Medicine in Japan 2026: What You Cannot Bring, and the New Rules

Last updated: October 2026 (covers the May 2026 rule change)

Knowing this, you avoid being stopped at the airport with medicine from home, and you stop doubling the dose of Japanese medicine because it feels weak.

Over-the-counter medicine (shihan-yaku) is medicine you can choose and buy yourself without a prescription. Medicine a doctor prescribes is called shohou-yaku. This guide covers both what you can bring with you and what you can buy once you are here, because in Japan those two questions are connected.

First: what you brought may not be allowed in

You pack a box of the cold medicine you always take at home. Where you come from, it may sit on every pharmacy shelf. In Japan, one of its ingredients may be controlled, and a prescription alone is not enough to bring it in.

Some ingredients sold openly in other countries cannot be brought into Japan without permission. The one that catches people most often is pseudoephedrine, found in ordinary cold and sinus medicine.

If the medicine is for your own treatment, you can bring it in with advance permission from the Director-General of a Regional Bureau of Health and Welfare. Apply at least two weeks before you arrive in Japan. You need a doctor’s certificate in Japanese or English. The person named on the permit must carry the medicine in person, and it cannot be posted to you.

The reason matters, so remember it: pseudoephedrine needs permission to import because it is a controlled ingredient inside Japan. That same ingredient appears again in the May 2026 rules below. What you cannot bring in freely and what is restricted at the till overlap.

How much medicine can you bring without paperwork?

Most people moving to Japan are not carrying Sudafed. They are carrying three or six months of the pills they take every day, packed so they will not run out while they settle in. That bag is what the quantity rule applies to.

Without any paperwork you can bring up to one month of prescription medicine and up to two months of ordinary over-the-counter medicine. More than that needs an import certificate, the Yunyu Kakunin-sho (people used to call it Yakkan Shoumei), which you get before you leave home (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: bringing medicines for personal use into Japan).

A month is counted from the dose on the label, not from the number of boxes. Syringes on their own, without the medicine, need a certificate even for a single one.

Getting the certificate is done online through the Ministry’s Import Confirmation system. You attach two things: a prescription or doctor’s note showing your name, the medicine and the doctor’s name, and an itinerary or ticket showing your arrival date, airport, flight number and name. When the application is complete it is normally issued in a few business days, as a PDF sent to your email. Show it at customs if asked, and do not alter it, or it becomes invalid (MHLW Q&A for those who are importing medicines into Japan).

Two limits sit outside this certificate. Narcotics and stimulant raw materials, such as lisdexamfetamine, need the separate permission described above. And psychotropics, narcotics and stimulant raw materials cannot be posted to Japan at all, so a family member cannot send the rest of your supply later.

What changed in May 2026

On 1 May 2026 Japan introduced a category called “designated abuse-prevention medicines”. Cold, cough, fever and allergy products containing any of eight listed ingredients now come with limits on how you can buy them. (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: designating abuse-prevention medicines, January 2026 committee paper, in Japanese)

The reason is overdose among young people becoming a public issue. This is not about you personally – the rule is applied to everyone the same way, and knowing that in advance makes the counter conversation much less alarming.

Two parts of this hit foreign residents harder than anyone else:

• You will be asked for ID more often. If you are 18 or 19 at a language school, you are squarely in the affected group. At the till you will end up showing your residence card. This is not you being singled out – it is the same rule for every customer, so just hand it over (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare notice on selling designated abuse-prevention medicines, in Japanese)
• The online video call is in Japanese. If you are under 18, buying online always means a video call with a pharmacist. Over 18, it applies when you buy a large pack or more than one (MHLW notice). You have to explain your symptoms and why you want the product, out loud. If your Japanese is limited, buying in a shop is actually easier, because you can point at what hurts

Japanese medicine is not weak, it is deliberately mild

Japanese over-the-counter products usually contain smaller doses than the equivalents sold abroad. If you are used to stronger medicine it will feel like nothing is happening – but taking more than the stated dose is genuinely dangerous.

The mildness is a safety decision, not a mistake. If it is not working, the answer is a doctor, not a bigger dose. That also gets you better in less time.

Drugstore or pharmacy?

There are two kinds of place, and they do different jobs: one fills prescriptions, the other sells what you choose yourself.

Staff may ask about your symptoms, age, allergies, other medicines you take, and whether you will be driving. These questions are not an obstacle course – they exist so you are not sold something that will harm you. Answer honestly.

Find it by symptom – the words to use in the shop

What actually stops people in a drugstore is standing at the shelf unable to say what is wrong. Here are the common symptoms with the Japanese to use. Show the staff the phrase directly.

Toothache needs saying separately. Over-the-counter painkillers will stop the pain, but they do nothing for the tooth. The medicine is a bridge until you see a dentist. Ignore it once the pain fades and you end up having the nerve removed later. Book the appointment while the painkiller is still working.

