Terms of Use

Article 1 — Scope of the Service

1. This service is information and written consultation in English, provided by a pharmacist licensed in Japan.

2. In paid services, our pharmacist takes your questions and advises and supports you on the following.

a. Japanese over-the-counter medicines, including Kampo products: suggesting products that suit your symptoms and constitution, finding the active ingredients behind a brand name, how to read labels and leaflets, checking for interactions and duplicated ingredients, how to use them and what to watch for, and how to choose for children, during pregnancy or breastfeeding, or with a long-term condition

b. Medicines you have been prescribed: what they are and what they are for, how to take them, cautions, how they relate to medicines you used abroad, how they relate to generics, and how to read your medication notebook (okusuri techo) and medicine bags (switching to a generic is decided by your prescriber and pharmacy)

c. Seeing a doctor: which type of clinic to see for your symptoms, help finding medical institutions you can visit from where you are, how a visit works and roughly what it costs, a Japanese patient summary to bring, and explaining what you were told and what was prescribed after the visit

d. Bringing medicines into Japan. Up to 5 items (medicines, supplements or devices) are included. Entry Check (US$100, tax incl.; US$30 per item beyond 5, tax incl.): our assessment of the rules for each item, the procedures involved, a bilingual Medication List and a Japanese-format medication record. Application Map (US$50, tax incl., added to the check; US$150, tax incl., with the check): a private page made from your report that shows, for each item, what to prepare, where to apply and by when, with links to the official forms, samples and email templates. You apply and send everything yourself; for the Map, we do not receive your documents and do not submit anything. Filing (US$150, tax incl.), offered individually by email to a limited number of customers after their Application Map: you send us by email the documents you complete and sign, and, depending on the type of application, we submit them as your registered agent (Import Confirmation) or forward them unchanged at your request to the Narcotics Control Department (the wording on the forms stays yours; we do not create or rewrite it). If your order includes an add-on we sold until 31 October 2026 and no longer offer, the terms in place when you paid apply to that add-on. An order can be used for 5 months from payment (Our payment provider can only refund to your original card within about 6 months of payment, so orders are valid for 5 months); replacing a medicine after the report is re-checked free of charge once per item while the order is valid (see Article 8). Each prescription medicine, OTC medicine, supplement or device counts as one item (for example, a meter, lancets and needles count as one item each, regardless of quantity).

e. Your constitution and everyday self-care: explaining your constitution check results, ideas for adapting your diet and daily habits to the season and your constitution, and explaining the Kampo way of thinking

f. Introductions to pharmacies and Kampo pharmacies in Japan, with English support for your communication

g. Any other question a pharmacist can answer about staying well in Japan

3. Under Japanese law, this service does not:

- diagnose, treat, or prescribe prescription medicines (acts reserved for doctors). Suggesting over-the-counter medicines is pharmacist work and is a different thing

- decide whether to stop, change or re-dose a medicine your doctor has prescribed

- sell or ship medicines (not offered at present; these Terms will be updated if that changes)

- prepare, write or rewrite application forms or other official documents. You complete and sign them, and the wording stays yours. With Filing (or Support on earlier orders), we submit your Import Confirmation application as your registered agent, exactly as you completed it, and, at your request, forward the documents you completed and signed to the Narcotics Control Department unchanged

- guarantee that any clinic can see you in English

4. The final decision rests with you and, where needed, your doctor, a pharmacy, or the Japanese authorities.

Article 2 — Intended Audience

This website is primarily directed to residents of Japan, to non-Japanese-speakers living in or visiting Japan, and to people planning to travel to Japan (including users of the Japan Medication Entry Check). Information is provided in accordance with Japanese laws and regulations including the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Act (薬機法). Visitors from other jurisdictions are advised that products, indications, dosages, and regulatory status discussed may differ in their country of residence.

Article 3 — Country-Specific Availability

Approved indications, dosages, restrictions and product presentations may vary from country to country. References to specific Kampo formulations or OTC medicines do not imply that such products are available or approved in the visitor's country of residence. References to products or services do not imply that we intend to offer them in your jurisdiction.

