Photo/Illutration Students chat on the campus of Akita International University in Akita Prefecture in 2017. (Provided by Akita International University)

The government will allow 87 state-funded foreign students to enter Japan and complete their studies, an exception to current strict measures on foreign travelers entering Japan.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a news conference on Jan. 17 that the government decided to grant entry to the students, after considering their individual circumstances in light of public interest and urgency.

All these students are less than a year from graduating from their universities or completing their coursework. They are also at risk of not being able to graduate if they are not allowed to enter Japan.

The students will have to follow testing and quarantine measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 upon entering the country.

The government banned new entries of travelers from abroad on Nov. 30, 2021, in an attempt to stem the spread of the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced on Jan. 11 that the government would extend the restrictions until the end of February.

Under the measures, foreigners including businesspersons, technical intern trainees and students have not been able to enter Japan.

However, as COVID-19 cases continue spiking within Japan, some have criticized the prolonged tough measures against foreign travelers as unfairly singling them out. 

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