The Japanese government is to bring up to 250 business executives to Vietnam on a charter flight after it relaxes its COVID-19 restrictions on travel to the country, scheduled for late June, Nikkei Asian Review has reported.

Vietnam is welcoming back foreign specialists, business managers and skilled workers,
including those from Japan, for its economic recovery efforts 

Most of the travelers on the maiden flight will be business people who have been newly assigned by their Japanese companies to posts in Vietnam, Nikkei said on June 15.

All passengers will undergo polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing before departure to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

According to Nikkei, Vietnam in late March suspended entry for all foreign nationals. The Japanese government expects Vietnam to accept travelers from Japan who undergo PCR testing before departure. Japan will also work on raising its PCR testing capacity.

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi recently has phone talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh, discussing the possibility of resuming entry for a certain number of people in need. Nikkei quoted a source in Japan’s Foreign Ministry, saying Vietnam is willing to accept Japanese business travelers as it is resuming economic activities in the post COVID-19 period.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on June 9 proposed hosting a meeting to examine the reopening of international flights after the COVID-19 epidemic was brought under control in Vietnam and several countries.

The Vietnamese government is planning to resume international flights to China, Taiwan (China), the Republic of Korea, Japan and Laos. It is first welcoming back specialists, business managers and highly skilled workers, to support economic recovery efforts.

The Japan External Trade Organization reports more than 1,800 Japanese companies had opened offices in Vietnam by the end of 2018. Data from the Japan National Tourism Organization show that a daily average of 2,300 people from Japan visited Vietnam in 2018.

Nikkei learned Japan will consider relaxing entry restrictions for Vietnamese as it looks to fill private-sector jobs with Vietnamese technical trainees.