Article 4 — Warranty Disclaimer

THE GENERAL INFORMATION ON THIS WEBSITE IS PROVIDED 'AS IS.' EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN ARTICLE 9, AND TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, WE MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, ABOUT THE INFORMATION ON THIS WEBSITE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND ASSUME NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ITS ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, USABILITY, TIMELINESS OR COMPLETENESS. TO THE SAME EXTENT, WE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE INFORMATION ON THIS WEBSITE. NONE OF THE ABOVE APPLIES TO DEATH OR PERSONAL INJURY, TO LOSS CAUSED BY THE INTENT (INCLUDING FRAUD) OR GROSS NEGLIGENCE OF US OR OF ANYONE WE USE, OR WHERE THE LAW DOES NOT ALLOW IT. NOTHING HERE REMOVES CONSUMER RIGHTS THAT CANNOT BE WAIVED UNDER THE LAW THAT APPLIES TO YOU.

Article 5 — No Endorsement of Linked Sites

This website may contain links to third-party websites. We are not responsible for the content of such third-party websites and do not endorse the products or services described therein.

Article 6 — Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms, this website and all paid services (including the Entry Check, the Application Map, Filing and the Healthcare Navigation Session) are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Japan. Any dispute arising out of or in connection with them is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Tokyo District Court as the court of first instance, except to the extent that the law gives you, as a consumer, the right to bring or defend proceedings elsewhere or to rely on mandatory rules of another country.

Article 7 — Modifications

We may update these Terms from time to time; the date of the latest version is shown at the top of this page. A change does not apply to an order that has already been paid for: that order is governed by the version in place when it was placed.

Article 8 — Refunds

Cancellation before we send the answer (Healthcare Navigation Session) or the report (Entry Check): full refund. If we can't take on your request, we tell you so in our first reply and refund in full (that reply does not count as an answer or report). For the Entry Check, "can't take on" means that the judgment itself can't be made (for example, the ingredient still can't be identified after you send the information we asked for). A judgment of "cannot be brought in" is a completed check and isn't a refund case. For the Entry Check, "the report" means the first report we send within 3 business days of receiving your complete list (your form with every required field filled in and submitted; photos of the box or label, and attachments such as a prescription or doctor's letter, are not required). If a photo can't be read, an ingredient can't be identified from what you entered without a photo, or information is missing, we tell you as soon as we know (including in our first reply). If what we asked for arrives before we send the first report, the report includes it. If it hasn't arrived by then, we still send the first report on time, showing the result for that item in each possible case (a conditional judgment), or, if we can't yet tell what the medicine is, what we need to complete it. If that information, or an answer from the Japanese authorities that the report says we are waiting for, reaches us within 7 calendar days of the day we send the report, we send an updated report within 2 business days of receiving it. The date is shown in your report. A first report that shows results in each possible case, or says what we still need for an item, is still "the report" in this policy, and in that case the judgment is not treated as impossible. An updated report does not bring back the cancellation that applies before the report. If the judgment still can't be made after you send what we asked for, we refund in full. Documents such as a prescription or doctor's letter are not required for the check, and not having them does not count as "the judgment itself can't be made". "Business days" in this refund policy is defined in the last paragraph below.

Once we have sent the answer or the report, we are unable to offer a refund, except as set out below. Additional items (US$30 per item beyond 5): full refund if you cancel before we send the results for the added items, or if an added item can't be judged. Once those results are sent, no refund. If your order includes an add-on we sold until 31 October 2026 and no longer offer, the terms in place when you paid apply to that add-on (we will tell you what they were if you contact us).

Application Map (US$50, whether you add it to the check or book Entry Check + Application Map for US$150): the Map is digital content we make for you from your report. If you ask us to cancel before we send your Map, we refund the US$50 for the Map in full. Once we have sent your Map (the email with the link to your Map page), the Map is not refundable, except as set out in the Terms of Use, Article 9, section 4 (if we made an error) or where the law requires. If you booked Entry Check + Application Map together and your Entry Check report finds that none of your items needs an application, we refund the US$50 for the Map in full automatically, to your original payment method; you don't need to ask. If your report finds that a medicine may not be allowed into Japan, we still send your Map. If your doctor then prescribes a replacement and, after our re-check, the final result has no item that needs an application, we also refund the US$50 for the Map in full automatically, even after we have sent the Map. In other cases, the Map is not refunded after we have sent it. Cancelling the Map does not change the refund terms for the check.

