The Japanese government has suspended entry of non-resident foreign nationals to Japan to prevent the transmission of coronavirus variants.
The measure is taking effect on Monday and will continue through January 31. A similar restriction is already in effect for travelers from the United Kingdom and South Africa.
As the number of foreign workers in Japan increases, so does the amount of support they need to adjust, especially amid the coronavirus pandemic. And on Monday, the government opened a new consultation center aimed at providing a variety of resources under one roof.
The Foreign Residents Support Center brings together eight organizations including the Immigration Services Agency, the legal support center, and the employment security office.
Japan plans to include in its list of entry denials foreigners arriving from the United States, China and South Korea as well as most parts of Europe and some parts of Southeast Asia as the coronavirus pandemic expands.
The Japanese government has decided to soon raise a travel alert to all parts of the US to level three, recommending the cancellation of trips to the country. It will also ban foreigners who have stayed in the US in the past two weeks from entering Japan. The move comes amid the sharp rise of infections in the US.
Non-Japanese speakers who want advice on the new coronavirus can call hotlines run by the Japan Tourism Agency and some local governments.
The agency offers consultation services in English, Chinese, and Korean for 24 hours every day. The number is 050-3816-2787.
The Japanese government's hotline for foreign tourists has been flooded with inquiries about the new coronavirus.
The Japan Visitor Hotline operated by the Japan National Tourism Organization offers support in English, Chinese and Korean 24 hours a day.
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says his country will deny entry to foreign nationals who have recently stayed in the Chinese province of Hubei, starting on Saturday. This is to help prevent the spread of the new strain of coronavirus.
Abe revealed the measure on Friday at a government task force meeting on the new coronavirus infection.