National Health Insurance

National Health Insurance eligibility is held at the prefecture level. Moving to a different prefecture means filing a loss of eligibility at your old address and acquiring it again at the new one. Moving to another municipality within the same prefecture keeps your eligibility, so only an address change is filed. Either way the deadline is 14 days, and none of it applies if you are on your employer's health insurance.

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Documents needed

✓Qualification Confirmation Card or National Health Insurance card (if you have a valid one)

✓Residence Card

✓ID document

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Steps

Moving to a different prefecture: when you file your move-out notification, also file the loss of National Health Insurance eligibility at your current municipal office and hand back your qualification certificate (NHI Enforcement Regulations, art. 12)

File the acquisition of National Health Insurance eligibility together with your move-in notification at the new municipal office (art. 2). For a move within the same prefecture your eligibility carries over, so you only file the address change and return the qualification certificate (art. 11)

Receive your new Qualification Confirmation Card or eligibility notice (may be mailed to you)

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Important notes

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People insured under an employer's health insurance, and their dependants, are excluded from National Health Insurance (NHI Act, art. 6)

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All of these filings are due within 14 days. If you file late, you may have to pay the full cost of any treatment received in the meantime and claim it back later

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Premiums are calculated differently by each municipality, so the amount can change even when you stay within the same prefecture

🔗 Related procedures

Official info verified: 2026-09-10 / Source: laws.e-gov.go.jp ↗

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