This page is general information from official sources. It is not legal advice. Questions about your status of residence go to the Immigration Services Agency. For each procedure, ask the city office named in each section.
You have just moved to Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi, Ube, Shunan or Iwakuni with your children. Four procedures at the city office have deadlines in your first two weeks or so: the move-in notification, National Health Insurance, the child allowance and your child’s medical expense certificate. This guide shows the deadlines, what to bring, and which counters open in the evening or on a Sunday.
In short
- File your move-in notification (転入届, tennyu todoke) within 14 days of starting to live at your new address. You cannot file it before you move in.
- Foreign residents bring the residence card of everyone who moved.
- Apply for the child allowance within 15 days. If you are late, you lose the allowance for the months you missed.
- Only Shimonoseki (some Sundays), Ube (Thursdays) and Iwakuni (some Thursdays) take move-in notifications outside weekday office hours.
- Iwakuni City will shorten its counter hours to 9:00–16:30 from December 1, 2026.
Checked with official pages on October 5, 2026.
1. What do I need to do, and by when?
| Procedure | Deadline | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Move-in notification | Within 14 days of moving in | Everyone |
| National Health Insurance | Within 14 days | People not on a workplace health insurance plan |
| Child allowance | Within 15 days, from the day after your planned move-out date | Parents of children up to high school age |
| Child medical expense certificate | Each city has its own rule (section 6) | Parents of children |
If you or your spouse is on a company or government health insurance plan, your family members on that plan do not join National Health Insurance.
2. What do I bring for the move-in notification?
Each city
- The moving-out certificate (転出証明書, tenshutsu shomeisho) from your previous city. If you moved out using your My Number Card or the Mynaportal site, bring your My Number Card instead.
- ID for the person filing, such as a residence card, My Number Card or driver’s license.
- Foreign residents: the residence card (在留カード, zairyu kado) of everyone who moved.
- The My Number Card of each family member who has one. Each person enters the card’s 4-digit PIN to keep using the card at the new address.
- For children in public elementary or junior high school: the enrollment certificate (在学証明書) from the old school (Shimonoseki City lists this; ask your city).
Moving from outside Japan: Shimonoseki City accepts a passport that says a residence card will be issued later, for people who just arrived and have no card yet. Ube City asks foreign nationals for an official document showing each person’s relationship to the head of household, with a Japanese translation. Ask your city before you go, because the documents depend on your case.
Someone else can file for you with a letter of authorization (委任状, ininjo). Ube City says it does not accept move-in notifications by post.
3. Where and when can I file the move-in notification?
Weekday counters are open during office hours. Only Shimonoseki, Ube and Iwakuni take move-in notifications in the evening or on a weekend, and only at the main city office. Cases that need checking with another city may not be accepted then.
| City | Evening or weekend | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Shimonoseki | 2nd and 4th Sunday, 13:00–17:00 | 083-231-1304 |
| Yamaguchi | None for moves | 083-934-2771 |
| Ube | Every Thursday until 19:00 | 0836-34-8238 |
| Shunan | None for moves | 0834-22-8292 |
| Iwakuni | 1st and 3rd Thursday until 19:00 | 0827-29-5039 |
- Shimonoseki City: file at the Citizen Services Division (市民サービス課) in the main office, at a general branch office or at a branch office. Weekday counters take applications 9:00–16:30. The Sunday counter is on the 1st floor of the main office’s west building. Coming dates: October 11 and 25, and November 8 and 29, 2026 (not November 22). Staff fill in the forms by asking you questions, and you only sign (書かない窓口, “no-writing counter”).
- Yamaguchi City: weekdays 8:30–17:15. If you have a residence card, file at the General Counter Division (総合窓口課) in the main office or at a general branch office, not at a community center. The Thursday evening counter only issues certificates.
- Ube City: the Citizen Division (市民課) and the citizen centers take notifications 9:00–16:30. The Citizen Division in the main office stays open until 19:00 every Thursday. It also handles procedures for foreign residents.
- Shunan City: file at the Citizen Division (市民課) in the main office or at a branch office, weekdays 8:30–17:15. The after-hours counter only takes family register notices such as births and marriages, not moves or health insurance.
- Iwakuni City: file at the main office, a general branch office, a branch office or a sub-branch office. The Thursday evening counter (17:15–19:00) is at the Citizen Division (市民課) in the main office. If that Thursday is a holiday, it moves to the next week’s Thursday. If you moved out with your My Number Card, file at the main office, a general branch office or the Kuga branch office. From December 1, 2026, counters at the main office, branch offices and health centers will take visitors 9:00–16:30 instead of 8:30–17:15. Phone hours do not change.
4. How do I join National Health Insurance?
Each city
National Health Insurance (国民健康保険, kokumin kenko hoken) is for people who are not on a workplace plan. Iwakuni City says foreign residents staying more than 3 months must join. Some people staying 3 months or less, with certain statuses such as Dependent, can also join. People with a Temporary Visitor status cannot.
- When: within 14 days of moving in (Shimonoseki, Shunan and Iwakuni say so).
- If you are late: Shimonoseki City and Yamaguchi City say you pay premiums back to the month you became eligible, and you pay the full cost of medical care until you join.
