<p>Japan said on Thursday it will make a vaccine passport available from next month for Japanese travellers, as governments around the world experiment with ways to relaunch tourism and business trips.</p>.<p>"We are preparing to issue a certificate of vaccination for those who need one... when they visit foreign countries," top government spokesman Katsunobu Kato told reporters.</p>.<p>The certificate will be paper-based rather than digital and will be issued by local governments from sometime next month, he said.</p>.<p>The European Union is working on a digital vaccine passport for this summer so it can welcome back badly needed tourists, and some EU countries plan to introduce certificates at the national level.</p>.<p>The EU version will feature information on whether a person has been vaccinated, or had the virus, tested negative, and recovered.</p>.<p>Last month, Washington said it was also considering special documentation for vaccinated Americans who want to travel abroad.</p>.<p>But the idea is controversial in some places, with conservative US states like Florida and Texas rejecting the idea of vaccine travel documents as a violation of peoples' basic rights.</p>.<p>In Japan, company officials have been keen for a vaccine document that would help reestablish business travel.</p>.<p>Japan's vaccine rollout started comparatively slowly, but has picked up pace in recent weeks. Just over six percent of the population is currently fully vaccinated.</p>.<p>The country's borders are closed to almost all foreign arrivals, though the rules will be relaxed for the Olympic Games, which open in Tokyo on July 23.</p>
<p>Japan said on Thursday it will make a vaccine passport available from next month for Japanese travellers, as governments around the world experiment with ways to relaunch tourism and business trips.</p>.<p>"We are preparing to issue a certificate of vaccination for those who need one... when they visit foreign countries," top government spokesman Katsunobu Kato told reporters.</p>.<p>The certificate will be paper-based rather than digital and will be issued by local governments from sometime next month, he said.</p>.<p>The European Union is working on a digital vaccine passport for this summer so it can welcome back badly needed tourists, and some EU countries plan to introduce certificates at the national level.</p>.<p>The EU version will feature information on whether a person has been vaccinated, or had the virus, tested negative, and recovered.</p>.<p>Last month, Washington said it was also considering special documentation for vaccinated Americans who want to travel abroad.</p>.<p>But the idea is controversial in some places, with conservative US states like Florida and Texas rejecting the idea of vaccine travel documents as a violation of peoples' basic rights.</p>.<p>In Japan, company officials have been keen for a vaccine document that would help reestablish business travel.</p>.<p>Japan's vaccine rollout started comparatively slowly, but has picked up pace in recent weeks. Just over six percent of the population is currently fully vaccinated.</p>.<p>The country's borders are closed to almost all foreign arrivals, though the rules will be relaxed for the Olympic Games, which open in Tokyo on July 23.</p>