TOKYO: The Japanese government said Tuesday that it is possible for the country to accept fleeing Ukrainians even if they do not carry a passport.

The government expressed this view in a document answering written questions from a lawmaker of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. The document was approved at a cabinet meeting on the day.

According to the document, Japan’s diplomatic establishments will issue travel certificates in place of passports to people who do not carry a passport due to reasons other than their own fault.

Given the current situation in Ukraine, travel certificates will be issued in a short period, the government said.

Meanwhile, the CDP submitted to the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of Japan’s parliament, on Tuesday a bill to enable the country to smoothly accept evacuees from Ukraine and other nations.

The bill calls for creating a new type of residency status that would last for a year for people fleeing war or other situations and allow them to work in Japan.

“We hope that (such people) will live as a member of society while feeling secure,” CDP lawmaker Yosuke Suzuki told reporters.

JIJI Press