国民健康保険 加入届こくみんけんこうほけん かにゅうとどけ(kokumin kenkō hoken kanyū-todoke)
National Health Insurance enrolment
If you are not covered by employer insurance, municipal health insurance enrolment may be needed. This guide helps you understand the form and prepare your documents.
When you need it
Within 14 days of your move-in date, if you will stay more than three months and are not covered by an employer's health insurance (社会保険). That covers most students, dependents, working-holiday makers, freelancers and anyone whose job starts later. Coverage is backdated to the move-in date, so enrolling late means paying premiums for months you could not use. Full-time employees are normally enrolled by their company instead — ask HR before you enrol here. Premiums are set by each municipality from last year's income in Japan (so usually the minimum in your first year) and you pay 30% of medical costs. Form layouts differ by municipality; the ministry page linked above explains the rule, your office explains its form.
Where to get it
The National Health Insurance counter (国保年金課 or 保険年金課 — names vary) of your ward or city office, usually a few windows along from resident registration; most offices send you there straight after the moving-in notification. The form is called 国民健康保険 資格取得届, 資格異動届 or simply 加入届 depending on the municipality, and it is on the counter. Some cities also accept enrolment by post or online, but newcomers from abroad normally do it in person.
What to bring
- Residence card with your new address printed on the back — do the moving-in notification first
- Passport
- Your My Number (個人番号) if you already have it — newcomers usually don't yet, and the office can leave it blank
- If you previously had employer insurance in Japan: the certificate that it ended (健康保険資格喪失証明書)
- If you enrol a family member and are not the household head: a power of attorney (委任状)
- A Japanese bank book or cash card if you want premiums collected by direct debit (optional)
Field by field
The usual boxes in the order they appear. Layouts vary by office and forms get revised, so treat this as a map, not a photocopy.
| On the form | Meaning | How to fill it in | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 届出日todokede-bi | Meaning:Date of notification | How to fill it in:Today's date. | Example:2026年4月10日 |
| 世帯主 氏名setainushi shimei | Meaning:Head of household's name | How to fill it in:The household head is the legal policyholder and receives the bills, even if they are not insured themselves. Living alone, write your own name. | Example:YUZU HANAKO |
| 世帯主 住所setainushi jūsho | Meaning:Household address | How to fill it in:Exactly as printed on the back of your residence card after the moving-in notification. | Example:東京都千代田区丸の内1-1-1 ユズマンション101号 |
| 電話番号denwa bangō | Meaning:Phone number | How to fill it in:A daytime contact number; the office calls if something on the form is unclear. | Example:03-1234-5678 |
| 加入する人の氏名（フリガナ）kanyū suru hito no shimei | Meaning:Name of each person enrolling | How to fill it in:One line per person, as printed on each residence card, with the katakana reading. Everyone in the household who needs NHI goes on the same form. | Example:YUZU HANAKO（ユズ ハナコ） |
| 世帯主との続柄setainushi to no tsuzukigara | Meaning:Relationship to the head of household | How to fill it in:本人 for yourself; 妻 / 夫 / 子 for family members. | Example:本人 |
| 生年月日seinengappi | Meaning:Date of birth | How to fill it in:Tick 西暦 (Western calendar) if the form offers a choice. | Example:2003年4月1日 |
| 性別seibetsu | Meaning:Sex | How to fill it in:Circle 男 or 女. | Example:女 |
| 個人番号kojin bangō | Meaning:My Number | How to fill it in:Leave blank if your My Number notice has not arrived yet — the office links it later. Never write a number from memory. | Example:空欄（マイナンバー通知が届いてから） |
| 職業shokugyō | Meaning:Occupation | How to fill it in:学生 (student), 会社員 (company employee), 自営業 (self-employed), 無職 (none) and so on. | Example:学生 |
| 資格取得日shikaku shutokubi | Meaning:Date coverage starts | How to fill it in:The date you became eligible — for newcomers the move-in date; after leaving employer insurance, the day after it ended. Not today's date. | Example:2026年4月8日 |
| 異動事由（取得事由）idō jiyū / shutoku jiyū | Meaning:Reason for enrolling | How to fill it in:Tick 転入 (moved in). Some forms have 外国人取得 (newly registered foreign resident) or 社保離脱 (left employer insurance) — pick the one that fits. | Example:☑ 転入（国外から） |
| 他の健康保険の加入状況hoka no kenkō hoken no kanyū jōkyō | Meaning:Other health insurance | How to fill it in:なし (none) for most newcomers. If you left a company plan, its name and the date it ended. | Example:なし |
| 勤務先等の名称・所在地kinmusaki-tō no meishō · shozaichi | Meaning:Employer or school | How to fill it in:Your school or employer if the form asks; many offices fill this in for you. | Example:ユズ日本語学校（東京都千代田区） |
| 届出人todokedenin | Meaning:Person filing | How to fill it in:Your name and relationship to the household head; someone outside the household needs a 委任状. | Example:YUZU HANAKO（本人） |
| 本人確認書類honnin kakunin shorui | Meaning:Identity document shown | How to fill it in:Staff tick what they checked — have your residence card ready. | Example:☑ 在留カード |
Completed example
Every value below is fictional — the “YUZU Hanako” persona at a made-up Chiyoda address with the fake number 03-1234-5678. Copy the format, never the values.
