ARRIVAL IN JAPAN

Japan has recently tightened up it's entry procedures. All Non Japanese passport holders are fingerprinted and photographed at Immigration. Entry to Japan follows the following procedures.

1. Health Check
   You just walk through an gate where no one is on duty, but when there has been an outbreak of an infectious disease such as SARS, Bird Flu etc, this will be much stricter with image scanning for people with fevers etc
2. Immigration
   Immigration is split into 3 sections:
   Japanese Passports / Foreign Passports / Foreign Passports with re-entry permits
   At the counter you hand over your passport, entry card, customs declaration etc. The officer will instruct you to place both index fingers on the scanner and then take a quick snap of your face.
3. Baggage Claim
4. Customs
   Proceed to the Green Counter if you have nothing to declare.
   Note. Do not bother with Duty Free Alcohol as it is cheaper in the supermarkets in Hakuba.

HINTS:

1. At customs, if there is a large queue at the Green counters, go to the red counter and ask them if you have to declare "such and such". They will process you there and you will get through much quicker.
2. If you are carrying a large amount of luggage, then consider using the courier service located right next to the arrival lobby in most airports. If you have an overnight in Tokyo or have luggage you can do without for 24 hours then this will make transferring in Tokyo a lot less of a headache. We recommend the "Black Cat" service.
3. Do not pre-book trains as you will lose your seat if you are delayed. Best option if you are taking the train is to buy a ticket on the next train or bus available.

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