Filing (US$150): Filing is offered individually by email, to a limited number of customers who have received their Application Map. If it turns out that none of your items needs an application, we refund the US$150 for Filing in full, even after Filing has started. Until we send the email that starts Filing, you can request a full refund of Filing. The document deadline we give you will be at least 8 business days after the day we ask for your documents. If the application deadline is missed for reasons on our side, we refund the US$150 in full; if it is missed because your documents or information did not reach us by the document deadline (including when you don't have them, or a doctor or clinic has not issued them in time), Filing is not refunded. In any other case, please contact us and we will review it individually.

Using your order and replacing a medicine: your order can be used for 5 months from the day you pay. Our payment provider can only refund to your original card within about 6 months of payment, so orders are valid for 5 months. If you haven't sent your form, you can ask for a full refund at any time until then; after 5 months, an order whose form has not been sent expires without a refund. After the report, if your doctor prescribes a replacement for one of your medicines, we re-check it free of charge, once per item, while your order is valid (5 months from payment) (tell us through your report page or your Application Map). A further replacement of the same item is charged as an additional item (US$30, tax incl.); new items follow the rules for adding items.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY (ENTRY CHECK, APPLICATION MAP AND FILING; THE SAME TERMS ARE IN THE TERMS OF USE, ARTICLE 9, SECTION 4): IF WE ARE LIABLE TO YOU BECAUSE OF OUR OWN ERROR OR NEGLIGENCE, WE FIRST CORRECT AND RE-DELIVER THE AFFECTED PART OF THE SERVICE FREE OF CHARGE. IF A CORRECTION DOES NOT RESOLVE IT, YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY IS A REFUND OF THE AMOUNT YOU PAID FOR THAT SERVICE. IN A COMBINED ORDER, THE LIMIT FOR EACH SERVICE IS ITS OWN PRICE (FOR EXAMPLE, US$50 FOR THE APPLICATION MAP). TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, WE DO NOT COMPENSATE ANY LOSS BEYOND THAT REFUND, INCLUDING THE COST OF FLIGHTS OR ACCOMMODATION, MISSED FLIGHTS OR CONNECTIONS, CHANGES TO YOUR TRAVEL PLANS, MEDICAL COSTS (EXCEPT FOR PERSONAL INJURY AS PROVIDED BELOW), AND THE COST OF MEDICINES YOU COULD NOT BRING INTO JAPAN OR COULD NO LONGER USE, OR OF REPLACEMENT MEDICINES. THESE LIMITS DO NOT APPLY TO DEATH OR PERSONAL INJURY, TO LOSS CAUSED BY THE INTENT (INCLUDING FRAUD) OR GROSS NEGLIGENCE OF US OR OF ANYONE WE USE, OR WHERE THE LAW DOES NOT ALLOW THEM. NOTHING HERE REMOVES CONSUMER RIGHTS THAT CANNOT BE WAIVED UNDER THE LAW THAT APPLIES TO YOU. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW CERTAIN LIMITATIONS, SO PART OF THIS SECTION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

To cancel, email hello@kampo-compass.com. We make every refund ourselves after checking the order; where this policy says we refund "automatically", it means without a request from you. Refunds go back to your original payment method, and we process them within 7 business days of confirming your request. In this refund policy, business days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, Japanese public holidays, the year-end and New Year holidays from 29 December to 3 January, and Golden Week from 29 April to 5 May (Japan time). This refund policy does not limit your rights as a consumer under the law.

