Japan temporarily suspends visas given in 11 countries, plus Philippines

March 27, 2020

Japan on Friday announced that it is suspending visas issued to the Philippines and 10 other countries in Southeast Asia, Middle East and Africa due to the 2019 coronavirus disease.

The Japanese Embassy in Manila said the visas will be temporarily suspended until April 3o but this policy is subject to review.

Broadcaster NHK reported that about 750,000 visas were issued by Japan in the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia, Israel, Qatar, Bahrain, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said stricter border control were adopted to stem the spread of COVID-19.

"As a consequence, following people will not be permitted to enter Japan from 0:00 am of March 28th (JST)," the ministry said. DMS