The Chinese embassy in Japan has made visas for long-term overseas study in China available for applications as of Tuesday. Prospective students are expected to be allowed to sit in university classes after undergoing 10 days of isolation and health observation upon entry.

This change, which would encourage exchange among the younger generation, appears to be a move to ease bilateral tensions ahead of next month’s 50th anniversary of the two countries normalising diplomatic relations.

Beijing imposed strict limits on entries by foreign nationals in March 2020, during the beginning of the pandemic. Diplomatic officials were among the few exceptions.

China has since eased entry restrictions incrementally, such as travel for business purposes, but the virtual freeze on visas for Japanese international students remained in place. Tokyo had lobbied Beijing to restart the visas.