This page is general information from official city pages. It is not legal, financial or medical advice. Whether a visit or a receipt is covered depends on your case; ask the office of the city where you live.
In Japan, health insurance usually leaves you to pay part of the bill at a clinic or hospital. For children, your city pays that part for you if you have the city’s medical certificate for your child. This page explains how it works in six cities in Ehime Prefecture: Matsuyama, Imabari, Niihama, Saijo, Shikokuchuo and Uwajima. It covers who is eligible, how to get the certificate, when you still have to pay, and how to get the money back.
In short
- In all six cities, children are covered from birth until March 31 after they turn 18, if they are registered as residents in the city and have Japanese health insurance (section 1).
- You must apply for the child’s certificate (受給資格証) at the city office after a birth or after you move in. Without it, the subsidy is not applied at the counter (section 2).
- Inside Ehime, show the certificate with the child’s insurance information and you pay nothing for insured care. Outside Ehime, you pay first and claim it back from your city (section 4).
- Deadlines to claim money back differ: six months in Saijo City, two years in Matsuyama, Imabari and Uwajima (section 4).
Checked with official pages on October 5, 2026.
| City | You pay first and claim later | Deadline to claim | Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matsuyama | Outside Ehime | 2 years from the month after you paid | Child-Rearing Support Division |
| Imabari | Outside Ehime; night and holiday outpatient visits from elementary school age (not dental) | 2 years from the date of care | Insurance and Pension Division |
| Niihama | Outside Ehime | Not stated on the page; paid around the 10th of the next month | Children’s Future Division |
| Saijo | Outside Ehime | 6 months from the month after the care | National Health Insurance and Medical Division |
| Shikokuchuo | Outside Ehime | Not stated on the page; claim in person or by post | National Health Insurance and Medical Division |
| Uwajima | Outside Ehime | 2 years from the 1st of the month after the visit | Children and Families Division |
This page covers six cities only. If you live in another city or town in Ehime, ask its office about the rules.
1. Is my child covered?
Six Ehime cities
In all six cities, a child is covered from birth until the first March 31 after their 18th birthday, roughly the end of the Japanese school year in which they turn 18. The conditions on the city pages are a resident registration (住民登録, jumin toroku) in the city and membership in a Japanese health insurance plan. The pages do not mention nationality. If your family has a residence card and is registered at the city office, check the conditions below with your city.
Niihama City and Shikokuchuo City say young people up to that age are covered even if they work or are married. A few cities have extra rules about where the parent and child live:
- Niihama: both the parent and the child must be registered in Niihama. A child who lives in Niihama alone is not covered. A child who moved out of the city to go to school may be covered if you apply.
- Shikokuchuo: if the parent lives in the city, a child who moved away to study or for medical treatment is also covered.
- Imabari, Saijo and Uwajima: if the parent and child are registered in different cities and the child gets no similar help anywhere else, ask the office. Saijo and Uwajima say you may be able to get the subsidy from them.
Children who receive the single-parent family medical subsidy (ひとり親家庭医療) or the severe disability medical subsidy (重度心身障害者医療) usually use those certificates instead. The details differ by city and by age, so ask your city if both apply to you.
2. How do I get the certificate?
Six Ehime cities
After your child is born, or after you move into the city, apply for the child medical certificate (子ども医療費受給資格証, kodomo iryohi jukyu shikakusho). The subsidy only works at the counter once you have the certificate. Matsuyama says the child’s health insurance must be set up first, for example through your employer.
- Get the child’s health insurance information. Bring a paper that shows it, such as an Eligibility Certificate (資格確認書) or a Notice of Qualification Information (資格情報のお知らせ). Matsuyama notes that a child’s My Number Card alone does not show insurance information.
- Go to the right office. The office name and place for each city is in section 4. Matsuyama also accepts applications by post and online. Imabari lets you download the form and apply by post.
- Bring the other items your city asks for. For example, Matsuyama asks for photo ID of the person who comes to the counter. Saijo asks for the parent’s seal (印鑑, inkan; not a self-inking stamp) and documents that show the My Number of the parent and child.
- Receive the certificate. Matsuyama’s certificate is light purple. In Shikokuchuo, the next certificate is mailed to you automatically at age 3 and before the end of the school year in which the child turns 6.
