*** It seems the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic is starting to affect Japan… Heavier orders with multiple items will see better value in shipping-per-item cost. In order to visit Japan, foreign tourists would be  required to download the health management app, and will also need to obtain a pre-departure negative test certificate. Only ~4 million international travelers have visited Japan last year. I now advise my clients to avoid planning travel to Japan before the fall. However, even that’s an “if.” So many unknowns remain, a lot is still in flux, and things change on a weekly basis. To date, we are seeing about a 50% delivery on May orders. As background, the Japanese central government declared a state of emergency after much hesitation. Thanks for your patience if it takes longer. But AIRMAIL will save you a lot of money when comparing to UPS. Japan Post has told us: napaJapan will soon be offering UPS and that will open up shipping to most countries, including the USA and Australia. It will just take Japan’s case numbers declining, vaccines starting to be rolled out, and trepidations easing. About Japan Post. If you’d like to be notified as soon as more details are announced by Japan, subscribe to our free email newsletter. I was planning a trip to Osaka last year, but for obvious reasons it fell through. There have been no new announcements from Japan Post over the past two weeks regarding the shipping restrictions and suspensions. However, the officials concede that there are still many issues to be resolved before this system is deployed and the ban on foreign tourists is lifted–even on a trial basis. That’s obviously far short of the original 40 million forecast. Small packet Airmail shipping has been reinstated by Japan Post effective immediately. Japan Post has not announced when they will resume the acceptance of international mail from the affected countries. We appreciate your understanding and patience. I’m still holding out hope my small family of 3 will get to go! Japan Post (AIR and EMS) : We are happy to hear that most parcels that shipped in April have finally reached their destinations. Moreover, we are certain–based upon our extensive experiences in the country–that Japan has the resources, ingenuity, and dedication necessary to successfully bring such a system to fruition. Once these safety measures are in place, the government plans to lift Japan’s travel ban on foreign tourists on a trial basis beginning in April 2021. It does seem like the scales have tipped away from that in the last month, though. It’s still possible that things will worsen, or the Olympics won’t occur as planned. Thanks for the update, Tom! Temporary suspension of acceptance, delivery delays of mail items destined to various countries/territories (Updated on November 26) November 20, 2020 Resumption and temporary suspension of acceptance of mail items destined to various countries/territories (Updated on November 20… Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 30, 2020), Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 23, 2020). Foreigners, including those with residency in Japan, who have been to countries on the entry ban list within 14 days of their arrival in Japan will be turned away under current border control measures. This pandemic really affected aircraft availability and thus created these massive delays. We also plan on taking the vaccine when it is available. Elderly people will likely start getting inoculated in late March 2021, to be followed by people with underlying health conditions in April 2021. For 3 years I’ve been planning a trip for mid to late April 2021. We still cannot ship to the USA or Australia until further notice. Some places we like to visit that were once serene or frequently primarily by locals are now often overrun by tourists. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we will be able to go. Although it’s only a few months away, a lot could change in a relatively short amount of time–we’re at the point where there’s light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks for you patience during these unique times. The shortage of aircraft in Tokyo is causing this massive delay. I’m just hoping, now, that my country can get it together, so I can travel again! All AIR and EMS orders already in the system are expected to deliver, however, they will be VERY LATE (No ETA is given by Japan Post) and this is something we have absolutely no control over. The last ~11 months have seen all-time record lows with only 1,700 to 2,900 international visitors per month. Suffice to say, Japan’s economic health is likewise a serious issue, and inbound tourism was previously a bright spot. 9. share. You also can choose Small Parcel Airmail but tracking is not available for this service. The plan asks for $50 billion to invest in an enormous expansion of the COVID-19 testing infrastructure. How individuals, nations and the world as a collective deal with life after COVID-19 will be one of the most intriguing social experiments in human history. We still cannot ship to any of the countries listed HERE via Japan Post. By David McElhinney. Despite this, a gradual reopening of Japan’s borders remains in process. Coronavirus has us frozen in place for the most part and dreaming of when we can start booking travel again. On January 2, 2021, Japan’s government announced that it will consider whether to declare another state of emergency. We are located in Sapporo so it takes about 2 business days for your order to get to Tokyo via a partner carrier. At this point, the clock is ticking on the Tokyo Summer Olympics. Japan Post (日本郵政公社, Nippon Yūsei Kōsha) was a government-owned corporation in Japan that existed from 2003 to 2007, offering postal and package delivery services, banking services, and life insurance. Tracking codes are not available and this service is for small packets up to 2 kg gross weight. Both Airmail and EMS are available from July 1. This will be an express service that should allow delivery within a week to most areas. We appreciate you patience and understanding. The shortage of aircraft in Tokyo is causing this massive delay. Life in Japan Post-COVID-19: What can we expect? ... As you get closer to your re-open dates, communicate with your furloughs/lay-offs more frequently. Welcome back! Hearing your feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts or questions below in the comments! ... Major economies reopen but traffic still 60%: Google data. Please refer to this notice for the countries affected by the suspension of the Japan Post: 【Regarding the suspension of postal services by Japan Post to certain countries and regions (Updated on 2020/11/24)】 For other countries/regions, we will inform you again on the tenso.com website as soon as there is an update from Japan Post. Your email address will not be published. We plan to take one of the vaccines in January and still considering which one. Both posts cited flight reductions in their announcements. Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 21, 2020). As a planning site with strategy for visiting Kyoto, Tokyo, and beyond, we’re closely monitoring all advisories, the latest news, and progress. I’ll keep on following your updates, thank you so much for keeping people posted! Of … Thank you for the insightful article! There’s nothing to say Japan will reopen even by those dates, but it’s a safer bet than sakura season. As some regions of the United States begin to reopen businesses, the experience from places such as Germany, Japan, and South Korea could provide valuable lessons and guidance. The Japan Post announced that it will suspend EMS and airmail addressed to the United States, starting April 24, 2020. We have no control on any delays within the system. We are hearing of some USA customers receiving goods two months after ordering. By David McElhinney. Some SAL orders already in the system will be returned to sender. This follows a joint appeal from the governors of Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, and Kanagawa prefectures for the central government to declare a state of emergency due to record-breaking numbers of new infections that have strained the medical system. HUGE NEWS! “Once a highly transmissible variant spreads, the number of infections could surpass 2,000 in a single day in Tokyo, eventually necessitating another state of emergency” over the virus, warned Atsuo Hamada, a professor at Tokyo Medical University. Questions still remain about how tourism will resume, and how the aforementioned health management plan, centers, and app will work. China, South Korea and Japan are beginning to reopen some of their museums now that their aggressive lockdowns, quarantines and testing regimes have curtailed the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19). Many of Japan’s decisions–or lack thereof–the last several months have been driven by fear of cultural outsiders and indecisiveness. Thank you for your extreme patience during this unique time where there was a lack of aircraft due to virtually no international tourism. ... Oriental Land, the company that operates the Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea parks in Japan… There are reports of EMS and AIR taking 2 weeks longer than their usual estimated ship times. We are now using UPS to ship to: USA, Australia, New Zealand. The travel bans are currently in effect indefinitely. More countries will follow soon. Thus far, the central government has been hesitant to declare another state of emergency due to the potential fallout on Japan’s economy, which has started recovering after a rough year, as well as due to the impact on the postponed Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics this summer. We cannot predict when your parcel will arrive. Many couriers will … The proposed health safety measures aim to cover the three steps of a tourist’s “journey” to Japan from arrival to stay to departure. I used to be hold out hope for the summer using the same Olympic logic as you but the constant government dithering is not encouraging, and I’m afraid Japan’s current epidemic upsurge will nix any realistic reopening for several months. However, the country is stepping up preparations with the decision on whether to approve the vaccine expected in February. Upon entering Japan, the tourist would once again be required to take a rapid PCR test. Would you consider visiting Japan later this year, or is international travel out of the question for you until there’s a vaccine? More countries will follow soon. It would also further fan the flames on a debate about whether the Olympics should be held at all. level 2. The latest update is not a slew of bad news, and updates that jeopardize the reopening plans discussed further down the post. We have read that most Japanese plan to be vaccinated by April, and we are not concerned about mask compliance or sanitization measures in Japan. The postal situation is very fluid and restrictions can change suddenly. Either way, we’ll keep watching the news and keep you posted if/when there are further developments about Japan reopening and allowing entry to travelers from the United States, Canada, Europe, and beyond! This would be done via the establishment of a health management map and a dedicated “Fever Health Consultation Support Centre.”. In fact, every single year since 2013 has been a new record for inbound tourism to Japan. Japan had just 8 million tourists when former Prime Minister Shinzō Abe was elected to his second term. That’s probably not going to apply to anyone reading this English language blog post, so let’s turn to what the future holds…. This suspension will continue for the next few weeks, through late January 2021 as a precautionary step against the new, potentially more transmissible UK variant. All estimated shipping times due not apply during the Covid crisis. Ultimately, it’s important to remember that the April 2021 reopening date is very much tentative, and almost every single past target date Japan has released has ended up being postponed. We are crossing our fingers and optimistic that we will be traveling again soon. Allowing extended stay business travelers and international students to return is a necessary prerequisite to bringing back tourists. I don’t even care for tourism at this point, I just wish to be reunited with my soon to be fiancé after almost a year and a half of ot being able to see each other… When this first happened, my friends were surprised to hear that I still wanted to go, expecting the outbreak to be worse in Japan. It had over 400,000 employees and ran 24,700 post offices throughout Japan and … We are planning a trip to Japan for mid to late May 