The Yakkan Shomei Import Certificate

The Yakkan Shomei Import Certificate is the import confirmation residents need when the prescription medication they carry into Japan exceeds the personal-use allowance or falls into a restricted category.¹² Without the certificate received before departure, over-limit or restricted medication risks delay or confiscation at customs.

Confirm current details with official sources

Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare site. This article is general information, not medical advice; for decisions about your own care, consult a licensed healthcare provider.

Overview

Japan controls personal-use medicine imports under its pharmaceutical and customs laws, with the 厚生労働省 (kousei roudou shou, "Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, MHLW") as the regulator.¹² Within the stated allowances, travelers carry medication with no certificate; above the allowances or inside restricted categories, they need Import Confirmation (輸入確認書 (yunyu kakunin-sho, "Import Confirmation")), the current official name for what search results still call the 薬監証明 (yakkan shoumei, "Medication Import Certificate, legacy name").¹²³

This article covers the resident path only. It walks through the quantity and category triggers, the document set, the Regional Bureau filing path and timeline, airport presentation, repeat supply for chronic conditions, and the cases no certificate can fix.¹²⁴ Thresholds are national; only the filing desk changes with the arrival airport, so confirm the desk with the bureau covering your landing point.¹²

Term	Reading	Gloss
薬監証明	yakkan shoumei	Medication Import Certificate, legacy name
輸入確認書	yunyu kakunin-sho	Import Confirmation, current official name
地方厚生局	chihou kousei kyoku	Regional Bureau of Health and Welfare, issuing office
麻薬取締部	mayaku torishimari bu	Narcotics Control Department, NCD

When a certificate is required

Personal-use imports within the allowances below need no Import Confirmation.¹ Anything above the allowance, plus restricted categories regardless of small quantity, needs the certificate or a separate Narcotics Control Department permission.¹⁴ Personal-use imports must not be sold or given to others.⁵

Over-limit supply with only a doctor letter still falls short

Customs looks for the issued certificate or permission received before departure, not just a prescription. Treat the doctor letter as one attachment inside the application rather than a substitute for it.¹²⁴

Over-limit prescription quantities

Poison, deadly poison, and prescription drugs travel without a certificate up to a 1-month supply.¹ Other drugs and quasi-drugs travel without one up to a 2-month supply.¹ Oral and external prescription medicines above a 1-month supply need the certificate obtained before departure.⁵

The table below gives the full no-certificate allowances. Confirm your drug sits inside its row before deciding to file.¹

Category	Allowance without certificate
Poison, deadly poison, prescription drugs	Up to 1-month supply1
Other drugs and quasi-drugs	Up to 2-month supply1
External-use drugs (non-poison, non-prescription)	Up to 24 pieces per item1
Cosmetics	Up to 24 pieces per item1
Household medical device	1 set1
Disposable contact lenses	Up to 2-month supply1

Psychotropics, injectables, and other restricted categories

Injectable drugs and their syringes travel without a certificate up to a 1-month supply, limited to pre-filled syringes or self-injection kits used under a doctor's direction.¹⁵ Injections above a 1-month supply need Import Confirmation.⁵

Psychotropics at or below the amounts in the Narcotics Control Department table (non-injection form) need neither a doctor certificate nor authority permission under the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law.⁴ Psychotropics above the table amount, or any psychotropic in injection form, need a doctor-written certificate stating disease, necessity, drug names, quantities, doses, strength, signature, and issue date.⁴ Where psychotropic imports exceed a 1-month supply, MHLW also directs applicants to contact yakkan@mhlw.go.jp.⁴

Prescribed narcotics and stimulant raw materials for a specific patient need advance permission from the Regional Bureau directors through the Narcotics Control Department before entering Japan.¹⁴ Lisdexamfetamine (Vyvanse, Elvanse, and equivalents) sits in this stimulant-raw-material class and can be imported with that advance permission.⁴

Cases no certificate can fix

Prohibited or controlled narcotics and stimulant raw materials cannot be brought in regardless of quantity statements elsewhere.¹ No individual traveler can import or export medicines containing heroin, opium powder, methamphetamine and amphetamine (including dexamfetamine and levamfetamine active ingredients), or methaqualone, even with a home-country prescription.⁴

Adderall cannot be brought into Japan because its active ingredient amphetamine is controlled as a stimulant under the Stimulants Control Act, even for treatment purposes.⁴ Products containing designated pharmaceutical ingredients advertised abroad for cerebral or mental effects cannot be imported unless use follows a doctor's prescription or instruction; self-carry for self-medication during the stay is the stated permissible path.¹