Matsuyama says that if you do not bring the insurance paper, the city can check it through the My Number system, but that takes time. Imabari says the same for families who use only the My Number health insurance card (マイナ保険証).
3. What does the subsidy not pay for?
Six Ehime cities
The subsidy pays your share of insured care, for hospital stays and outpatient visits. Costs that health insurance does not cover are not paid. Matsuyama, Niihama, Saijo, Shikokuchuo and Uwajima list meals during a hospital stay as not covered, and most of them also list items such as a private-room charge, vaccinations and medical certificates. Niihama says the special fee for going to a large hospital without a referral letter (選定療養費, sentei ryoyohi) is not covered either.
Niihama also warns that if you go to a night or holiday emergency department when it is not urgent, the hospital may charge an after-hours special fee, and the subsidy does not pay it.
Note
If your child is hurt at nursery school, kindergarten or school, including on the way to or from school and in club activities, do not show the certificate. The school accident insurance of the Japan Sport Council (日本スポーツ振興センター) comes first. Pay your share, then apply through the school. If that insurance does not pay, Matsuyama, Imabari, Saijo and Uwajima say you can claim the money from the city.
4. City by city: offices, exceptions and refunds
Inside Ehime, show the certificate with the child’s insurance information at the clinic or pharmacy, and you pay nothing for insured care. Outside Ehime, the certificate cannot be used in any of the six cities. Pay your share, keep the receipt, and claim it back from your city.
4.1 Matsuyama City
Matsuyama City
Apply for the certificate at the Child-Rearing Support Division (子育て支援課) on the 2nd floor of the City Hall Annex, the Citizens Division (市民課) on the 1st floor of the Main Building, or a branch office. You can also apply by post or online.
To claim money back, apply at the same offices or online. The city pays into your bank account at the end of the month after you apply. You must apply within two years from the month after you paid; for example, for a visit on October 8, 2024, the deadline is October 31, 2026. Bring the claim form, the receipt, a personal seal (not a self-inking stamp), the certificate, the child’s insurance information and your bank details. For an online consultation, a convenience store payment receipt or a credit card slip is not accepted; you need the receipt issued by the medical institution.
Since December 2, 2024, Matsuyama has used the Public Medical Hub (PMH). At clinics and pharmacies that support it, the child’s My Number Card can be used in place of the paper certificate. On the card reader, choose to use the medical subsidy certificate (「利用する」). The city asks you to carry the paper certificate as well, because this is still a pilot.
Child-Rearing Support Division, medical subsidies: City Hall Annex 2F, 4-7-2 Nibancho, Matsuyama City. Phone: 089-948-6888.
4.2 Imabari City
Imabari City
For children before elementary school, the certificate works inside Ehime at any time of day. From elementary school age, the certificate cannot be used for outpatient visits at night or on holidays, except dental care. Pay your share with the child’s insurance information, then apply to the city. The money arrives in your account about two months later, or around four months if your share was over ¥21,000. Hospital stays and dental care at night or on holidays are covered at the counter.
Apply for the certificate, and claim refunds, at the Insurance and Pension Division (保険年金課), Medical Benefits Section, counter 21 on the 1st floor of the Main Building, or at the residents’ services section of a branch office. Claim within two years from the date of care. For night and holiday visits of elementary, junior high and high school age children, you can also apply online through the city’s online application service. For an online claim, the city needs the Eligibility Certificate or the Notice of Qualification Information; the My Number health insurance card alone is not enough.
Insurance and Pension Division: Imabari City Hall Main Building 1F, 1-4-1 Betsumiya-cho, Imabari City. Phone: 0898-36-1520.
4.3 Niihama City
Niihama City
Get the certificate at the Children’s Future Division (こども未来課), counter 16 on the 1st floor of City Hall. For care outside Ehime, bring the receipt (or the city’s claim form stamped by the hospital), the certificate, the child’s insurance information, and a bankbook in the parent’s name. Claims received by each month’s cut-off date are paid around the 10th of the next month. You do not need the bankbook if the money goes to the account you use for the child allowance (児童手当).
Children’s Future Division: 1-5-1 Ichinomiya-cho, Niihama City. Phone: 0897-65-1242.
