Your First Visit to a Japanese Clinic: Finding One, What to Bring, Reception, Payment and Prescriptions

Clinic or hospital?

Japan has two main kinds of medical facilities. A clinic (クリニック or 診療所, shinryōjo) is a small practice, often run by one doctor, with no beds or only a few. A hospital (病院, byōin) is a larger facility with inpatient wards and many departments. For a cold, a rash, a sprain or a routine checkup, a clinic is the right first stop: waits are shorter, and the doctor can refer you onward if needed.

Going straight to a large hospital without a referral letter (紹介状, shōkaijō) usually costs extra. University hospitals and other designated large hospitals must charge a "special fee" on top of the normal bill: at least ¥7,000 for a first medical visit (¥5,000 for dental), and at least ¥3,000 (¥1,900 for dental) for each repeat visit if you keep coming after the hospital has offered to refer you on to a local clinic or another hospital. ^[1] Start at a clinic and ask for a referral if you need specialist care.

Which department do you need?

Clinics list their departments on their sign and website. The most common ones:

• 内科 (naika) — internal medicine: colds, fever, stomach trouble, blood pressure and most general complaints
• 小児科 (shōnika) — pediatrics
• 皮膚科 (hifuka) — dermatology
• 整形外科 (seikei-geka) — orthopedics: bones, joints, back pain, sprains
• 耳鼻咽喉科 (jibi-inkōka) — ear, nose and throat
• 眼科 (ganka) — ophthalmology
• 産婦人科 (sanfujinka) — obstetrics and gynecology
• 歯科 (shika) — dentistry
• 心療内科 / 精神科 (shinryō-naika / seishinka) — psychosomatic medicine / psychiatry

If you are not sure, 内科 is the safest choice for adults; the doctor will redirect you if another department is better. The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) guide includes a symptom-to-department chart. ^[2]

Finding a clinic that speaks your language

Use our hospital and clinic finder and filter by language to find facilities that can see you in English, Chinese or Korean. JNTO also runs a search for medical institutions that accept foreign visitors and a 24-hour Japan Visitor Hotline in English, Chinese and Korean. ^[2] Where no interpreter is on site, many clinics use translation apps at the counter, and the nonprofit AMDA International Medical Information Center offers telephone interpretation in several languages. For anything complicated, bringing a Japanese-speaking friend is still the most reliable option.

Do you need an appointment?

Many clinics take walk-ins during their stated reception hours (受付時間, uketsuke jikan). Reception usually closes 15–30 minutes before consultation hours end, and most clinics close for lunch, on one weekday afternoon and on Sundays. A growing number use web or LINE booking to hand out a numbered ticket, and some larger clinics require an appointment. Check the clinic's website or call ahead; even a short "Eigo wa daijōbu desu ka?" ("Is English OK?") tells you what language support to expect.

What to bring

• Proof of insurance. Residents enrolled in Japanese health insurance should bring a My Number card registered as a health insurance card (マイナ保険証) or the paper eligibility certificate (資格確認書). The old plastic insurance cards are no longer issued and have expired. ^[3]
• ID. Your residence card, or your passport if you are visiting.
• A list of your medicines with generic names, any allergies, and your travel insurance details if you have them.
• Cash. Many clinics accept cash only; credit cards are mainly accepted at larger hospitals. ^[2]
• Your medicine notebook (お薬手帳) if you already have one, and a referral letter if another doctor gave you one.

At reception: the intake form

Hand your proof of insurance and ID to reception (受付, uketsuke) and say you are a first-time patient (初診, shoshin). You will be given an intake questionnaire (問診票, monshinhyō). It typically asks for your name, date of birth, address and phone number; today's symptoms and when they started; past illnesses and surgeries; current medicines and allergies; whether you are pregnant or breastfeeding; and smoking and drinking habits. Some clinics keep translated versions, so ask whether one is available in your language. Once the form is done, wait to be called — by name in most clinics, by number in some.

The consultation and tests

A first consultation at a clinic is often short — a few minutes of questions and an examination — because doctors in Japan see many patients a day. Be ready to say what is wrong, when it started, and what you have tried. Simple tests such as blood or urine tests, rapid tests for flu or COVID-19, X-rays and ultrasound are often done during the same visit; more extensive tests need a referral to a hospital. The doctor explains the results and, if needed, writes a prescription. If you do not understand, ask the doctor to write down the diagnosis and the names of any medicines in Japanese — you can look them up later in our medicine guide.

How much will you pay, and how?

You pay at reception after the consultation, not before. With Japanese health insurance, most working-age adults pay 30% of the regulated fee and the insurer covers the rest. ^[4] Without Japanese insurance you pay the full amount, and some facilities apply their own price list for uninsured patients. JNTO advises visitors to ask for an estimate at reception before treatment. ^[2]

As a rough guide, a straightforward first visit to a clinic with no tests often comes to about ¥1,000–3,000 out of pocket with insurance and about ¥3,000–10,000 without it. Tests, procedures and medicines add to this, and figures vary by clinic. You will receive an itemized receipt (領収書, ryōshūsho) and a fee statement (明細書, meisaisho). Keep both for insurance claims.

Your prescription

Most clinics do not hand out medicines. Instead, you receive a prescription (処方箋, shohōsen) to take to a dispensing pharmacy (薬局), often right next door. Under Japanese insurance rules, a prescription must be filled within 4 days, counting the day it was issued and any weekends and holidays. After that it is void and you must see the doctor again. ^[5] The pharmacy charges separately for the medicines and its dispensing fee. ^[2] See our guide on how to use a Japanese pharmacy for what happens there.

Follow-up visits and online consultations

If the doctor says "mata kite kudasai" (please come again), the next visit is a repeat visit (再診, saishin), which costs less than the first. You usually do not fill out the form again; just show your proof of insurance. Some clinics also offer video consultations (オンライン診療), including for some first visits; the doctor decides whether your case is suitable and switches you to in-person care if it is not. Medicines can then be delivered by a pharmacy or picked up in person. ^[6]

One thing to watch: if you stop going without the doctor telling you to and then come back to the same clinic a month or more later, the visit is billed as a first visit again, even for the same diagnosis or symptoms. The exception is an ongoing chronic condition that is clearly the same illness, such as high blood pressure or diabetes, which continues as a follow-up. Booking your next visit before your medicine runs out avoids the extra fee. ^[7]

Useful phrases

• 初めてです — Hajimete desu — "It's my first time here."
• 保険証はありません — Hokenshō wa arimasen — "I don't have Japanese insurance."
• 英語を話せる人はいますか — Eigo o hanaseru hito wa imasu ka — "Is there someone who speaks English?"
• ここが痛いです — Koko ga itai desu — "It hurts here."
• 熱があります — Netsu ga arimasu — "I have a fever."
• アレルギーがあります — Arerugī ga arimasu — "I have an allergy."
• 薬を飲んでいます — Kusuri o nonde imasu — "I am taking medicine."
• いくらですか — Ikura desu ka — "How much is it?"
• 処方箋をください — Shohōsen o kudasai — "Please give me the prescription."

This article is general information and does not replace a doctor's advice. For severe symptoms, call 119 for an ambulance. ^[2]