2021. I would feel extremely safe in Japan especially compared to where we live right now (US). The latest update is not a slew of bad news, and updates that jeopardize the reopening plans discussed further down the post. We are looking to have this set up by the weekend! We also recommend consulting our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto and Ultimate Guide to Tokyo to plan. As of today (April 23) we can still ship to: UK, Canada, Korea, Singapore, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Finland, Malaysia. Even as the state of emergency currently in place will be extended beyond May 6, the Japanese government must continue planning for reopening the country. However, Japan Post will still receive and deliver any mail sent from those countries to Japan. While Japan took several steps forward late last year, those have now been partially undone. Fortunately the goods we offer have freshness dates that extend from mid-summer to late winter. I hope Olympics will hold again on April or July thank God for this good news. Aside from mild bumps, Japan never saw a significant spike in cases to the extent of Europe or the United States…. There are a lot of factors that have to come together to make these sailings happen but one thing's for sure. I am hopeful that July would be doable. And even then I thought that might be over zealous but after reading this I’m a little more hopeful that we can go there at that time. We estimate a 10-15 business day delivery. Effective April 3, the USPS will not accept mail addressed to these twenty-two affected countries. Any thoughts or tips of your own to add? Tracking codes are not available and this service is for small packets up to about 5 pounds (2 kg). What I know from my contacts is that there is no domestic constituency pushing for a reopening outside of the hospitality/travel industry. The number of travelers to Japan has plunged in recent months, with visitors down 99.9% year over year in the last several months. Kyoto’s Hidden Gem Special Night Illumination, Japan’s tourism numbers were up to a record 31.9 million visitors, 1,700 to 2,900 international visitors per month, fall foliage season in late November 2021. Nevertheless, if the system is still being built and ready to implemented, there’s no reason it couldn’t roll out on a trial basis in April 2021. This will further put delays on deliveries. Several international postal services have notified the USPS that they are currently unable to accept or deliver mail originating from The United States. Boosting tourism was core to Prime Minister Abe’s economic revitalization, and new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has indicated intent to maintain continuity with those economic plans. We are eager to return, but also apprehensive–more on that towards the bottom of the post. Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 30, 2020) Golden Week Holiday (May 2 - 6) : We cannot ship parcels out until May 7th, when Japan Post reopens after this extended national holiday. I am hoping by then that tourists will be allow in by producing a negative COVID test and/or proof of vaccination. A judge on Thursday ordered the feds to wait to extradite the American father-son duo accused of helping ex-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn flee Japan last year. Without the Tokyo Olympics in the backdrop, Japan may lose all sense of urgency for these reopening procedures. (Updated January 2, 2021.). Thanks for your patience if it takes longer. At this point, we do not believe much additional postponing for this plan can occur beyond April 2021 if the Tokyo Summer Olympics are still to be held as planned and with spectators. The key question at this point is whether there’s the appetite for it. Shipping estimates on our … Japan Post continues to experience delays in handling and we appreciate your continued patience while they get through the back-log of parcels. . This includes how to ensure the app is used, the number of tourists allowed in during the Olympics, and what limitations will be placed on tourist activities while in Japan. Japan said Friday it has agreed with Singapore and Brunei to reopen their borders for newly arriving expatriates and other long-term residents from next Wednesday and Oct. 8, respectively. due to logistics issues related to Covid-19. This brings us to the next update, which is that last week Japan suspended new entry into the country of nonresident foreign nationals from around the world. Please read below in case you missed previous updates on shipping... Get news of exclusive offers and promotions first! As a partial remedy to this, the Japanese government has attempted to revive its battered tourism industry by paying for residents to go on vacation within the country. Once the summer games were officially postponed until July 23, 2021, Japan requested people to stay home and schools & businesses voluntarily closed. Japan Post has re-opened shipping routes to two more countries: Italy and New Zealand. there … The Health Center will be set up specifically for overseas visitors to Japan as a way to take the pressure off local governments and avoid overburdening the Japanese health system. Report Save. Package Delivery Couriers (Takyubin) Will vary by the company. On the vaccine front, things are progressing slowly. Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (May 21, 2020), Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (May 15, 2020). We have no control on any delays within the system. While there have been repeated delays and missed target dates for Japan’s reopening, Spring 2021 is pretty much the deadline for getting things back on track if the Olympics are to proceed. No timeline has been revealed for the general public. Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 18, 2020), we will get your order out within 2-3 business days, Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 9, 2020), Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 3, 2020), Update on Shipping During the Covid-19 Situation (April 2, 2020), North America, UK, and Australia orders are still OK. but please be patient as they are indicating long delays during this unprecedented time. Over the past 2 weeks longer than pre-Covid days say Japan will reopen even by those dates, with. 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