- What to bring: ID, and the My Number of the head of household and each person joining. Ube City and Iwakuni City ask foreign nationals for a residence card. If your status is Designated Activities (特定活動), also bring the designation paper (指定書).
- Where: the health insurance division (保険年金課, hoken nenkin ka) at the main office, and branch offices in each city. In Ube, file the move-in notification first, then go to the health insurance division (0836-34-8285).
Shimonoseki City posts your insurance documents about a week after you join.
5. How do I apply for the child allowance?
Official rule (Japan)
The child allowance (児童手当, jido teate) is paid to parents raising children from birth to the March 31 after the child turns 18. The monthly amount is ¥15,000 for each child under 3 and ¥10,000 from age 3 to high school age. From the third child, it is ¥30,000. The Children and Families Agency explains the rules.
Apply to your new city within 15 days from the day after your planned move-out date. The allowance usually starts from the month after you apply. Within 15 days, it starts from the month you applied, even if that is the next month. If you are late, you do not get the months you missed. Public servants apply at their workplace, not at the city.
Bring the application form (認定請求書), ID, your and your spouse’s My Number, and bank account details in your own name. If your child lives at a different address, you also need a separate form. Ways to apply:
- Shimonoseki City: at the Child and Family Support Division (こども家庭支援課) in the main office’s east building, at branch offices, or by post. Some applications can be made online on Mynaportal.
- Yamaguchi City: at the Children’s Future Division (こども未来課), at general branch offices and some community centers, or by post. If the city cannot check your income, you may need an income certificate.
- Ube City: the city recommends Mynaportal (ぴったりサービス, with a My Number Card). You can also apply by post.
- Shunan City: at the Child Benefits Division (子育て給付課) or online on Mynaportal with a My Number Card (0834-22-8460).
- Iwakuni City: Iwakuni City asks you to apply first, even if you do not have every document yet. Children’s and Families Division (こども家庭課): 0827-29-5075.
6. When do I apply for the child medical expense certificate?
The city’s medical expense certificate (福祉医療費受給者証) lets your child see a doctor in Yamaguchi Prefecture with little or no payment for insured care. Apply soon after moving in. If you apply late, help usually starts only from the month you apply.
- Shimonoseki City: for preschool children, apply in the month you moved in to be covered from the move-in date.
- Yamaguchi City: apply within 14 days, or by the end of the month you moved in.
- Ube City: apply in the month you moved in.
- Shunan City: apply within 14 days of moving in.
- Iwakuni City: the certificate is valid from the first day of the month you apply.
If the city cannot check the parents’ income, for example after a move, you may need an income certificate or the parents’ My Number Cards. For ages covered and costs in all 13 cities, see Child Medical Expense Support in Yamaguchi’s 13 Cities.
In Yamaguchi City, if you are pregnant or have a baby or young child, take your Maternal and Child Health Handbook (母子健康手帳) to the Children and Family Center or a health center. You get the forms for check-ups and vaccinations there.
7. Common questions
Can I file the move-in notification before I move?
No. Yamaguchi City and Iwakuni City say you file after you start living at the new address. The 14 days count from that day.
I cannot go on a weekday. What can I do?
Use the Sunday counter in Shimonoseki, or the Thursday evening counters in Ube and Iwakuni. Someone else can also file for you with a letter of authorization. Ube City and Shunan City explain this on their pages.
I moved out on Mynaportal. Do I need a moving-out certificate?
No. Bring your My Number Card instead, and enter its PIN. In Iwakuni, file at the main office, a general branch office or the Kuga branch office.
Can staff help me fill in the forms?
Shimonoseki City and Yamaguchi City have a “no-writing counter” at the main office, where staff fill in the forms by asking you. Iwakuni City’s main office lets you make the form in advance on a smartphone (ゆびナビぷらす). Shunan City has the move-in form on its website (Excel or PDF). Fill it in at home, print it and bring it. The pages do not say whether these counters can help in English.
Next steps
- Know where to go if your child is sick at night: Child Sick at Night in Yamaguchi.
- Getting rid of large furniture after the move: Bulky Waste in 5 Yamaguchi Cities.
Sources (checked October 2026)
- Children and Families Agency: Child allowance
- Shimonoseki City: Changing your address, Sunday counter and November 2026 dates
- Shimonoseki City: Joining National Health Insurance, child allowance and preschool medical expenses
- Yamaguchi City: Move-in notification, with a My Number Card, no-writing counter and Thursday evening counter
- Yamaguchi City: National Health Insurance, child allowance, preschool and school-age medical expenses, for pregnant people and families who moved in
- Ube City: Move-in notification, if you cannot come on a weekday and general counter
- Ube City: Joining National Health Insurance, child allowance, preschool and school-age medical expenses
- Shunan City: Address notifications, moving into Shunan and after-hours counter
- Shunan City: Joining National Health Insurance, child allowance and child medical expenses
- Iwakuni City: Move-in notification, Thursday evening counter, new counter hours and My Number Card counters
- Iwakuni City: Joining National Health Insurance, when to notify, child allowance, preschool and school-age medical expenses
