Coronavirus

Quarantine at facilities to be longer for arrivals from India

Courtesy of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases
The omicron variant of the novel coronavirus is seen in an electron micrograph.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:08 JST, May 7, 2021

The government has decided to extend the quarantine period at designated facilities for those arriving in Japan from India, in an effort to keep out the coronavirus variant that is spreading in India and said to be highly transmissible, sources said.

Those entering Japan from India are currently required to stay at designated facilities for three days, but the period is likely to be doubled to six days, according to the sources. If the test results on both the third and sixth days turn out negative, they will be allowed to go home or to other locations. No changes will be made to the total self-quarantine period of 14 days after arriving in Japan.

It is being discussed whether the same measure will be taken for those arriving from India’s neighboring countries, such as Pakistan and Nepal.

In India, a highly contagious coronavirus variant is spreading. The Foreign Ministry has issued spot safety information — a short-period alert issued in regard to a specific event — for Japanese nationals in India, urging them to consider temporarily returning to Japan.