Information for Foreigners – Living Information
For foreign residents to live comfortably in Japan, it is important to know information on regulations, government system, and medical services, as well as to understand manners to follow as a resident of Japan.
（Update:2017.12.20）
▼Driver's Licenses ▼Living Information ▼Information on Health and Medical Services ▼Information on Child Raising and Parental Support
■Driver's Licenses
●Driver's License Testing in English
Beginning on December 15, 2009 the written test for obtaining driver's licenses and provisional driver's licenses will be available in English at license centers throughout Iwate Prefecture.
You can request to take the English language version of the Japanese test at the center’s reception desk.
▶ English language written test (Iwate Prefectural Police homepage)
●About Japanese Driver's License
There are various requirements needed to drive a car in Japan. Please refer to the following web pages for details on these requirements, how to transfer your license, and how to get a Japanese license.
▶ Japan Automobile Federation (JAF): “For Overseas Drivers in Japan”
■Living Information
● Iwate Prefecture （English Information （英語の情報））
▶ Disaster Management Multilingual Pamphlet “How to Protect Yourself During a Disaster”( PDF)
▶ Police Stations in Iwate
● Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR)
▶ Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR)
▶ Multilingual Living Information
| Languages available: | Japanese, English, German, Chinese, Korean, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Thai, and Russian |
▶ iOS/Android Multilingual App for Foreign Residents
Downloadable from your Smartphone or Tablet
▶ Downloadable Tool for Providing Multilingual Information During Disasters (Japanese)
Useful tool for providing information in multiple languages during a disaster
● Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
▶ Administrative Counseling for foreign residents.）
■Information on Health and Medical Services
● Healthcare and Medical Services in Iwate
▶ Finding a place of treatment
●Iwate Medical Information Network, Emergency Medical Information System
 | Iwate Emergency Medical Information System offers information on hospitals, clinics, dentists, and other medical organizations that provide services in a foreign language. Click the image on the left. This site is in Japanese, but you can search for hospitals in English from the following link. |
● Telephone Consultation on Medical Information (Free）
▶ AMDA International Medical Information
・Tokyo Center － TEL: 03-5285-8088
・Kansai Center － TEL: 06-4395-0555
| Medical interpretation is available by phone. | |
| Languages available： | English, Thai, Chinese, Korean, Spanish => everyday 9:00-20:00 Portuguese => Monday, Wednesday, Friday 9:00-17:00 Philippines => Wednesday 13:00-17:00 |
● Multilingual Medical Questionnaire
▶ Multilingual Medical Questionnaires (Iwate Prefecture)
The following multilingual medical questionnaires have been produced
in order to make it easier for foreign residents to get medical care in Iwate.
(Languages available: English, Simplified Chinese, Korean and Tagalog)
1. General Questionnaire
| English Version / Chinese Version / Korean Version / Tagalog Version This sheet is for internal medicine: the digestive system, the heart, the respiratory system, the nervous system, or urinary problems. For other examinations, please refer to "Multilingual Medical Questionnaire" below created by International Community Hearty Konandai and Kanagawa International Foundation. |
2. Influenza Vaccination (Flu Shot) - Medical History
| English Version / Chinese Version / Korean Version / Tagalog Version This is a medical questionnaire for the flu shot. You or a professional can fill out the document to suit your purposes. |
3. Medicine Usage Guides
| English Version ／ Chinese Version ／ Korean Version ／ Tagalog Version This document lists phrases often used when explaining the effectiveness and dosage instructions for internal, external and single dosage medications. You or a professional can fill out the document to suit your purposes. |
▶ Multilingual Medical Questionnaire (Kanagawa International Foundation)
| This is a questionnaire prepared by volunteers to help foreigners explain the condition of injuries and symptoms of illness to doctors and other medical personnel. | ||
| 11 departments | ||
| Arabic, Indonesian, Cambodian, Croatian, Spanish, Thai, Tagalog, German, Nepalese, French, Vietnamese, Persian, Portuguese, Laotian, Russian, English, Korean and Chinese (Mandarin) | ||
●Yorisoi Hotline (General Incorporated Association Social Inclusion Support Center)
▶ Free telephone consultation service for foreigners "Yorisoi Hotline" (Helpline for Foreigners)
0120-279-226 (Specialized line for foreigners in Iwate, Miyagi, Fukushima)
Are you having a problem with your visa, nationality, family, work, everyday living, discrimination,
domestic violence, confinement, or human trafficking?
Besides Japanese, the service is also available in English, Korean, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese,
Nepalese, Portuguese, Spanish, and Thai. Language availability varies depending on the time of day.
■Information on Child Raising and Parental Support
▶ Child Raising Q&A (Iwate International Association)
| We created this booklet to help foreign families with children who need information on how to treat sick children, especially infants. This booklet is written in English, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. |
▶ Sample Conversations for Medical Visits (Iwate International Association)
| We created this dialogue booklet to aid foreign residents who need to take their children to the hospital so that the language barrier poses less of a problem. This booklet is written in English, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. |
▶ Multilingual Guide to Child Allowance Payments (CLAIR)