Holiday Ayo - The Japanese government will require tuberculosis (TBC) tests for tourists from six countries, namely the Philippines, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Nepal and Myanmar starting in 2024.

Japanese Health Minister Keizo Takemi said tuberculosis testing is mandatory for visits to Japan longer than three months. 

Takemi claims that many new TB patients in Japan come from these countries. People from these six countries will be asked to take a TB test at a medical institution appointed by the Japanese government before they travel to Japan. 

If their test results are positive, Japan will not issue them a visa. In 2018, the Japanese government decided to make this test mandatory due to the increasing number of foreign-born TB patients in their country. However, the plan was delayed.

“We are making preparations for implementation as soon as possible. We hope to start it in the next fiscal year," said Takemi.

In 2021, the number of TB cases in Japan has fallen below 10 per 100 thousand population and made Japan a "low endemic" country for TB according to the World Health Organization (WHO). 

However, the Japanese Ministry of Health recorded that 10,235 new TB patients were registered in the country during 2022. 

As many as 11.9 percent of new TB patients came from abroad, and the ratio continues to increase.