Do I need a transit visa at Haneda when self transferring?

I am a Vietnamese citizen. I will arrive at Tokyo (Haneda airport) at 4AM and also leave from same airport at 9am on Viet Jet Airline for Vietnam. I have to "self-transfer". Do I need transit Visa to pick up and re-check my luggage or to pass through security or at any other point during my transfer?

Best Answer

Timatic tells us:

Visa

Visa required.

TWOV (Transit Without Visa):

Passengers with a confirmed onward ticket for a flight to a third country on the same calendar day. They must stay in the international transit area of the airport and have documents required for the next destination.

Passengers transiting through Tokyo (HND) or Osaka (KIX) with a confirmed onward ticket for a flight to a third country within 72 hours. They must stay in the international transit area of the airport and have documents required for the next destination.

Passengers with a passport and a confirmed onward ticket to a third country within 72 hours can obtain a Shore Pass on arrival if there are no connecting flights on the same calendar day. They must not be subject to entry restrictions and they must:

have documents required for the next destination; and

have proof of sufficient funds to cover their stay; and

arrive at and depart from an airport or seaport located within the same group below.

Group A: Airports: Narita (NRT), Haneda (HND), Nagoya (NGO), Niigata (KIJ), Komatsu (KMQ) and Yokota (OKO). Seaports: Tokyo, Yokohama, Niigata and Nagoya.

Group B: Airports: Osaka (KIX), Nagoya (NGO) and Komatsu (KMQ). Seaports: Osaka, Kobe and Nagoya.

Group C: Airports: Fukuoka (FUK), Nagasaki (NGS), Kumamoto (KMJ), Kagoshima (KOJ), Naha (OKA) and Kadena (DNA). Seaports : Hakata (Fukuoka), Shimonoseki and Naha (Okinawa).

Group D: Airport: Chitose (CTS). Seaports: Tomakomai, Otaru, Hakodate and Muroran. NOTE: NRT and NGO are not open for 24 hours. Passengers cannot stay overnight at transit area.

You don't qualify for either of the first two TWOV exceptions (you're not staying in the international transit area). You apparently don't qualify for the third TWOV exception because your connecting flight is on the same calendar day (!).

So IMHO do you do need a visa in your situation. I can't find any relevant details on the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs site so I don't know the official requirements.

Note that visa issuance is currently very limited. Not sure if they would actually issue this type of visa at the moment. Also it seems that even for countries which usually do not need a visa, entry without a visa is not possible at the moment.

Your best bet is probably to contact the Embassy of Japan in Vietnam, they would likely be the ones most aware of the current situation.

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Is transit visa required for self transfer?

If it's a self transfer flight, however, you will have to go through passport control at every airport you'll be transiting through, and you may need a visa for that. You have to find out entry requirements of every country you'll be stopping at. Here you can learn all about connecting flights, and the differences.

Do I need transit visa to transit in Japan?

No visa required for all nationalities if you are transiting through Japan within the same airport without leaving the secured area. If you are visiting someone in Japan, or if your main purpose is for sightseeing or business, you need a Temporary Visitor's Visa regardless of the length of your stay.

Do I need a visa for connecting flight in Japan?

No visa is required for transiting in Japanese airports if you have immediate flight connections regardless of nationality. Anyway, there is a Japanese transit visa which is intended for people who have longer layovers before transiting and want to go sightseeing or resting in Japan for few days (up to 15 days).

TOKYO NARITA Airport INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER during COVID-19

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