TELF0294-33-7788
| Health insurance in Japan is probably very different to your home country, so please see below for answers to some of the most commonly asked questions. | |
| What kind of healthcare system does Japan have? Japanese healthcare is available to all Japanese and non-Japanese residents and treatment is paid for by universal health insurance. People pay for this health insurance through regular payments, either from their paycheck or through the local municipal government. When a resident visits the doctor the insurance covers 70% of the cost and the resident is requires to pay the final 30%. This 30% figure varies based on age and is lowered for those in financial difficulty. Who needs to be covered by health insurance and what kind is there? Health insurance is mandatory so everyone needs to be covered. Broadly speaking, there are two basic types of public health insurance in Japan: Social Health Insurance (ΠοΫ shakai-hoken) and National Health Insurance (―NΫ― kokumin-kenko-Hoken) Social Health Insurance is for most people with a full-time job, and is paid automatically through your monthly paycheck. National Health Insurance is for everyone else - students, freelancers and people with jobs that don’t have a Social Health Insurance scheme. If you are in doubt whether you have Social Health Insurance, ask your employer. What if I don’t have health insurance? Anyone who receives medical treatment without public health insurance will have to pay 100% of their medical bills themselves. Japanese health insurance is mandatory if you’re planning to stay for more than three months. If you’re applying for National Health Insurance, you’ll need to apply at your local city office and you will need your residence card first, so it could take a couple of months to sort out. Are there any penalties for not being covered by medical insurance? Not currently. You will not be penalised if you do not have insurance, however if you later try to enroll in one of the schemes you may be charged back payments to cover the whole time you’ve been in the country. Also, not having health insurance could cause problems with visa or permanent residency applications further down the line. Therefore, it is advisable to enroll in Japanese health insurance as soon as possible. If you have any further questions please call us on 0294-33-7788 and our English-speaking staff will be able to advise you.(from 10am-3pm) |
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