For Japan, a prescription, an Import Confirmation and permission for a controlled medicine are not interchangeable documents. The first useful question is not simply how many tablets fit in the bag. Identify the active ingredient, strength, form and amount, then check which Japanese rule applies before deciding what to carry.
This guide covers personally carried medicines for the traveller's own use, using Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) and Narcotics Control Department (NCD) pages checked on 29 October 2026. It is a paperwork guide, not a diagnosis, a medicine-specific clearance or advice to stop or change treatment. Ask the prescribing doctor about treatment and the relevant Japanese office about import requirements.
1. Build an ingredient list, not just a brand list
Prepare the product name, active ingredient, strength per tablet or other unit, dosage form, amount and intended days of use. Keep the prescription or doctor's note readable. A familiar brand at home does not establish its classification in Japan: NCD says its controlled-substance list does not include brand names and advises checking uncertain categories with the prescribing doctor.
Do this for each medicine, not only the one you think might be restricted. For an unresolved general import question, MHLW asks for the arrival airport, product name, active ingredient and amount, form and quantity. That is a better inquiry than a photograph labelled only “my usual tablets”. Use the current official contact route linked in the sources rather than a copied address from an old travel forum.
2. Understand the one-month branch correctly
MHLW's linked Q&A says general prescription medicine can be brought without special import procedures when it is for personal use, is not prohibited, is not an especially controlled drug such as a narcotic or stimulant raw material, and is no more than a one-month supply. The quantity is one condition, not an exemption from every other condition.
For more than a one-month supply of general prescription medicine for personal use, the Q&A says to apply for Import Confirmation before entering Japan. MHLW's main page says to receive it before leaving home. Do not read the ordinary quantity allowance as permission for a controlled ingredient, or assume that adding a doctor's letter makes a prohibited ingredient lawful.
Different medicine forms and medical devices have separate rules. Do not use this general-prescription branch as a universal allowance for loose syringes, every injection, equipment or someone else's medicine. If the form changes the case, follow the specific MHLW guidance and ask the office before packing.
3. Prepare the Import Confirmation evidence
The MHLW Q&A asks for a valid prescription or doctor's note identifying the patient, medicine and doctor for every medicine or medical device in the application. It also asks for an airline or cruise-company document showing arrival date, arrival airport or port, flight or cruise number, and passenger's name. A hotel reservation alone does not establish those four arrival fields.
The official online service describes account registration, choosing the application category, entering details and attaching required files. Following review, an issued Yunyu Kakunin-sho, or Import Certificate, can be downloaded and is sent to the registered email addresses. These are the operator's general stages, not a claim that we completed an application or inspected a traveller's private account.
MHLW says a complete application is normally processed in a few business days, excluding weekends and national holidays. That is not a guaranteed turnaround or a reason to leave it until the flight. Check email for a returned application or requests to correct an issue. Once issued, do not alter the certificate yourself: the Q&A says doing so makes it invalid. Have it available to show Customs if requested.
4. Run the separate NCD check when relevant
NCD says prescribed narcotics and stimulant raw materials need advance permission before entering or leaving Japan. This is a different check from the ordinary Import Confirmation route. Its application guidance asks for import paperwork for entry and export paperwork if taking leftovers out. If arrival and departure airports differ, it directs the application to the office covering the entry airport area.
The listed supporting evidence includes a medical certificate from the prescribing doctor with the patient's name and address, specific reason for the medicine, medicine list with doses and strength, doctor's signature and issue date within three months. NCD also asks for package photographs or relevant medicine documents. A brief note saying only “for personal use” is not the specific reason it asks for.
NCD advises applying at least 14 days before travel. Its current page warns that contacting the office does not ensure a late application will be handled, and Tokyo NCD cannot accept last-minute applications for any reason. Do not treat a submitted email as an issued permission. For this narcotics/stimulant-raw-material route, NCD says the patient must carry the medicine, not post it or entrust it to a family member, and show the import or export certificate at Customs.
5. Do not put every controlled medicine in one box
NCD has a separate psychotropics section. For listed quantities at or below its table, excluding injections, it says neither the doctor's certificate nor authority permission under the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law is needed. Above the listed amount, or for an injection, it requires the specified doctor's certificate. It separately directs people importing more than a month's supply to contact MHLW.
This is why “all controlled medicine needs the same permit” is also a poor shortcut. Use the current ingredient-specific table and form rules, or ask the relevant office. We do not reproduce a drug-by-drug quantity table here. Some substances are prohibited even when prescribed abroad; NCD's current page identifies amphetamine among them. Never substitute this article for the classification of an actual prescription.
Before closing the bag
Our suggested final check: exact ingredients and form; personal quantity; correct Japanese category; the right office and arrival details; required documents; an issued certificate or permission where needed; and the return journey for any leftovers. Keep the medical plan with the prescribing clinician. If a rule remains unresolved, settle it before travel rather than trying to explain it at the border.
A Miranda House graduate and lawyer who traded courtrooms for slow travel. Cheshta travels with the batches we host ourselves, with a soft spot for travelling alongside elders.
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