TOKYO – Five countries, including Italy and Turkey, will start accepting Japanese vaccine passports, the Japanese government said on Wednesday.
The countries on the list, which also include Austria, Bulgaria and Poland, will waive quarantines and other entry restrictions for travelers with Japanese vaccination certificates. Streamlining the entry process should encourage more travel, including for business purposes.
In addition to the five countries, South Korea will accept the certificate as one of the necessary documents that travelers can submit to be exempt from quarantine. Estonia will recognize this as well, although the country does not currently require travelers to self-quarantine, regardless of their vaccination status.
Japanese residents will be able to start applying for an official coronavirus vaccine certificate from Monday in municipalities where they were residing at the time of vaccination. They must present, among other documents, a statement of their photographs and passports.
The certificates will indicate the names of the recipients, their birthdays, their passport numbers, as well as the date and type of vaccines in Japanese and English. They will initially be physically distributed, although the government is also considering an electronic, app-based version.
Each municipality is responsible for managing the process itself. The city of Shizuoka will only accept applications by mail. Tokyo’s Minato district will take them online or by mail, but will allow in-person requests for emergencies.
Japan’s foreign ministry has pressured a dozen countries to accept its vaccine certificates. But many countries like the United States, China and the United Kingdom are not relaxing entry restrictions, even for travelers who can show proof of vaccination. For example, the UK requires travelers from Japan to get tested and self-isolate.
Some, like France, have also refused to grant waivers unless Japan gives reciprocal consideration to their vaccinated travelers.
So far, Japan has not considered using vaccination certificates for domestic travel. An expert from the Economic and Fiscal Policy Council at a meeting on Wednesday suggested that the government assess this option to accelerate Japan’s economic recovery from the pandemic.
The government is seeking to ease restrictions on economic activity even without official vaccine certificates, as long as those who receive an injection have physical records they can provide. But he is wary of the widespread use of such materials in the home, fearing that they will discriminate against those who choose not to be vaccinated or who cannot get it.
