Information on Life in Japan

All students need to obtain a visa in their home country in order to enter Japan. The type of visa required depends on your nationality, objective and period of stay in Japan. Please check the Japan Foreign Ministry homepage for more details.

Foreigners who stay in Japan for more than 90 days are required to register themselves under the Alien Registration Law. Alien registration needs to be done within 90 days upon arrival in Japan. The place of registration will be the ward office or municipal office of your place of residence.

All registered foreign students who are planning to study in Japan for more than a year (qualified foreign students) are included in the National Health Insurance Scheme. When visiting a hospital for any illness or injury, you will only need to pay 30% of the treatment costs if you show your National Health Insurance Certificate. Processing is done upon producing your Alien Registration Certificate at the insurance counter of the ward or municipal office where your alien registration is done. You can also make use of the Medical Assistance Scheme which covers 80% of the medical costs.

For those who are staying in Japan for less than 90 days, we recommend them to take out overseas travel insurance before coming to Japan.

The rental for a one-room apartment or mansion within Tokyo city is 60,000 yen and above. It is common for friends to share a room costing 80,000 yen. Please check here for information on accommodation.

The main mode of transport in Tokyo is by subway train. The trains are punctual and commuting time is usually about 30 minutes.

The following sites are useful for checking the routes, fares and time required.

• Yahoo! Route Information
• Google Transfer Guide

Other transport-related sites.

Airport Information

• Narita Airport
• Mobile Phone Rental (within Narita Airport)

Access to the city from Narita Airport

• Limousine Bus (Bus)
• Narita Express (Train)
• Skyliner (Train)

Sightseeing Discount Ticket

This is recommended for people who are touring Japan. Please apply for this in your home country before departure as it cannot be bought in Japan.

• Japan Rail Pass

Our school is located near the Takadanobaba Station of the JR Yamanote Line / Seibu Shinjuku Line /Tokyo Metro Tozai Line. Takadanobaba has long been famous as a student town and there are many famous schools here like the Waseda University.

There are many convenient facilities and shops in Takadanobaba such as banks (Mizuho, Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ, Mitsui Sumitomo), post office, large book stores (Horindo, Aoi) and stationery shops (Chikuho) near the station. Besides large supermarkets like Seiyu and Peacock, there are also many 24-hour convenience stores which make this a very convenient place to live in.

In addition, there are also several hospitals near the station. The Ushigome Hospital is a hospital that provides services in English language.

There are many restaurants in Takadanobaba which offer a wide variety of food at reasonable prices. Various restaurants serve Japanese, Chinese, Western and ethnic dishes (Turkish, Indian, Thai etc). Lunch such as yakiniku, sushi and set meals cost about 700 yen. There are also a lot of convenience stores where you can have a drink and some bread for about 300 yen. Takadanobaba is also famous for its many noodle (ramen) restaurants of which there are more than a hundred.

Foreign students are allowed to work part-time for up to 28 hours per week if they have a work permit from the Immigration Office. The hourly rate is generally about 800 to 1000 yen. Many students work part-time in restaurants, supermarkets and convenience stores.

The following sites provide various information about life in Japan.

• Japan Guide
• Japan National Tourism Organization
• Foreign Ministry