See this is why it's confusing. There are loads of posts on that site from people saying they've recently been issued instructor visas, spouse visas you name it, including one from London just todayIf you're on Facebook, do join the Return to Japan Support Group, which is a good source of information. Hope you'll be together soon.
| 28/04 (Wed) | 29/04 (Thu) | 30/04 (Fri) | 01/05 (Sat) | 02/05 (Son) | 03/05 (Mon) | 04/05 (Tue) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
5,792 (+ 501) | 5,918 (+ 419) | 4,684 (- 429) | 5,986 (+ 380) | 5,900 (+ 1,293) | 4,470 (+ 1,150) | 4,199 (- 751) |
| 28/04 (Wed) | 29/04 (Thu) | 30/04 (Fri) | 01/05 (Sat) | 02/05 (Son) | 03/05 (Mon) | 04/05 (Tue) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
51 (+ 12) - 953 (+ 162) | 52 (- 2) - 951 (+ 46) | 87 (+ 51) - 978 (+ 162) | 35 (- 19) - 1,020 (+ 183) | 67 (+ 8) - 1,050 (+ 186) | 65 (+ 6) - 1,084 (+ 186) | 58 (+ 3) - 1,083 (+ 167) |
| 28/04 (Wed) | 29/04 (Thu) | 30/04 (Fri) | 01/05 (Sat) | 02/05 (Son) | 03/05 (Mon) | 04/05 (Tue) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aichi | 323 (+ 11) | 430 (+ 136) | 290 (+ 6) | 398 (+ 59) | 350 (+ 125) | 304 (+ 143) | 219 (- 62) |
Chiba | 144 (+ 32) | 152 (+ 11) | 192 (+ 153) | 95 (- 52) | 182 (+ 36) | 148 (+ 58) | 124 (- 5) |
Fukuoka | 440 | 337 | 305 | 352 | 417 | 285 | 239 |
Hokkaido | 219 (+ 95) | 234 (+ 81) | 187 (+ 29) | 180 (+ 20) | 326 (+ 216) | 114 (- 25) | 233 (+ 112) |
Hyogo | 600 (+ 37) | 534 (- 13) | 333 (- 234) | 539 (- 96) | 539 (+ 66) | 344 (+ 34) | 337 (- 168) |
Kanagawa | 257 (+ 5) | 255 (- 63) | 240 (+ 14) | 275 (+ 59) | 247 (+ 26) | 222 (+ 62) | 214 (+ 2) |
Miyagi | 42 (- 32) | 21 (- 57) | 29 (+ 4) | 22 (- 14) | 54 (+ 23) | 25 (+ 12) | 24 (- 12) |
Okinawa | 63 (- 32) | 76 (- 44) | 59 (- 26) | 105 (- 12) | 57 (- 9) | 57 (+ 13) | 33 (- 53) |
Osaka | 1,260 (+ 18) | 1,172 (+ 5) | 1,043 (- 119) | 1,262 (+ 165) | 1,057 (+ 7) | 847 (- 77) | 884 (- 346) |
Saitama | 224 (- 3) | 256 (+ 23) | 146 (- 61) | 236 (+ 7) | 290 (+ 79) | 198 (+ 89) | 185 (+ 2) |
Tokyo | 925 (+ 82) | 1,027 (+ 166) | 698 (- 61) | 1.050 (+ 174) | 879 (+ 244) | 708 (+ 283) | 609 (- 219) |
Restrictions on dining establishments and other businesses that had been slated to end Tuesday will remain in place and come into effect in Aichi and Fukuoka prefectures from Wednesday. With their addition, Japan's third state of emergency since the start of the pandemic will cover an area accounting for one-third of its population and more than 40 per cent of the world's third-largest economy. [...] The state of emergency has been in effect in Tokyo, which is set to host the Summer Olympics in less than three months, as well as Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures since April 25, with targeted steps aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus during the Golden Week holidays. Restaurants and bars will continue to be prohibited from serving alcohol or offering karaoke services and must close by 8 p.m. with a fine of up to 300,000 yen ($2,750) for noncompliance. Businesses will continue to be encouraged to have employees work from home.
