Japan is moving toward “living with the coronavirus,” having lifted indoor mask guidance earlier this month, but many establishments are still keeping some COVID-19 prevention measures in place, including asking visitors to sanitize their hands or have their temperatures checked before entering the premises.
Such requests, largely based on COVID-19 prevention guidelines created by industries, will likely be less common after May 8, when Japan officially downgrades the legal category of COVID-19 to Class 5, on par with the seasonal flu.
On Friday, the health ministry said that, with the downgrade, the government will no longer recommend businesses take unified infection prevention measures.