After-School Clubs (Gakudo) in Fukuoka for April 2027: Fees and Deadlines in 6 Cities

This article contains advertising (affiliate links).

Rules, fees and deadlines are set by each city and can change. Ask the city office or club you plan to use (contacts are listed under each city). Most application forms and city pages are in Japanese.

In Fukuoka Prefecture, an after-school club (gakudo, officially “houkago jido club”) cares for elementary school children after school and during school holidays. Many cities take applications for April entry at the start of the year, but applications for winter-vacation-only care close in October or November. For winter-vacation-only care, Itoshima City is the one still accepting applications, until Monday, November 30. Onojo City (October 25) and Kasuga City (October 31) have closed. In Fukuoka City, apply by the end of January to use a club from April, at the club in the school your child attends.

Note: Most clubs require proof that the parents work (employment certificate, shuro shomeisho), so ask your employer early. This page does not say whether the clubs offer support in English.

Read next7 pages, swipe sideways

1. Coming-of-Age Ceremonies in Fukuoka 2027: Dates and Venues in 13 Cities (Jan 10–11)Live
2. My Number Card Electronic Certificate Renewal in 7 Kyushu Cities: Weekend Counters and Reservations (2026)Live
3. Kitakyushu Ward Office Hours (2026): 8:30–17:00 on Weekdays, Until 19:00 on Thursdays, Closed Weekends and HolidaysLive
4. Passport Application and Collection in Fukuoka: Sunday Pick-up, Friday Until 19:00, Fees and DocumentsLive
5. Nursery Applications for April 2027 in 6 Kyushu Cities: Kurume Nov 30, Nagasaki Dec 10Live
6. Entrance Exams at 12 National and Public Universities in Kyushu (2027): First Stage Feb 25, Second Stage Mar 12, and ResultsLive
7. Fukuoka City Ward Office Hours: Weekdays 8:45–17:15, Weekend Counters and Year-End ClosureLive

1. Where to apply and monthly fees in 6 Fukuoka Prefecture cities

Tap a city name to jump to its section.

Itoshima’s “5 days before” is the rule for regular use in fiscal 2026. Monthly fees are for basic weekday use only.

2. Winter vacation only: deadlines are in October and November

Winter-only use is accepted in a set period, separate from year-round enrollment. Onojo City states clearly that after the deadline you cannot enter for the winter holidays.

• Onojo City: October 13 (Tue) to October 25 (Sun), 23:59 (closed). Notice of the decision is planned by post in early December.
• Kasuga City: October 5 (Mon) to October 31 (Sat) (closed). The winter fee is ¥6,000, with ¥1,000 for snacks.
• Itoshima City: November 2 (Mon) to November 30 (Mon). The enrollment period is December 25 to January 7, and the fee is ¥2,300 for Monday to Friday or ¥3,000 for Monday to Saturday (snacks: number of open days x ¥25).

Kasuga does not accept documents submitted before the application period. In Itoshima, children who already attend regularly, including during winter vacation, do not need to apply.

3. Fukuoka City: apply to the club at your school by the end of January for April

For Fukuoka City’s after-school clubs (formerly “rusu katei kodomo-kai”), apply by the end of January to start on April 1. For April 2026 entry, the rule was to submit documents to the club in your child’s elementary school by Saturday, January 31, 2026. To join mid-year, the deadline is the 20th of the month before the month you want to join. Children attending this year must apply again to use a club in the next school year.

You submit to each club, not to City Hall. Attach to the enrollment form documents that confirm the reason for enrollment, such as a family-situation sheet and an employment (planned) certificate, covering everyone aged 15 or over living in the household (excluding those aged 65 or over and junior and senior high school students). Enrollment applications cannot be submitted online; only changes of usage category, change notices and withdrawal notices can.

The basic fee, for after school until 5 p.m., is ¥3,000 a month. An extension to 6 p.m. adds ¥1,000, an extension to 7 p.m. adds ¥2,000, and Saturday use adds ¥2,000. You also pay each club a membership fee for snacks and other costs.

Households on public assistance pay no fee. Households receiving school-expense assistance (shugaku enjo) or a similar level of support, the second and later siblings, and households exempt from municipal tax have the basic ¥3,000 waived and extension and Saturday charges halved. The membership fee is not reduced. A reduction applies only if you fill in the reduction column on the enrollment form with documents; if you apply later, it applies from the month you applied.

Contact: Fukuoka City After-School Children’s Development Division, 092-711-4662. Pages (Japanese): About after-school clubs, Procedures, FAQ (PDF).

↑ Back to the comparison table

4. Kitakyushu City: apply directly to 1 of 129 clubs, ¥5,000 to ¥8,250 a month

In Kitakyushu City, each club recruits its own members, and fees run from ¥5,000 to ¥8,250 a month by club. There are 129 clubs in fiscal 2026, roughly one per elementary school district. Ask the club you want about fees, hours, extension care and when to apply. You can find clubs on the city’s child-care map.

The city subsidizes part of the fee for households on public assistance and for households exempt from municipal and prefectural tax: the full fee (up to ¥5,000 a month) for public assistance, and half (up to ¥2,500 a month) for tax-exempt households. This includes extension fees but not snacks or event fees. You apply each fiscal year, between July 1 and 31 and at the latest by March 10. Apply at the city’s Children and Youth Development Division or the ward office’s Health and Welfare Division, not at the club.

Contact: Children and Youth Development Division, After-School Section, 093-582-2473. Pages (Japanese): After-school clubs, Subsidy for parents’ fees.

↑ Back to the comparison table

5. Kurume City: bring your application to the club in the January period

For April enrollment in Kurume City, bring your application to the club (gakudo hoikusho) of your school district during the January application period. For April 2026, the period was January 5 (Mon) to 23 (Fri), 2026, excluding Sundays and holidays. Hours were 1 to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays, and applications by mail were not accepted. Guidance is published in December, and the city advises asking your employer early for the employment certificate, which can take time.

