Tourist visa issued before 2020

Visa-free travel will resume on Oct. 11 for a lot of countries but I�fm trying to find out if our tourist visas, still valid up to 2024 and issued on 2019 but was suspended due to the lockdown, can be used again starting Oct 11. We have Philippine passports btw.

I can�ft find any resource online about this. Does anyone have ideas or links to the answer?

Thank you!

If nobody has an answer for this I recommend contacting the Japanese embassy. They will know better than anyone (except maybe immigration authorities).

mofa ph site still doesn�ft contain updates sadly.

I emailed the Japanese embassy here and got a very vague response.

CC�fed JNTO and they replied with:

As of the moment, we have not received clear guidelines for the Philippines
for entry following the changes on October 11, though it is our opinion that
it would be better to err on the side of caution.

If we are to follow current regulations about the RT-PCR test requirement,
it depends on the age of the children:

- If they are below 6 years old, they are NOT required to take an RT-PCR
test PROVIDED that the parents and/or caregivers have negative test results
(regardless of vaccination status).
- If they are 6 years old and above, they are required to undergo RT-PCR
testing if they do not have a valid vaccination certificate.

A valid vaccination certificate must fulfill the following conditions
specified by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare:
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/covid-19/border_vaccine.html
More information about the RT-PCR testing here (Question 11 in the FAQ
relates to RT-PCR testing for minors):
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/covid-19/border_test.html

Regarding the multiple entry visa, JNTO does not have oversight on visas as
the Embassy of Japan in the Philippines handles all visa matters. They will
provide updates when they decide on how to handle the visas as mentioned in
their website: https://www.ph.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_en/00_000035.html

Please monitor the Embassy's website for any changes. Should you need
assistance on anything visa-related, the Embassy has a list of accredited
agencies that may assist you:
https://www.ph.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_ja/00_000253.html

We hope the information above helps. Please also check JNTO's website about
traveling to Japan for more information here:
https://www.japan.travel/en/practical-coronavirus-information/

While not exactly same situation as OP, I also got reply from my local embassy about applying tourism visa after Oct 11th, that embassy haven't got detailed instructions from government, they couldn't give me any answer at the moment.....

The current situation is that the visa remains suspended. You cannot use it for travel. It is not currently covered by the October 11th changes.
While the MOFA page has the specifics (suspended), nothing that I have seen from the official releases of the MHLW (who are the top ministry for the border change) or MLIT (that run the tourism guidelines) have said anything.
https://www.mofa.go.jp/ca/fna/page4e_001053.html#section7

@JapanCustomTours thanks for the link. I will refresh the page every few days and hope for an update soon

@Egg - while your current visa is suspended, is there anything stopping you from applying for a new one?

@JapanCustomTours the email I received from the Japanese embassy basically told me that they do not have new information and I had to get a package tour and an ERFS which I wanted to avoid due to the costs and constraints.

https://www.ph.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_en/00_000035.html

Their website has been updated recently telling us to wait for visa guidelines.

https://www.mofa.go.jp/ca/fna/page4e_001053.html#section7

It is updated! Our visas will be valid again. Now, time to plan our trip.

@Egg - yes, updated yesterday - it is a nice development for a lot of people.

@Egg: Thank you for starting this thread! I have multiple-entry visa which is still valid until next year, but didn't check again as I read it was suspended. Thanks for sharing the info!