Family & Children
Childbirth Lump-Sum Payment出産育児一時金·shussan ikuji ichijikinA large one-off payment toward the cost of giving birth, paid by your health insurance. Usually sent straight to the hospital.
Not verified yet
Drafted from general knowledge. Amounts, thresholds and deadlines change and vary by insurer and municipality — confirm with the office named here before you rely on it.
Why it matters
Childbirth is not treated as illness, so ordinary insurance cover does not apply and the hospital bill is real. This grant exists to meet most of it, and it is paid on your health insurance regardless of nationality. Most hospitals will bill your insurer directly so you only pay the difference — but only if you arrange it in advance. Arrange nothing and you pay the full amount up front and claim it back later, which is a large sum to find at exactly the wrong moment.
- Deadline
- Claimable for about 2 years after the birth
- Cost
- Free
- Time
- Arranged across the pregnancy, not one visit
Do these first
What to bring
- Health insurance card健康保険証·kenkō hokenshō
- Maternal and child health handbook母子健康手帳·boshi kenkō techō
Issued free by city hall when you report the pregnancy — and it comes with vouchers for prenatal checkups. Get it early.
- Direct payment agreement直接支払制度の合意文書·chokusetsu shiharai seido no gōi bunsho
Signed at the hospital, usually in the third trimester.
How it goes
- 1
Report the pregnancy to city hall and collect the handbook
The 母子健康手帳 is free, and comes with a booklet of subsidy vouchers for prenatal checkups — checkups are not covered by ordinary insurance, so these are worth real money. You also get onto the municipal radar for the rest of the support that follows.
Say this
妊娠届を出して母子健康手帳をいただきたいのですが。
Ninshin todoke o dashite boshi kenkō techō o itadakitai no desu ga.
I'd like to report a pregnancy and receive the handbook.
- 2
Arrange direct payment with the hospital — this is the key step
Ask the hospital to use the direct payment system (直接支払制度), where your insurer pays them and you settle only the remainder. Do it during pregnancy, not on the day. Without it you pay everything up front and reclaim afterwards.
Say this
直接支払制度は使えますか。
Chokusetsu shiharai seido wa tsukaemasu ka.
Can I use the direct payment system?
- 3
If the bill comes in under the grant, claim the difference
The grant is a fixed amount, not a reimbursement of what you spent. If the birth cost less, you can claim the balance from your insurer. People assume it just disappears — it does not.
- 4
Then do the three registrations, in order
After the birth: register it at city hall within 14 days, add the child to your health insurance, and apply for child allowance. Each is separate and each has its own desk. See the birth registration entry.