreign nationals presently awaiting entry) that they too may be able to finally travel to Japan.

Need to Know More?

For further information on this topic, please contact Jonathan Ying at [email protected] or Adrian Goh at [email protected]. This blog was published on 5 November 2021, and due to the circumstances, there are frequent changes. To keep up to date with all the latest updates on global immigration, please visit our dedicated COVID-19 site, subscribe to our alerts and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.