(BIVN) – The pre-travel testing program has been extended to visitors to Hawaiʻi coming from Japan.

Governor David Ige announced Tuesday that – as of Friday, Nov. 6 – travelers from Japan may bypass the State of Hawaiʻi’s mandatory 14-day quarantine if they take a COVID-19 test from a trusted testing partner in Japan. The test must be taken no earlier than 72 hours prior to departure and the test must be negative, the State says.

Travelers must use an approved COVID-19 Nucleic Acid Amplification Test “conducted by a laboratory authorized by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare” for the pre-travel test.

During a Tuesday news conference livestreamed from the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, State officials introduced the following 21 trusted testing partners in Japan:

Sapporo Higashi Tokushukai Hospital (Hokkaido) 

National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Center Hospital (Tokyo) 

St Luke’s International Hospital (Tokyo) 

Nishi-Shinbashi Clinic (Tokyo) 

Kameda Kyobashi Clinic (Tokyo)

Tokyo Medical University Hospital (Tokyo)

Mita Kokusai Building Clinic (Tokyo)

Loco Clinic (Tokyo) 

Karada Internal Medicine Clinic (Tokyo)

T Care Clinic Hamamatsucho (Tokyo)

Shiba Kokusai Clinic (Tokyo) 

CLINIC FOR Tamachi (Tokyo) 

CLINIC FOR Otemachi (Tokyo) 

Kameda Medical Center (Chiba) 

Shonan Kamakura General Hospital (Kanagawa) 

Travel Clinic Shin-Yokohama (Kanagawa) 

Fujita Health University Hospital (Aichi)

Fujita Health University Bantane Hospital (Aichi)

Fujita Health University Okazaki Medical Center (Aichi)

Nozaki Tokushukai Hospital (Osaka)

Yamasaki Family Clinic (Hyogo)

“Many of Hawaiʻi’s residents trace their ancestry back to Japan, and welcoming our Japanese guests back to Hawaiʻi is an important step in maintaining the close relationship between our two regions,” said Gov. David Ige, “We believe we have created the safest travel testing program in the country, and we are grateful to the Japanese government for assisting us in making our pre-travel testing program available to its residents.”

Speaker of the House Scott K. Saiki, who is also Chair of the Japan-Hawaii Legislators’ Friendship Association, spoke at the news conference. “I appreciate that the members of the Japan-Hawaii Legislators’ Friendship Association have worked with us to enable Japanese citizens to use the pre-travel test quarantine exemption,” Speaker Saiki said. “We look forward to welcoming the people of Japan back to Hawaiʻi. We will continue to work to reduce the number of COVID cases in Hawaiʻi so that we can also visit Japan soon.”

The State news release also highlighted these comments from the various officials who participated in the news conference:

“Mahalo to our health partners in Japan for working with Hawaiʻi to implement this next phase of the Safe Travels Hawaiʻi program. The program is an extra layer of safety for the people of Hawaiʻi and our visitors, and it has restored hope for many people. We are anxious to welcome back our Japanese travelers and look forward to Japan and Hawaiʻi’s continued relationship,” said Hawaiʻi’s Lt. Gov. Josh Green.

“There is a strong cross-cultural relationship between the people of Japan and Hawai‘i, which over time, has forged a foundation of mutual respect. Historically, the Japan traveler to Hawaiʻi has been mindful and sensitive to our local ways and cultural traditions. At a time when we in Hawaiʻi seek to resuscitate our economy, the resumption of trans-Pacific travel from Japan is welcomed news,” said Hawai‘i Tourism Authority president and CEO John De Fries.

“On behalf of the travelling public, ANA would like to thank Governor Ige, Speaker Saiki, and those involved with developing and implementing the Pre-Travel Testing Program. We hope that with appropriate health and safety measures with additional layers of testing like the PTTP, we can resume air travel between Japan and Hawaiʻi.” said Hiro Noguchi, Station Manager Honolulu Airport Office, ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS CO., LTD.

“We look forward to supporting the phased reopening of travel between Japan and Hawai‘i by welcoming onboard more of our Japanese guests with enhanced health protocols to keep travelers and our islands safe,” said Peter Ingram, President and Chief Executive Officer, Hawaiian Airlines.

“It is a welcome news for those ready to travel between Hawai‘i and Japan with today’s announcement of the State of Hawai‘i pre-travel testing program. These measures can provide a safe and secure travel experience for our customers, and serve as an opportunity for more travel between Hawai‘i and Japan one step at a time. Japan Airlines will continue to undertake measures to ensure safety and health of local communities and visitors as a priority,” said Hiroshi Kuroda, Vice President and Regional Manager Hawaiʻi, Region, U.S.A., Japan Airlines Co., Ltd.