4.4 Saijo City
Saijo City
Saijo has widened where the certificate can be used at night and on holidays. From visits on April 1, 2026, children of elementary school age and older can use it at the Saijo City Holiday and Night Emergency Center (西条市休日夜間急患センター). From visits on October 1, 2026, they can also use it outside normal hours at medical institutions in Saijo City. If you paid at the counter for visits before those dates, you can claim the money back.
You also claim money back if you were treated outside Ehime, did not show the certificate in Ehime, or were asked to pay at another town’s emergency center. The deadline is six months from the month after the month of care, not from when you paid. Bring the receipt from the hospital, the certificate, a bankbook in the parent’s name and the child’s insurance information.
National Health Insurance and Medical Division (国保医療課), welfare medical subsidies: Saijo City Hall New Building 1F, 164 Akeyashiki, Saijo City. Phone: 0897-52-1367.
4.5 Shikokuchuo City
Shikokuchuo City
The certificate color changes with age. The next one is mailed to you automatically, so you do not need to apply again. At medical institutions that support online checks for medical subsidies, the My Number health insurance card alone is enough; you do not need to show the certificate.
For care outside Ehime, claim the money back at the National Health Insurance and Medical Division (国保医療課), the Citizens’ Service Center or a branch service center, or by post. Bring the original receipt that shows the insurance points, your bank details and the certificate. The page does not give a deadline; ask the division.
National Health Insurance and Medical Division, welfare medical section: 4-6-55 Mishima Miyagawa, Shikokuchuo City. Phone: 0896-28-6017.
4.6 Uwajima City
Uwajima City
Apply at the Children and Families Division (こども家庭課), counter 24 on the 1st floor of City Hall, or at the Yoshida, Mima or Tsushima branch office. For care outside Ehime, bring one month of receipts together, your bank details, the child’s insurance information and the certificate. The deadline is two years from the 1st of the month after the visit.
For glasses or braces made on a doctor’s instructions, first claim from your health insurance. After it decides to pay, claim the remaining 20 to 30 percent from the city. Glasses for treatment are covered for children under 9 with a diagnosis such as strabismus or amblyopia, up to a limit.
Children and Families Division, child-rearing benefits: Phone 0895-24-1111 (extension 2140).
5. My child is sick at night. Who can I call?
Ehime Prefecture
The city pages point to two Ehime Prefecture phone lines. #8000 is the children’s medical advice line, for children roughly under 15, on weekdays from 18:00, Saturdays from 13:00, and Sundays and holidays from 8:00, each time until 8:00 the next morning. From a dial phone or IP phone, call 089-913-2777. #7119 is the Ehime emergency advice line, for when you are not sure whether to call an ambulance. It is open 24 hours a day; from a dial phone or IP phone, call 089-909-9935. The city pages do not say which languages these lines use.
Common questions
My child is 18, has left high school and works. Are they still covered?
Niihama City and Shikokuchuo City say yes, until the first March 31 after the 18th birthday, even if the young person works or is married. In the other cities, the conditions are age, resident registration and health insurance; ask your city to confirm.
Are hospital meals covered?
No. Matsuyama, Niihama, Saijo, Shikokuchuo and Uwajima say meals during a hospital stay are not covered. If you live in Imabari, ask the Insurance and Pension Division.
Can I use the certificate on a trip to Tokyo or back home in another prefecture?
No. In all six cities, the certificate only works at medical institutions in Ehime. Pay your share, keep the hospital receipt, and claim the money back from your city before the deadline.
What if I paid the full cost because I did not have the insurance information with me?
Saijo City and Niihama City say to first claim from your health insurance, then claim the remaining share from the city. Matsuyama says the documents depend on the case, so ask before you apply.
What do I do when we move out of the city?
Niihama, Shikokuchuo and Uwajima ask you to report it to the office, and Niihama asks you to return the certificate. Matsuyama says coverage ends on the day before the child moves out. Apply in your new city.
Sources (checked October 2026)
- Matsuyama City: Child medical expense subsidy (updated February 27, 2026) and Using the My Number Card as a medical subsidy certificate (PMH)
- Imabari City (Imakoso Imabari): Child medical expense subsidy
- Niihama City: Child medical expense subsidy (updated April 3, 2026)
- Saijo City: Medical expense subsidy for children (updated September 14, 2026)
- Shikokuchuo City: Child medical expense subsidy (updated April 1, 2026)
- Uwajima City: Child medical expense subsidy
