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Traveling to Japan - where to get saliva COVID test with paper result?

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  1. #1

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    Traveling to Japan - where to get saliva COVID test with paper result?

    Hello, we are going to Japan in a couple of weeks and I downloaded the Certificate of Testing for COVID-19 from the Japanese government site. They explicitly state only Nasopharyngeal Swabs (the really deep swabs) or Saliva tests are acceptable, within 72 hours prior to departure. Options?

    1. It seems that the government's Community Testing Centres only do the "Combined Nasal and Throat Swab (CNTS)" test. Any experience requesting a different version (I would guess not)…

    2. I see there is a quick testing option at the HK Airport, but our flight is early in the morning before the airport test is open…

    3. The saliva kits you can get at some MTR stations just give you an SMS notification that you are negative, but we need original paper copies…

    I will start going through the list of private labs on the government's Coronavirus website, but would be happy for advice/review on an inexpensive option for either a Nasopharyngeal or Saliva test.


  2. #2

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    i thought Japan cancelled visa free access to hk sar passport holders. How are you still able to travel there?


  3. #3

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    Naseo thingy - Gleneagles and Tung Wah have it for about 1500.

    Saliva - I'd go with prenetics locations. They were pretty good with post test service (the person accidentally deleted the sms message to download the PDF a few hours before the flight). They were able to get a replacement emailed out quickly.

    I could be wrong in assuming that this is the saliva test. Better call and check or use the live support thingy on their site.

    Prenetics site: https://communitytest.prenetics.com/

    The community test centers have an option of giving you the standard paperwork for a couple of hundred or so. But again, check that they meet Japan requirements. The interwebs are full of posts of people being refused boarding because a i was not dotted or the t was crossed incorrectly.

    Last edited by shri; 29-06-2021 at 11:02 AM.

  4. #4

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    Many on the list also do testing, as people mentioned on the quarantine group prices and times vary wildly:

    https://gia.info.gov.hk/general/2021...LZCzIaHtVrARkI


  5. #5

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    I would've recommended checking with Matt Hancock, but you know... . Jokes aside, hope you get it sorted and enjoy your travels.


  6. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by gardabble:
    i thought Japan cancelled visa free access to hk sar passport holders. How are you still able to travel there?
    We are both expats here in HK, now departing. My spouse is from Japan and I successfully applied for a visitor visa to travel there with her as she is pregnant.

    @shri - The Japanese consulate here in HK strongly encouraged us to use the test form provided by the Japanese government, and we don't want to take any risks. Japan is great in many ways but ugh the bureaucracy… I contacted Prenetics asking if they would fill out the Japanese form along with their standard test result and they said no.

    After going through the HK government lab list I think based on timing and location convenience we will bite the bullet and pay up for the saliva testing at Gleneagles, it's $1200/person.

    Otherwise there is still a chance we could fly later in the day and take advantage of the in-person airport test, we'll see when it comes time to book tickets…
    Tadashi and MABinPengChau like this.

  7. #7

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    Japan is great in many ways but ugh the bureaucracy…
    HK is not that much better.

    Anyways, best of luck. Just make sure that the consulate has or might be able to give you a clue as to which providers do their job correctly.

    And congrats and best wishes.

  8. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by fzbz:
    1. It seems that the government's Community Testing Centres only do the "Combined Nasal and Throat Swab (CNTS)" test. Any experience requesting a different version (I would guess not)…
    Book the community center for the traveller package, its a naso swab that will meet the standard, prenetics operate it and they charge something like 260. I'm not sure if you mean you need to fill in the Japanese form or what. But they will email you the results in PDF and you can print it out or you can go back to them the next day for a printout. Recommended not to do the test too early in case flight gets delayed. GL
    Last edited by ycchai; 29-06-2021 at 03:33 PM. Reason: @shri seeing how this community is travelling a lot. should there be a pin thread on these topics like quarantine, testing,

  9. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by ycchai:
    Book the community center for the traveller package, its a naso swab that will meet the standard
    Thanks for the suggestion, but unless I hear from someone with first-hand experience of testing specifically for travel to Japan I think we will play it safe and go with a provider that does a saliva test. The Japanese government website explicitly says "nasal and throat swab" tests are not valid for their purposes, but that is the test the HK community centers offer. Japan only accepts a saliva test or a deep nasopharyngeal swab that goes to the back of your brain, not the 1-2cm swabs in your nose and throat.

  10. #10

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    On the HK quarantine support group someone did it at Adventist and they filled out the Japanese paperwork for them (this was June of this year).

    fzbz and chuckster007 like this.

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