News

Tuberculosis (TB), caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is one of the major infectious diseases in Japan. More than 10,000 new cases are confirmed annually, approximately 1,500 deaths reported due to TB. In recent years, the number of foreign-born cases has been increasing in Japan, with 1,619 of the 10,096 newly notified TB cases in 2023 being foreign-born. Particularly in young age groups with a high potential to transmit the disease to a large number of people, foreign-born nationals account for the majority of newly notified TB cases.

In view of the situation of TB cases in Japan, Pre-Entry TB screening will be introduced to nationals of countries with a particularly large number of TB cases in Japan, who intend to enter Japan and stay for a medium- to long-term, to ensure that they do not have active TB before traveling to Japan.