Businesses that serve alcohol in the six prefectures will be asked to close operations for the duration of the state of emergency. However, the previous closure request to commercial outlets with a floor space of 1,000 square meters or more will be eased. Those establishments will be allowed to stay open until 8 p.m. Measures concerning crowd capacity for sporting and other events will also be relaxed. Venues in the four prefectures covered by the state of emergency have held such events without spectators in the stands. The eased rules will allow a 50-per cent capacity of the venues, but only up to 5,000 people. Governors facing still high numbers of new cases, such as in Tokyo and Osaka, will be given more flexibility on the measures, such as whether to continue asking large commercial outlets to shut operations and ban all spectators. The government task force also approved implementing pre-emergency measures to three new prefectures—Hokkaido, Gifu and Mie—from May 9 and extending such measures in the five prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Ehime and Okinawa until May 31.
| 05/05 (Wed) | 06/05 (Thu) | 07/05 (Fri) | 08/05 (Sat) | 09/05 (Son) | 10/05 (Mon) | 11/05 (Tue) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4,071 (- 1,721) | 4,375 (- 1,543) | 6,057 (+ 1,373) | 7,251 (+ 1,265) | 6,493 (+ 593) | 4,940 (+ 470) | 6,160 (+ 1,961) |
| 05/05 (Wed) | 06/05 (Thu) | 07/05 (Fri) | 08/05 (Sat) | 09/05 (Son) | 10/05 (Mon) | 11/05 (Tue) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
50(- 1) - 1,114 (+ 161) | 47 (- 5) - 1,098 (+ 147) | 72 (- 15) - 1,131 (+ 153) | 113 (+ 78) - 1,131 (+ 111) | 121 (+ 54) - 1,144 (+ 94) | 53 (- 12) - 1,152 (+ 68) | 109 (+ 51) - 1,177 (+ 94) |
| 05/05 (Wed) | 06/05 (Thu) | 07/05 (Fri) | 08/05 (Sat) | 09/05 (Son) | 10/05 (Mon) | 11/05 (Tue) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aichi | 224 (- 99) | 290 (- 140) | 443 (+ 153) | 575 (+ 177) | 473 (+ 123) | 426 (+ 122) | 578 (+ 359) |
Chiba | 121 (- 23) | 111 (- 41) | 99 (- 93) | 162 (+ 67) | 152 (- 30) | 172 (+ 24) | 119 (- 5) |
Fukuoka | 337 (- 103) | 259 (- 78) | 472 (+ 167) | 519 (+ 167) | 529 (+ 112) | 372 (+ 87) | 404 (+ 165) |
Hokkaido | 181 (- 38) | 320 (+ 86) | 248 (+ 61) | 403 (+ 223) | 506 (+ 180) | 409 (+ 295) | 421 (+ 188) |
Hyogo | 331 (- 269) | 281 (- 253) | 493 (+ 160) | 568 (+ 29) | 366 (- 173) | 271 (- 73) | 377 (+ 40) |
Kanagawa | 152 (- 105) | 224 (- 31) | 230 (- 10) | 303 (+ 28) | 338 (+ 91) | 237 (+ 15) | 277 (+ 63) |
Miyagi | 24 (- 18) | 32 (+ 11) | 37 (+ 8) | 47 (+ 25) | 32 (- 22) | 25 (+ 12) | 33 (+ 9) |
Okinawa | 63 (+- 0) | 39 (- 37) | 82 (+ 23) | 93 (- 12) | 103 (+ 46) | 14 (- 43) | 132 (+ 99) |
Osaka | 668 (- 592) | 747 (- 425) | 1,005 (- 38) | 1,021 (- 241) | 874 (- 183 | 668 (- 179) | 974 (+ 90) |
Saitama | 165 (- 59) | 179 (- 77) | 238 (+ 92) | 285 (+ 49) | 279 (- 11) | 155 (- 43) | 278 (+ 93) |
Tokyo | 621 (- 304) | 591 (- 436) | 907 (+ 209) | 1,121 (+ 71) | 1,032 (+ 153) | 573 (- 135) | 925 (+ 316) |
The publisher Takarajimasha took the highly unusual step of paying for adverts in three of Japan's top-selling newspapers yesterday (it was a double-page centre spread in the Yomiuri Shimbun), condemning the government's handling of the virus and likening its inability to provide quality medication and vaccinations to kids being trained to fight with bamboo spears at the end of WWII. The image in the advert is very striking, and I'm increasingly hearing analogies between the government's inability/refusal to change track on holding the Olympics and its disastrous stubbornness in 1944-5.
