Flu in Japan: where to go, how the clinic visit works, and what the drugstore can't do

The short version

• Flu medicines (Tamiflu, Xofluza, Inavir and others) are prescription-only in Japan. A drugstore can't sell them and can't test you.
• For an adult, go to an internal medicine clinic (内科, naika). For a child, pediatrics (小児科, shonika). Not a large hospital.
• Phone before you go. Many clinics see patients with fever at set times or in a separate area.
• Flu medicines are meant to be started within 48 hours of the first symptoms. Whether you need one is the doctor's decision; not everyone does.
• Without Japanese health insurance you pay the full fee, often in cash. Ask for an estimate at reception.
• Trouble breathing, confusion, a seizure, or someone you can't wake: call 119.
• Everything below is as of October 2026.

Is flu around right now?

Flu in Japan usually peaks between December and March, but recent seasons have started earlier. In the week of September 21–27, 2026, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's sentinel clinics reported about seven times as many flu cases as in the same week a year earlier. The ministry publishes a new figure every Friday; the link is at the end of this page.

Cold or flu?

The ministry describes flu as a fever of 38°C or higher with headache, joint and muscle pain and a heavy, whole-body tiredness, coming on fairly quickly, together with the sore throat, runny nose and cough of an ordinary cold.

A cold tends to build up slowly and stay in the nose and throat. If that is what you have, the drugstore is a reasonable place to start: see Cold medicine in Japan and Sore throat medicine in Japan. A combination cold medicine eases symptoms. It does nothing to the flu virus.

I can't tell you from a web page which one you have. Only a doctor can.

Where to go

Go to a local clinic. Clinics handle flu every day: they examine you, do a rapid test where it's useful, and write the prescription. You don't need a referral or, usually, an appointment made days ahead.

Avoid large hospitals unless it's an emergency. They charge an extra fee of ¥7,000 or more for a first visit without a referral letter, and waits are long.

If you can't work out where to go, that is what my consultation is for. Tell me your symptoms and where you are staying, in English. I tell you which type of clinic to look for, list clinics you can reach from there, and write a short Japanese memo to show at reception. After the visit, I explain what you were prescribed. First reply within 24 hours. How a consultation works →

Flu medicines work best started early, so if you are already very unwell, don't wait for a reply: ask your hotel's front desk to phone a nearby clinic.

No list can promise that a particular clinic will be able to see you in English on a particular day. Call first.

Before you leave your room

Call ahead. Tell them you have a fever and when it started. Many clinics separate patients with fever (発熱外来, hatsunetsu gairai) by time slot or waiting area, and may ask you to come at a set time. If you can't manage the call, ask the hotel, or show the phrases below when you arrive and be ready to wait outside.

Check the hours. Most clinics open in the morning and again in the late afternoon, close for a long lunch, and are closed on Sundays, public holidays and often one weekday afternoon.

Bring:

• Passport, or residence card and health insurance card or My Number card if you live here
• Cash. Smaller clinics and pharmacies often don't take cards.
• Travel insurance details
• A list of the medicines you take, by ingredient, and any allergies
• A mask

The test and the 48-hour window

Clinics commonly use a rapid test from a nose swab, with a result in around a quarter of an hour.

A test taken in the first hours of a fever can come back negative even when it is flu, because there isn't yet enough virus to detect. Doctors know this and weigh the test together with your symptoms. Don't use it as a reason to stay away if you feel very ill.

On the medicines, the ministry says:

• Started within 48 hours of the first symptoms, a flu medicine usually shortens the fever by one to two days and reduces the amount of virus you give off.
• Started later than 48 hours, it can't be expected to do much.
• They are not required for every patient. The doctor decides, based on how long you have been ill and how you are.

The ones used in Japan include oseltamivir (Tamiflu, capsules), baloxavir (Xofluza, tablets), laninamivir (Inavir, inhaled) and zanamivir (Relenza, inhaled). Tell the doctor about every medicine you take and whether you are pregnant or breastfeeding.

Getting the medicine

The clinic usually gives you a paper prescription, and you take it to a dispensing pharmacy (調剤薬局), often next door. You pay there separately. A prescription is valid for four days counting the day it was issued, but with flu, fill it at once.

Inhaled medicines are often taken at the pharmacy counter with the pharmacist showing you how. If anything on the bag or the instruction sheet isn't clear, ask before you leave. How pharmacies and prescriptions work is covered in Pharmacy in Japan.

What it costs

• With Japanese health insurance: you pay your usual share of the standard fees.
• Without it: you pay the full amount, and clinics may set their own rates for visitors. Ask for an estimate at reception; I can't give you a reliable figure.
• Ask for the receipt (領収書) and the itemized statement (診療明細書) for your insurer. A doctor's certificate, if your insurer wants one, costs extra.

While you recover

• The ministry says people with flu give off virus from the day before symptoms start until three to seven days after. Stay in, and wear a mask if you must go out.
• There is no legal isolation period for adults. Schools use "five days after symptoms began and two days after the fever has gone" (three days for young children), and many workplaces follow something similar.
• Drink plenty. Rest.
• Children and teenagers: unusual behavior, such as suddenly running out of the room, has been reported in young people with flu, whether or not they took a flu medicine. The ministry asks adults not to leave a child or teenager alone for at least two days from the start of the fever, and to lock windows and doors.
• Fever and pain medicines: check with the doctor or pharmacist before adding a drugstore medicine to what you were prescribed, and before giving any fever medicine to a child. Many adult combination cold medicines are not for under-15s.

If it turns out to be a cold and not flu, I can suggest over-the-counter and Kampo options for your symptoms and check them against the medicines you already take. That is part of the same consultation.

At the clinic

You can show these on your phone. More are on the scripts page.

When to call 119

Call an ambulance for:

• difficulty breathing, or lips turning blue
• confusion, strange behavior, a seizure, or someone who can't be woken
• chest pain
• a person who can't keep any fluids down and is passing no urine

Dial 119 and say "Kyukyu desu" (救急です, "it's a medical emergency"), then where you are. If you can't make the call, show a bystander: 救急車を呼んでください。 ("Please call an ambulance.")

The ambulance itself is not charged. You can't choose which hospital it takes you to; the crew finds one that can accept you.

Official sources

• Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: Q&A on acute respiratory infections, including influenza (Japanese) — the 48-hour window, virus shedding, and the guidance on children
• Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: weekly influenza report, week 39 of 2026 (Japanese, PDF)

Not sure what to ask at the counter about your own medicines?

If you already take prescription medicines and aren't sure what to ask at the counter, you can write in English to a pharmacist licensed in Japan and get a written explanation of what the labels and leaflets say.

How a consultation works →