Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Sunday, Jun 01, 2025

japan tourism

As COVID-hit China opens up to travel, others secure their doors

Japan joined India Tuesday in imposing restrictions on Chinese visitors as Beijing relaxed its norms for travellers.
Japan will tighten border controls for COVID-19 by requiring tests for all visitors from China starting Friday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced, even as Beijing said it would scrap mandatory quarantine for overseas arrivals.

The developments come days after the World Health Organization (WHO) said it was very concerned about rising reports of severe cases across China after the country largely abandoned its “zero-COVID” policy.

Beijing, while acknowledging a surge in cases, has downplayed the spread of the virus after spending the best part of three years locking down entire neighbourhoods and cities over a handful of infections.

On Tuesday, it said that it would downgrade its coronavirus threat levels on January 8, and would start allowing mainland residents to travel abroad more easily. Outbound travel by Chinese tourists, for years a mainstay of the global tourism industry, had shrunk to almost zero since 2020. Additionally, passengers arriving from abroad will no longer have to quarantine, though a negative test result within 48 hours of departure and in-flight masks are still required.

China has been “refining our COVID response in light of the evolving situation” while working with the global community, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin said.

Yet even as Beijing has given its go-ahead for the country to open up, other governments — worried about the spike in cases in China — are raising barriers for the entry of Chinese visitors.

In Japan, the quantitative antigen test that is already conducted on entrants suspected of having COVID-19 will be mandatory for all people arriving from mainland China. Those who test positive will be quarantined for seven days at designated facilities and their samples will be used for genome analysis.

The measure begins Friday, just as Japan heads into New Year’s holidays marked by parties and travel, when infections are expected to rise.

Last week India also mandated a COVID-19 test for travellers from China, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Thailand, while ordering quarantine for those with symptoms or testing positive. India has also begun randomly testing 2 percent of international passengers arriving at airports.

Kishida said China’s lack of information-sharing and transparency about the infections made it difficult to assess and figure out safety measures. There are huge discrepancies between information from central and local authorities, and between the government and private organisations, he said.

“There are growing worries in Japan,” Kishida said. “We have decided to take a temporary special measure to respond to the situation.”

But Wang appeared to offer subtle criticism of the border measures adopted by Japan and India. “China believes that the pandemic measures should be science-based and appropriate and should not affect normal personnel exchanges,” he said.

Japan’s new measure aims to “prevent rapid increase of infections in this country” and is not intended to stop the global movement of people, Kishida said. Japan will act flexibly, while watching the development in China, he added, including halting the planned increase of flights between Japan and China “just to be safe.”

Direct flights between the two countries will be limited to four major Japanese airports for the time being, government officials said.

“The measure is not going to affect Japan’s policy to continue with our ongoing transition toward a ‘with-COVID’ lifestyle carefully and steadily while watching the infections at home,” Kishida said.

Japan stopped requiring COVID-19 tests earlier this year for entrants who had at least three shots – part of the country’s careful easing of measures after virtually closing its borders to foreign tourists for about two years.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
European and Arab Ministers Convene in Madrid to Address Gaza Conflict
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
UAE Offers Free ChatGPT Plus Subscriptions to Citizens
Lebanon Initiates Plan to Disarm Palestinian Factions
Iran and U.S. Make Limited Progress in Nuclear Talks
The Daily Debate: The Fall of the Dollar — Strategic Reset or Economic Self-Destruction?
Trump Administration's Tariff Policies and Dollar Strategy Spark Global Economic Debate
OpenAI Acquires Jony Ive’s Startup for $6.5 Billion to Build a Revolutionary “Third Core Device”
Turkey Weighs Citizens in Public as Erdoğan Launches National Slimming Campaign
Saudi-Spanish Business Forum Commences in Riyadh
Saudi Arabia and Spain Sign MoU to Boost SME Sectors
UK Suspends Trade Talks with Israel Amid Gaza Offensive
Iran and U.S. Set for Fifth Round of Nuclear Talks Amid Rising Tensions
Russia Expands Military Presence Near Finland Amid Rising Tensions
Indian Scholar Arrested in Crackdown Over Pakistan Conflict Commentary
Israel Eases Gaza Blockade Amid Internal Dispute Over Military Strategy
President Biden’s announcement of advanced prostate cancer sparked public sympathy—but behind closed doors, Democrats are in panic
A Chinese company made solar tiles that look way nicer than regular panels!
Indian jet shootdown: the all-robot legion behind China’s PL-15E missiles
The Chinese Dragon: The True Winner in the India-Pakistan Clash
Australia's Venomous Creatures Contribute to Life-Saving Antivenom Programme
The Spanish Were Right: Long Working Hours Harm Brain Function
Did Former FBI Director Call for Violence Against Trump? Instagram Post Sparks Uproar
US and UAE Partner to Develop Massive AI Data Center Complex
Apple's $95 Million Siri Settlement: Eligible Users Have Until July 2 to File Claims
US and UAE Reach Preliminary Agreement on Nvidia AI Chip Imports
President Trump and Elon Musk Welcomed by Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim with Cybertruck Convoy
Strong Warning Issued: Do Not Use General Chatbots for Medical, Legal, or Educational Guidance
Saudi Arabia Emerges as Global Tech Magnet with U.S. Backing and Trump’s Visit
This was President's departure from Saudi Arabia. The Crown Prince personally escorted him back to the airport.
NVIDIA and Saudi Arabia Launch Strategic Partnership to Establish AI Centers
Trump Meets Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara in Historic Encounter
Trump takes a blow torch to the neocons and interventionists while speaking to the Saudis
US and Saudi Arabia Sign Landmark Agreements Across Multiple Sectors
Why Saudi Arabia Rolled Out a Purple Carpet for Donald Trump Instead of Red
Elon Musk Joins Trump Meeting in Saudi Arabia
Trump says it would be 'stupid' not to accept gift of Qatari plane
Quantum Computing Threatens Bitcoin Security
Michael Jordan to Serve as Analyst for NBA Games
×