Check banned ingredients before you pack or apply

A certificate application cannot rescue a categorically banned active ingredient. Verify the exact ingredient against the controlled-substances list first, then decide between the standard certificate, the NCD permission, or a Japan-side substitute plan.⁴

Documents to prepare

Standard Import Confirmation applications run as import for personal use with an invoice section, a delivery ticket section, product explanation or brochure copies, and a doctor's prescription or direction.³⁵ The legacy paper path lists the Import Report of Medication with signature in 2 copies, the product explanation (or a manufacturer pamphlet showing the required fields), a prescription copy with doctor signature showing importer name plus each medicine name and quantity for own use, an arrival date and place document such as a ticket or itinerary copy, and a return envelope with postage where postal return is wanted.⁵

The online portal instead takes typed form fields plus file attachments (invoice, delivery ticket, product explanation, doctor prescription, and other files), with ZIP uploads allowed only without subfolders.³ The table below maps the set to gather before opening the form.³⁵

Item	Detail
Application form or Import Report	Online typed form; paper path used 2 signed copies35
Prescription or direction by doctor	Copy with doctor signature; names plus quantities for own use5
Product explanation	Form or manufacturer pamphlet with required fields5
Arrival date and place proof	Ticket or itinerary copy5
Delivery address	Email for electronic issuance; return envelope with postage on the paper path35

Narcotics and stimulant-raw-material applications need a different set: the import application form (plus an export form where leftover medicine will leave Japan with the traveler), a medical certificate issued within 3 months stating name, current address, specific reason for the medicine, medicine list with doses and strength, doctor signature, and issue date, and package photos or medicine documents showing name and strength as JPEG, PDF, or Word.⁴ Electronically signed forms must note that fact in the email, and guardian filings for minors use the medicine-taker's name with a margin note and guardian signature.⁴

Application procedure

Some personal-import procedures run online through the MHLW Application for Import Confirmation portal, which started operation on 2023-02-01 and runs at all hours.³ Online filing covers three categories: import for personal use, import for treatment by doctors, and import for trials and research; other purposes still apply by mail.³

The online flow is straightforward, as the diagram below shows.³ Create an account (or register with gBizID), log in, select the application category, enter the form, attach the required files, confirm, and submit.³ Past applications can be viewed, copied, and reapplied, and multiple applications can proceed in one application.³

After Regional Bureau review with no problems, the certificate is issued for download on the status page, and the electronic file goes to the account address plus any delivery address entered.³ Paper-path applicants submit by post or email; where complete, the pharmaceutical inspector issues the certificate and returns it by post (with return envelope) or email.⁵

Where to file by arrival region

Yunyu Kakunin-sho applications go to the Regional Bureau of Health and Welfare closest to the airport of arrival.²⁶ The Kanto-Shinetsu Regional Bureau covers Narita and Haneda arrivals (contact yakkan@mhlw.go.jp, tel +81-48-740-0800).² The Kinki Regional Bureau covers Chubu Centrair, Kansai International, and (per the MHLW page grouping) Fukuoka and Naha arrivals (contact kiyakuji@mhlw.go.jp, tel +81-6-6942-4096).¹²

The Okinawa Narcotics Control Office of the Kyushu Regional Bureau covers Naha Airport arrivals for drug, device, and cosmetic queries (contact okinawa-yakuji@mhlw.go.jp, tel +81-98-853-7100).² Narcotics and psychotropics permissions go to the Narcotics Control Department office covering the arrival airport area where entry and departure airports differ.⁴ Kanto-Shinetsu paper filings go to the Pharmaceutical Inspector in Saitama City or by email to yakkan@mhlw.go.jp; Kinki filings go to the Osaka address or kiyakuji@mhlw.go.jp.⁵

Timeline before travel

Embassy guidance advises applying for Yunyu Kakunin-sho at least 2 weeks before the travel date (as of 2026-05-18; confirm current timing with the Regional Bureau covering your arrival airport).² Consulate pages for Los Angeles and San Francisco repeat the same 2-week advice (as of 2026-04-16).⁶ The Narcotics Control Department track advises applying at least 14 days before travel (as of 2026-09-07).⁴

Programme material reports processing of up to 4 weeks and advises applying at least a month before departure (as of 2025-03).⁷ Published holiday closures can shift effective deadlines, as with a Golden Week notice setting an April 22 cutoff for late-April to early-May arrivals (as of 2026-09-07).⁴ The table below collects the milestones; start from the earliest one that fits your category.²⁴⁶⁷

