Pre-Travel Testing Approved For Japan

Thermal Screening Equipment installed at airports. PC: HDOT

Mainlanders will begin returning to Hawai‘i tomorrow with the possibility of a quarantine exemption, and visitors from Japan won’t be far behind.

The state Department of Health (DOH) has approved the COVID-19 Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT) authorized by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare, according to a statement from the Office of Gov. David Ige. Proof of a negative test result from trusted testing partners in Japan will allow travelers from Japan to bypass the 14-day quarantine upon their arrival in Hawai‘i.

The DOH is currently in discussions with various Japanese medical institutions as it secures a list of trusted testing partners in Japan, the statement said. Once the list is established and the pre-travel program is launched for Japan, travelers from that country will have the option to take the NAAT test from a trusted partner 72 hours prior to their departure for Hawai‘i. They would be required to show proof of a negative test result upon arrival in order to bypass the 14-day quarantine.

As soon as Japan’s trusted testing partners are confirmed, the information will be posted on the Hawai‘i COVID-19 information website – hawaiicovid19.com.

Japanese nationals traveling abroad are still subject to a 14-day quarantine upon their return to the country. Travel restrictions on US travel into Japan still remain in place.