Seeing a doctor in Japan: clinics, hospitals and what you'll pay

If it's an emergency

Save these in your phone now, not when you need them.

Start at a clinic, not a hospital

Japan's system has layers. For a cold, a rash, a sore back or a check-up, you go to a local clinic (クリニック, kurinikku, or 医院, iin). They're everywhere, often specialised by area: internal medicine (内科, naika), ear-nose-throat (耳鼻科, jibika), skin (皮膚科, hifuka), women's health (婦人科, fujinka), children (小児科, shōnika).

Big hospitals charge extra if you walk in without a referral letter (紹介状, shōkaijō): at least ¥7,000 on top of the normal fee for a first visit at the largest ones. That's deliberate: they want you to see a clinic first. If the clinic thinks you need a specialist, it writes the letter.

• Find clinics on Google Maps, or AMDA's service for ones that speak your language.
• Many clinics take walk-ins in the morning and late afternoon and close for a long lunch. Check the hours on the door: 午前 is morning, 午後 is afternoon, 休診 means closed.
• Many now take bookings online or by LINE. Look for 予約 (yoyaku, booking).

What to bring

• Your My Number card, if you've registered it as your insurance card (マイナ保険証, maina hokenshō). You scan it at a reader at reception. Old paper insurance cards are no longer valid.
• No My Number card? Your insurer sends you a 資格確認書 (shikaku kakuninsho), a paper certificate you show instead.
• Your medicine notebook (お薬手帳, okusuri techō), if you have one. The pharmacy gives you one free; it records everything you've been prescribed.
• Cash. Many clinics still don't take cards.
• A list of your symptoms and medicines in Japanese, or on your phone, to show at reception.

What you'll pay

With Japanese health insurance, you pay 30% of the cost (less for young children and older people). A clinic visit for a cold with medicine is often ¥1,500–3,000 in total. Without insurance you pay 100%, which is one more reason not to delay joining.

Medicine is usually collected from a separate pharmacy (薬局, yakkyoku) near the clinic, with the prescription (処方箋, shohōsen) the clinic gives you. Use it within four days.

Big bills? Monthly costs above a limit (based on your income) are paid back to you or capped in advance, under the high-cost medical expense benefit (高額療養費, kōgaku ryōyōhi). Ask your insurer before a planned operation.

At reception: phrases that help

Reception hands you a questionnaire (問診票, monshinhyō): name, symptoms, allergies, medicines, pregnancy. Many clinics have it in English if you ask.

At night and on Sundays

Most clinics close evenings, Sundays and holidays. Every area has a holiday or night duty clinic (休日・夜間診療, kyūjitsu yakan shinryō); your city's website lists them, and #7119 can tell you which one is open. Bigger hospitals' emergency departments take serious cases at any hour.