Milestone	Guidance	As of
Standard Import Confirmation application	At least 2 weeks before travel2	2026-05-18
Consulate restatement	At least 2 weeks before travel6	2026-04-16
NCD narcotics and stimulant-raw-material application	At least 14 days before travel4	2026-09-07
Programme upper-bound datapoint	Up to 4 weeks processing; apply at least a month ahead7	2025-03

At the airport and after arrival

The certificate must be received before leaving home.¹² Medicines under Narcotics Control Department permission must be carried on the person; they cannot be mailed and cannot be entrusted to family or others.⁴

Carry and presentation on arrival

The Yunyu Kakunin-sho is declared or shown to the customs officer on arrival, on request; a copy is acceptable at customs.²⁵ Narcotics Control Department import and export certificates are shown to the customs officer on entry and exit.⁴ Travelers should also carry the prescription and a doctor letter stating each drug name and purpose, including for medicines that need no certificate.⁷

Renewal for ongoing supply

The certificate covers the specific import applied for; the portal supports viewing, copying, and reapplying past applications for the next shipment.³ Treat each follow-on shipment as a fresh application rather than an extension stamp on the old one.

Copy the last application instead of retyping it

The portal keeps past applications for viewing, copying, and reapplying. Duplicate the last filing, update quantities and travel dates, and reattach any changed prescription before submitting.³

Travelers who will leave Japan with leftover NCD-covered medicines submit an export application form alongside the import form, or state in the email that no export permission is required.⁴ Where a prescription runs out in Japan, programme guidance points to a Japan-side clinical path rather than an automatic certificate renewal.⁷

Good to know

Starting the application late compresses a fixed review window

Apply weeks before the flight, not after landing. Embassy pages advise at least 2 weeks (as of 2026-05-18), the NCD track advises at least 14 days with no Tokyo last-minute exceptions (as of 2026-09-07), and programme material reports up to 4 weeks (as of 2025-03).²⁴⁷ Holiday closures can pull the effective cutoff earlier, so build a buffer around national holidays.⁴

One bureau page does not prove a separate local rule

Thresholds are national; only the filing desk changes by arrival airport. MHLW sets the allowances nationally while Kanto-Shinetsu, Kinki, and Okinawa desks split intake by arrival airport.¹² Read one bureau address as routing, never as a different quantity rule.

A prescription alone does not replace the certificate

An over-limit supply with only a doctor letter is still short at customs. Above-allowance and restricted-category imports need the issued certificate or NCD permission received before departure, shown on request.¹²⁴ The prescription is one attachment inside that application, not a substitute for the decision itself.

Some home-country drugs need a Japan-side substitute plan

Banned active ingredients have no certificate path, so the plan must change before travel. Adderall-type amphetamines cannot be imported even for treatment, while Vyvanse-type lisdexamfetamine needs advance NCD permission, and psychotropic table amounts decide whether a doctor certificate or authority permission applies.⁴ Line up a Japan-licensed clinician early for any drug that cannot travel with you.

See also

• What to Bring to a Doctor's Visit
• Selecting a Local Clinic as Primary Care
• Booking a Doctor in Japan
• Controlled Substances and the Banned-Substance List
• OTC vs. Prescription Drugs in Japan

References

Footnotes

1. Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. "Information for those who are bringing medicines for personal use into Japan" (English). https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/kenkou_iryou/iyakuhin/kojinyunyu/topics/tp010401-1_00001.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²² ↩²³ ↩²⁴ ↩²⁵

2. Embassy of Japan in the United States. "Bringing Medications into Japan" (English). Updated 2026-05-18. https://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_en/bringing-medications-to-japan.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸

3. Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. "Application for Import Confirmation" (English portal guide). https://impconf.mhlw.go.jp/about_en.htm ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴

4. Narcotics Control Department, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. "Application Guidance" (English). https://www.ncd.mhlw.go.jp/en/application2.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²² ↩²³ ↩²⁴ ↩²⁵

5. Embassy of Japan in Australia (Kanto-Shinetsu Regional Bureau material). "Q&A for those who are bringing medicines into Japan" (English, April 2015 version with forms). https://www.au.emb-japan.go.jp/pdf/Yakkan_Shoumei_Forms.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵

6. Consulate-General of Japan in Los Angeles. "Bringing Medications" (English). Updated 2026-04-16. https://www.la.us.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_en/bringing_medications.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

7. JET Programme USA. "Yunyu Kakunin-sho Import of Medication Certification Guide" (English). Updated 2025-03. https://jetprogramusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/2025-Yunyu-Kakuninsho-Import-of-Medication-Certification-Guide.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