I just hope that this leads to a rare moment of clarity in the minds of the electorate later this year, as there was in 2009 after millions of records of pension contributions were lost.Yes, it is really a shame that procedures that should have been prepared A YEAR AGO are starting to be tackled just now! The reservation system for the coronavirus vaccinations is in shambles. Some municipalities take only phone reservations, and those lines are permanently engaged. My sister-in-law tried to arrange things for the parents and rang them up 500 times, in vain. That was in Yokohama.
I understand that organising a national vaccination campaign is a huge undertaking, but so far, it has been glacial and simply inefficient! Very disappointing. Sorry for the rant.
I just hope that this leads to a rare moment of clarity in the minds of the electorate later this year, as there was in 2009 after millions of records of pension contributions were lost.
If any of you want to take a vacation here, it's very easy to get vaccinated now and there's none of the usual American nonsense regarding health insurance, etc. Just show up and get a shot.
However, infections are rising across the nation, particularly in Hokkaido, Okayama and Hiroshima prefectures. Hokkaido has already been placed under the pre-emergency measures, but new COVID-19 cases there continue to increase, reaching a daily record of 712 on May 13, including 499 in the capital of Sapporo. The Hokkaido government has asked the central government to issue the state of emergency for Sapporo. The pre-emergency measures will still be issued for Gunma, Ishikawa and Kumamoto prefectures. These anti-virus measures will apply from May 16 to June 13, according to the new plan. Earlier this month, the state of emergency was extended until May 31 for Tokyo, Osaka, Hyogo and Kyoto prefectures. It also covers Aichi and Fukuoka prefectures.
| 12/05 (Wed) | 13/05 (Thu) | 14/05 (Fri) | 15/05 (Sat) | 16/05 (Son) | 17/05 (Mon) | 18/05 (Tue) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
7,057 (+ 2,986) | 6,880 (+ 2,505) | 6,266 (+ 209) | 6,422 (- 829) | 5,261 (- 1,232) | 3,680 (- 1,260) | 5,230 (- 930) |
| 12/05 (Wed) | 13/05 (Thu) | 14/05 (Fri) | 15/05 (Sat) | 16/05 (Son) | 17/05 (Mon) | 18/05 (Tue) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
123 (+ 73) - 1,189 (+ 75) | 101 (+ 54) -1,214 (+ 83) | 90 (+ 22) - 1,209 1,131 (+ 78) | 110 (- 3) - 1,231 (+ 100) | 98 (- 23) - 1,223 (+ 79) | 45 (- 8) - 1,227 (+ 75) | 83 (- 26) - 1,235 (+ 58) |
| 12/05 (Wed) | 13/05 (Thu) | 14/05 (Fri) | 15/05 (Sat) | 16/05 (Son) | 17/05 (Mon) | 18/05 (Tue) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aichi | 679 (+ 455) | 624 (+ 334) | 598 (+ 155) | 596 (+ 21) | 522 (+ 49) | 362 (- 64) | 539 (- 39) |
Chiba | 181 (+ 60) | 171 (+ 60) | 169 (+ 70) | 140 (- 22) | 135 (- 17) | 128 (-44) | 89 (- 30) |
Fukuoka | 635 (+ 298) | 502 (+ 243) | 472 (+- 0) | 522 (+ 3) | 505 (- 24) | 282 (- 90) | 346 (- 58) |
Hokkaido | 529 (+ 348) | 712 (+ 392) | 593 (+ 345) | 566 (+ 163) | 491 (- 15) | 372 (- 37) | 533 (+ 112) |
Hyogo | 384 (+ 53) | 361 (+ 80) | 314 (- 179) | 299 (- 269) | 267 (- 99) | 120 (- 151) | 249 (- 128) |
Kanagawa | 319 (+ 167) | 337 (+ 113) | 340 (+ 110) | 328 (+ 25) | 296 (- 42) | 199 (- 38) | 248 (- 29) |
