Last November, when flying back to Japan, Mr. Tran Van Tam (from Dong Thap) encountered a "half-crying, half-laughing" situation right at Tan Son Nhat airport, Ho Chi Minh City.
After a period of returning to his hometown to visit his family, Mr. Tam set off back to the land of cherry blossoms with many carefully packaged foods. In it, there was a bag weighing about 3kg containing 130 crab flour votes made by his mother and prepared for his son.
When checking in at the airport, the airline employee asked about the bag and reminded Mr. Tam about the prohibited items when entering Japan.
Japan has very strict regulations for entry with uninspected meat and meat products. In case of violating this regulation, a heavy fine will be imposed (a fine of up to 3 years in prison or a fine of up to 3 million Japanese yen).
Mr. Tam started working in Japan in 2021 as an engineer. However, in the 5 years of working away from home, Mr. Tam has only returned home 3 times.
Previously, he only paid attention to the regulation prohibiting the carrying of vegetables, fruits or plant-related goods.
This time returning to Japan, he learned that processed pork in dishes cannot be brought.
Mr. Tam expressed: "My mother wants to give everything to her child. After being reminded by the airline staff, I tried to eat all 30 cakes and had to leave 100 at Tan Son Nhat airport.
After 2 hours of waiting to get on the plane, Mr. Tam tried to take out the boiled bread and peeled each cake to eat. These cakes were originally prepared by his mother as gifts for his son's friends in Japan.
However, when he ate the 30th part, he felt too full, full and could not continue eating. Not knowing anyone at the airport, the male passenger could not give it to others because he could not guarantee their health.
My mother still hasnt known about this (laughs). I had intended to repost this happy memory on social media, but I didn't expect it to be shared so widely. I hope that people do not make this mistake like me and should pay attention to the entry regulations of each country before flying, said Mr. Tam.
Many countries ban meat entry, especially processed meats and raw meat, due to regulations on biosafety and quarantine. International destinations such as Australia, the US, Japan, Taiwan (China), Singapore and South Korea have strict regulations on bringing meat when entering the country, and can impose heavy fines for violations, whether it is processed meat such as nem chua or fresh meat, raw or cooked seafood.
In addition, countries with the majority of religions being Islam or Indianism also have regulations on the use of meat (pork and beef), so tourists need to research carefully before each trip.
