After Childbirth
Update date: November 1, 2024
If you and your spouse have a child in Japan, please be sure to follow the procedures outlined below.
Registration
Birth Notification
When your baby is born, you will need to register the birth at your local ward office within fourteen days. After you submit the birth notification to the municipal/ward office, a certificate of residence will be issued to you.
Necessary Documents:
- Birth Certificate (Your doctor will fill out the certificate)
- Your “Maternal and Child Health Handbook”
Enrollment in National Health Insurance
Enrollment can be completed when submitting a birth notification at your municipal/ward office.
Necessary Documents:
- Your “Maternal and Child Health Handbook”
- Health Insurance Card
Status of Residence
If your newborn baby will stay in Japan for more than sixty days, you must apply for a residency permit at your local Immigration Bureau within thirty days of the birth.
If you fail to apply for a residency permit by the deadline, the certificate of residence for a newborn baby will be terminated.
Necessary Documents:
- Infant’s passport (or a document explaining the reason for not having a passport)
- Application for Certificate of Eligibility
- Certificate of acceptance of the birth registration issued from your local municipal/ward office.
- Residence Cards of both parents
- Passports of both parents
- A photocopy of the Certificate of Residence or Certificate of Items Stated in the Resident Register. If you submit a Certificate of Residence or Certificate of Items Stated in the Resident Register, you do not need to notify the municipal/ward office of your address.
Passport
Please ask the embassy/consulate of your home country for details.
Assistance Programs
Lump-Sum Birth Allowance
In the event of childbirth, a lump-sum birth and childcare allowance is available.
Child Medical Care Subsidies Program
Reductions on medical expenses for children until they graduate from junior high school are available.
*There are income restrictions
*Children in junior high school are only eligible for hospitalization and home visit care.
Child Care Support
Childcare support is available for children until they graduate from junior high school.
*Income restrictions apply.
For details on further available assistance please, contact your local municipal/ward office.