Miyagi | 53 (+ 39) | 18 (- 14) | 33 (- 4) | 32 (- 15) | 31 (- 1) | 24 (- 1) | 31 (- 2) |
Okinawa | 109 (+ 46) | 126 (+ 87) | 134 (+ 52) | 160 (+ 67) | 78 (-25) | 59 (+ 45) | 168 (+ 36) |
Osaka | 851 (+ 183) | 761 (+ 14) | 576 (- 429) | 785 (- 236) | 620 (- 254 | 382 (- 286) | 509 (- 465) |
Saitama | 259 (+ 94) | 289 (+ 110) | 257 (+ 19) | 246 (- 39) | 216 (- 63) | 135 (- 20) | 186 (- 92) |
Tokyo | 969 (+ 348) | 1,010 (+ 419) | 854 (- 53) | 772 (- 349) | 542 (- 490) | 419 (- 154) | 732 (- 193) |
Pfizer started its Japan trial in October, recruiting 160 volunteers to take its vaccine. AstraZeneca PLC, which is still being considered by domestic regulators, started its vaccine trial earlier with 256 subjects. But trials involving such small numbers of people are "really meaningless", said Takahiro Kinoshita, a Japanese physician and researcher based in Boston. Global trials involve enough Asian subjects to ensure safety in their genotype, Kinoshita said. Japan's trials, lengthy reviews and slow rollouts stem from public fears about vaccines that have undermined previous inoculation campaigns for HPV and other diseases. "Everything is connected to vaccine hesitancy behavior," he said.
The government will study such an option after seeing whether the addition of dentists will be enough to mitigate the dearth of doctors and nurses who deliver the vaccines, Taro Kono said at a press conference.
But, the team also found that the antibody prevalence rate was lower among individuals with mild or no symptoms, and that the proportion of those with antibodies effective against mutant strains was also lower than those with antibodies that could fight the conventional strain. Takeharu Yamanaka, a professor of biostatistics at the university, said, "Even if there are enough antibodies to prevent infection after a year, the overall amount is decreasing. It is presumably the same for vaccinations, so it may be desirable to revaccinate after about a year."
The two facilities are estimated to have a combined capability of administering up to 15,000 shots a day, contributing to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's goal of making 1 million shots per day available to the older population. The administration aims to get the entirety of Japan's 36 million residents age 65 or older fully vaccinated by the end of July.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato indicated that if extended, a new deadline for the nine prefectures could coincide with the June 20 expiration date for Okinawa.
Osaka Prefecture, home to 9 million people, is suffering the brunt of the fourth wave of the pandemic, accounting for a third of the nation's death toll in May, although it constitutes just 7% of its population. The speed at which Osaka's health care system was overwhelmed underscores the challenges of hosting a major global sports event in two months' time, particularly as only about half of Japan's medical staff are fully vaccinated. "Simply put, this is a collapse of the medical system," said Yuji Tohda, the director of Kindai University Hospital in Osaka. "The highly infectious British variant and slipping alertness have led to this explosive growth in the number of patients."