The Japanese government said it would ease quarantine rules for travellers who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 starting from 1 October this week, shortening the required period for self-isolating at home from 14 days to 10 days. Chief cabinet secretary Katsunobu Kato said at a press meeting that people who have been fully vaccinated would be allowed to go outside after a 10-day quarantine period as long as their Covid-19 tests were negative.

For people travelling from any of 45 countries and regions including the UK, India, and the Philippines, the existing rules of Japan required them to spend three of the 14 days in a government-designated facility due to a heightened risk of introducing Covid-19 variants. However, fully vaccinated people would no longer be required to do so under the new rules.

Japan currently does not allow the entry of foreign nationals in principle. Most of the arrivals were Japanese citizens or foreign nationals who had been living in Japan. Kato said the relaxed quarantine rules were the first in a series of steps in a review of Japan’s border measures, adding that the country in the future would consider allowing entry depending on the Covid-19 situation abroad while taking steps including restrictions on movement and testing.