Grades 1 to 6 are eligible, but grades 4 to 6 are accepted only if there is room after grades 1 to 3 and children with disabilities have been placed. The parent must work at least 3 days a week from Monday to Saturday, at least 4 hours a day between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Monthly fees include snacks: ¥5,000 for Monday to Friday, ¥6,500 with extended care (weekdays until 7 p.m.), ¥6,500 for Monday to Saturday, and ¥8,000 for Monday to Saturday with extended care. Even without signing up for extended care, staying after 6 p.m. costs an extra ¥1,500. Households on public assistance pay ¥1,800 to ¥2,250 a month, and households certified for school-expense assistance pay ¥4,000 to ¥6,700; reductions require an application each fiscal year.

The operator is the Kurume Gakudo Hoiku general incorporated association. Contact: Child Policy Division, 0942-30-9227. Pages (Japanese): Gakudo hoikusho (Kurume City), Fiscal 2026 enrollment guide (PDF).

↑ Back to the comparison table

6. Itoshima City: winter-only use is open until November 30

Itoshima City accepts “temporary use” for the winter vacation only from Monday, November 2 to Monday, November 30. Attach an employment certificate or similar to the application and submit it to each club or to the Itoshima office of Ashita-ba Co., Ltd., the operator. The city’s Children Division does not accept it. Regular use in fiscal 2026 required an application up to 5 days before the start date (excluding Sundays, holidays and closed days).

Regular monthly fees are ¥4,500 for Monday to Friday (¥5,000 in July, ¥7,000 in August) and ¥5,800 for Monday to Saturday (¥6,300 in July, ¥8,300 in August). Extended care from 6 to 7 p.m. is ¥2,000 a month or ¥300 a day, and snacks are ¥500 a month (¥600 for Monday to Saturday). On weekdays the club runs from after school to 18:00; on Saturdays and school holidays it runs from 8:00 to 18:00, and children bring a lunch box and a water bottle.

You can search for kids’ water bottles on Rakuten Ichiba: Search for kids’ water bottles on Rakuten Ichiba (ad).

Households on public assistance, single-parent households, households receiving school-expense assistance, households exempt from municipal tax, and families with 2 or more children attending are eligible for fee reductions; a reduction application is needed separately from the enrollment application. For temporary use in spring vacation (March 24 to April 7), applications run from February 1 to February 27, 2027.

Contact: Ashita-ba Co., Ltd., Itoshima office, 092-332-0580 (enrollment applications); Children Division, 092-332-2074 (about the program). Page (Japanese): Fiscal 2026 enrollment applications (Itoshima City).

↑ Back to the comparison table

7. Kasuga City: the winter seasonal enrollment closed on October 31

Kasuga City’s winter-only “seasonal enrollment” accepted applications from October 5 (Mon) to October 31 (Sat) and is now closed. Year-round enrollment is accepted all year: submit the application form and other documents to the secretariat or the club at least 2 weeks before the start date. For a start on April 1, a separate application period is set. You can also apply by mail or electronically through Mynaportal (Pittari Service).

The year-round fee is ¥6,000 a month (¥3,600 for the second child onward), snacks ¥1,700 a month and insurance ¥800 a year. Extended care is ¥2,000 a month (¥1,200 for the second child onward), or ¥200 for a single use. On weekdays the club runs from after school to 5 p.m. (extended care until 7 p.m.), and children go home as a group at 5 p.m. The operator is TENO. Corporation Co., Ltd., and the city says there are no children on waiting lists.

Contact: After-School Club Secretariat, 092-558-7626. Page (Japanese): After-school clubs (Kasuga City).

↑ Back to the comparison table

8. Onojo City: apply to the Randoseru Club by web form

Onojo City’s after-school program is the “Randoseru Club”. Winter vacation applications closed on October 25 (Sun) at 23:59. “G registration”, which requires documents such as an employment certificate, costs ¥4,680 a month on weekdays, ¥3,820 a month for extended care (snacks included) and ¥2,000 a month for Saturdays. Enrollment and re-enrollment for G registration are also by web form, and the employment certificate can be sent as a smartphone photo or Excel data.

“R registration”, open to any elementary school child, covers 3 weekdays a week on school days from June to February for ¥1,500 a month. Fees may be reduced on application for single-parent households, households exempt from municipal tax, households receiving school-expense assistance and households on public assistance. If the web form is difficult, you can submit a paper form to City Hall or a regional administrative center.

Page (Japanese): Randoseru Club applications and procedures (Onojo City).

↑ Back to the comparison table

9. What to do, in order

For winter-only care, apply in Itoshima by November 30 (Onojo and Kasuga closed in October). For year-round care from April, ask your employer for the employment certificate in December, aiming at the end of January in Fukuoka City or the January period in Kurume City. In Kitakyushu City, start by phoning the club you want to ask about fees and application timing.

For a younger sibling’s nursery school application for April, see our Japanese guides Fukuoka City nursery school applications (Japanese) and Nursery schools near Fukuoka for April 2027 (Japanese).

Official information checked on October 18, 2026 (Japan time). Fees and hours can change.

Sources

11 pages we checkedShow

• About after-school clubs
• Procedures
• FAQ (PDF)
• After-school clubs
• Subsidy for parents’ fees
• Gakudo hoikusho (Kurume City)
• Fiscal 2026 enrollment guide (PDF)
• Fiscal 2026 enrollment applications (Itoshima City)
• After-school clubs (Kasuga City)
• Randoseru Club applications and procedures (Onojo City)
• Japanese version of this page (日本語版)

Checked with official pages on October 18, 2026 (Japan time).