国民健康保険 加入届
- 届出日
- 2026年4月10日
- 世帯主 氏名
- YUZU HANAKO
- 世帯主 住所
- 東京都千代田区丸の内1-1-1 ユズマンション101号
- 電話番号
- 03-1234-5678
- 加入する人の氏名（フリガナ）
- YUZU HANAKO（ユズ ハナコ）
- 世帯主との続柄
- 本人
- 生年月日
- 2003年4月1日
- 性別
- 女
- 個人番号
- 空欄（マイナンバー通知が届いてから）
- 職業
- 学生
- 資格取得日
- 2026年4月8日
- 異動事由（取得事由）
- ☑ 転入（国外から）
- 他の健康保険の加入状況
- なし
- 勤務先等の名称・所在地
- ユズ日本語学校（東京都千代田区）
- 届出人
- YUZU HANAKO（本人）
- 本人確認書類
- ☑ 在留カード
Common mistakes
- Trying to enrol before the moving-in notification — the office needs your resident record first; do the two in that order on the same visit.
- Enrolling when your employer should cover you — full-time staff (and many part-timers on 20+ hours at larger companies) belong in employer insurance; ask HR before paying NHI premiums.
- Writing the notification date as the start date — coverage starts on the move-in date and premiums are charged from that month whatever day you file.
- Skipping it because you have travel insurance — enrolment is mandatory for stays over three months, unpaid premiums are chased, and payment status can be checked at visa renewals.
- Forgetting that the household head gets the bills — flatmates who are separate households are each their own 世帯主.
- Not asking about reductions — say you had no income in Japan last year and ask about 減免 (reduction) if money is tight.
Glossary
- 国民健康保険kokumin kenkō hoken
- National Health Insurance (NHI)
- 国保kokuho
- Everyday short form of National Health Insurance
- 被保険者hihokensha
- Insured person
- 資格取得日shikaku shutokubi
- Date coverage starts
- 資格確認書shikaku kakuninsho
- Eligibility certificate — the paper card issued when you have no My Number card
- 保険料hokenryō
- Premiums
- 世帯主setainushi
- Head of household (the policyholder)
- 社会保険shakai hoken
- Employer social insurance (health + pension)
- 減免genmen
- Premium reduction or exemption
- 高額療養費kōgaku ryōyōhi
- High-cost medical expense benefit (monthly cap)
Show this to the staff
Hand this to the counter staff. The Japanese says what you need and that you don't speak much Japanese; the translation below is for you.
すみません、日本語があまり話せません。国民健康保険に加入したいです。日本に来たばかりで、転入届は済んでいます。在留カードとパスポートを持っています。会社の健康保険には入っていません。保険料の金額と支払い方法も教えてください。できれば、やさしい日本語か英語でお願いします。
EN · Excuse me, I don't speak much Japanese. I would like to enrol in National Health Insurance. I have just arrived in Japan and I have already filed my moving-in notification. I have my residence card and passport. I am not covered by an employer's health insurance. Please also tell me how much the premiums are and how to pay. Simple Japanese or English would help.
TR · Affedersiniz, Japoncam pek iyi değil. Ulusal Sağlık Sigortası'na kaydolmak istiyorum. Japonya'ya yeni geldim, taşınma bildirimimi yaptım. İkamet kartım ve pasaportum yanımda. Bir işverenin sağlık sigortası kapsamında değilim. Primin ne kadar olduğunu ve nasıl ödeneceğini de açıklayabilir misiniz? Mümkünse basit Japonca ya da İngilizce konuşursanız sevinirim.
yuzu.help · /en/tools/paperwork/health-insurance-enrolment
Related guides
General guidance, not legal advice. Deadlines, accepted documents and form layouts differ by municipality and change over time — confirm with your ward office, school, employer or the Immigration Services Agency before relying on a detail here.