Some medicines need a pharmacist present

One more thing that saves a wasted trip. Over-the-counter medicines are graded by risk, and who may sell them differs.

Guidance-required medicines and Class 1 medicines can only be sold by a pharmacist, who is required to explain them face to face. Class 2 and Class 3 may also be sold by a registered seller (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: the medicine sales rules from 1 May 2026, in Japanese) – someone who has passed a prefectural exam, and who most drugstores have on staff.

What that means in practice: go late at night and the Class 1 shelf may be off limits, because the pharmacist’s hours have ended. If you think you need something stronger, going during the day is the safer bet.

Shop or clinic? The cost question

OTC medicine runs 1,000 to 2,000 yen a box. With national health insurance you pay 30 percent at a clinic. Once something drags on, the clinic is both cheaper and more likely to actually fix it. (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: co-payment rates for medical care, in Japanese)

How to choose a clinic and which department to visit is covered in our guide to seeing a doctor in Japan. If it cannot wait until morning, such as struggling to breathe at night, know how to call an ambulance on 119, and #7119 for when you are unsure. If it is not an ambulance case but cannot wait, here is how to find a clinic open at night or on a holiday. If a sudden high fever and aching joints suggest flu, phone the clinic before going, and know that flu medicine works best within 48 hours. Before putting drops in over your contact lenses, read which eye symptoms need an eye doctor before any eye drops. If you do not have an insurance card yet, sort out national health insurance first – without it the same appointment costs more than three times as much.

This article explains the rules and is not medical advice. Ask a pharmacist when choosing medicine, and a doctor when you are worried about your health. Official sources: MHLW: designating abuse-prevention medicines (Japanese) / MHLW notice on selling designated abuse-prevention medicines (Japanese) / MHLW: the medicine sales rules from 1 May 2026 (Japanese) / MHLW: personal import of medicines (Japanese) / MHLW: bringing medicines for personal use into Japan (English) / MHLW Q&A for those who are importing medicines into Japan (English) / Narcotics Control Department: carrying narcotics and stimulant precursors in and out of Japan (Japanese) / MHLW: co-payment rates for medical care (Japanese) (checked 26 September 2026; import quantities checked 2 October 2026)

Frequently asked questions

Q. Can I bring cold medicine from my home country?

Ordinary over-the-counter medicine is fine up to a two month supply. Anything containing pseudoephedrine (such as Sudafed or Actifed) cannot be brought in without permission. For your own treatment, apply to a Regional Bureau of Health and Welfare at least two weeks before you arrive. Check the ingredient list before you fly.

Q. How much prescription medicine can I bring into Japan?

Up to one month’s supply, counted from the dose on the label, with no paperwork. For more, apply online for an import certificate (Yunyu Kakunin-sho) before you leave home, attaching your prescription or doctor’s note and your flight details. It is normally issued in a few business days. Narcotics and stimulant raw materials need separate permission.

Q. Can under 18s buy cold medicine at all?

Yes, but since May 2026 only one small pack of five to seven days at a time. Your ID is checked for age and name, and you may be asked whether you have bought the same thing elsewhere. It applies to every customer equally.

Q. Can I buy medicine if I do not speak Japanese?

Yes. Showing a note with your symptoms, pointing at where it hurts, or showing a translation app all work fine. Buying online is harder if you are under 18 or buying in bulk, because the video call with a pharmacist is in Japanese, so a shop is usually the easier option.

Q. Japanese medicine does not work for me. Can I take more?

No. Japanese OTC products deliberately use smaller doses, which is why they feel weak if you are used to stronger medicine. Taking extra is dangerous. If it is not working, see a doctor instead.

Q. Is it cheaper to buy medicine or see a doctor?

A box costs 1,000 to 2,000 yen, but buying repeatedly adds up. With national health insurance a clinic visit costs you 30 percent, so anything lasting three days or more is cheaper and more reliable at the clinic.

Summary

• Cold medicine with pseudoephedrine needs advance permission to bring in
• Up to one month of prescription medicine and two months of OTC medicine need no paperwork. Beyond that, get an import certificate online before you fly
• Since May 2026, under 18s get one small pack and ID is checked
• Online buying needs a video call in Japanese if you are under 18 or buying in bulk – a shop is easier
• Japanese medicine is deliberately mild. Never take extra to compensate
• Three days or more means a clinic. With insurance it costs you 30 percent

Related guides

• If you do not know which department to go to or what to say at the desk → Seeing a doctor in Japan: clinics, hospitals and emergencies
• If you want to know the premium and what you pay at the hospital → National health insurance: how to enrol and what it costs
• If you want to check what must be done within 14 days of arriving → Residence registration in Japan

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