Article 9 — Japan Medication Entry Check: scope of responsibility

1. Nature of the assessment

Every Entry Check assessment is preliminary and non-binding. It is based only on the information and documents you provide, and on the official guidance published by Japanese authorities as checked on the date recorded in your report ("source check date"). It is not an approval, permit or official decision by any Japanese authority.

2. Your responsibilities

You are responsible for:

- giving complete and accurate information, including each medicine's name, active ingredients, strength, quantity and dosage, and your own identity details;

- making sure the quantity you carry matches your prescription and the period of your stay;

- completing and submitting any application, permit request or declaration in your own name;

- checking the requirements of your airline and of any country you depart from or pass through;

- contacting the relevant authority directly when an official or binding answer is needed.

Please do not travel with a medicine relying only on a preliminary assessment where an official confirmation or permit is required.

3. Outcomes outside our control

Except where caused by our own error or negligence, we are not responsible for confiscation, refused import, denied boarding, interrupted travel or other loss resulting from: incomplete or inaccurate information you gave us; changes to laws or official guidance after the source check date; or decisions, delays or requests of government authorities, airlines or other third parties. Where we are responsible, the extent of our liability is set out in section 4.

4. Limit of liability

THIS SECTION APPLIES TO THE ENTRY CHECK, THE APPLICATION MAP AND FILING. IF WE ARE LIABLE TO YOU BECAUSE OF OUR OWN ERROR OR NEGLIGENCE, WE FIRST CORRECT AND RE-DELIVER THE AFFECTED PART OF THE SERVICE FREE OF CHARGE. IF A CORRECTION DOES NOT RESOLVE IT, YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY IS A REFUND OF THE AMOUNT YOU PAID FOR THAT SERVICE. IN A COMBINED ORDER, THE LIMIT FOR EACH SERVICE IS ITS OWN PRICE (FOR EXAMPLE, US$50 FOR THE APPLICATION MAP). TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, WE DO NOT COMPENSATE ANY LOSS BEYOND THAT REFUND, INCLUDING THE COST OF FLIGHTS OR ACCOMMODATION, MISSED FLIGHTS OR CONNECTIONS, CHANGES TO YOUR TRAVEL PLANS, MEDICAL COSTS (EXCEPT FOR PERSONAL INJURY AS PROVIDED BELOW), AND THE COST OF MEDICINES YOU COULD NOT BRING INTO JAPAN OR COULD NO LONGER USE, OR OF REPLACEMENT MEDICINES. THESE LIMITS DO NOT APPLY TO DEATH OR PERSONAL INJURY, TO LOSS CAUSED BY THE INTENT (INCLUDING FRAUD) OR GROSS NEGLIGENCE OF US OR OF ANYONE WE USE, OR WHERE THE LAW DOES NOT ALLOW THEM. NOTHING HERE REMOVES CONSUMER RIGHTS THAT CANNOT BE WAIVED UNDER THE LAW THAT APPLIES TO YOU. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW CERTAIN LIMITATIONS, SO PART OF THIS SECTION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. SEE ALSO ARTICLE 8 (REFUNDS).

5. Corrections

If a report or Application Map does not match the information you gave us because of our error, we will correct it free of charge. Please tell us within 7 days of delivery; corrections needed because of new information you provide are handled under the normal add-or-recheck rules.

Article 10 — Resolving disputes

If you have a concern, please contact us first at hello@kampo-compass.com. Before you bring a lawsuit or other formal claim, please allow 60 days for us to try to resolve the matter with you. If you want to dispute a card payment, please contact us before you do so we can fix it quickly (for example, by a refund); this does not delay or limit your right to dispute a charge with your card issuer within the issuer's deadlines. This applies to the extent permitted by law, and does not limit any right that the law does not allow to be restricted. The 60 days are not counted toward the time limit in Article 12.

Article 11 — Class action and jury trial waiver

TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AND WE EACH AGREE TO BRING ANY CLAIM ONLY IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY CLASS, COLLECTIVE OR REPRESENTATIVE ACTION. TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AND WE EACH WAIVE THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY.

Article 12 — Time limit for claims

To the extent permitted by law, any claim relating to a service must be brought within one year from the day we provided that service (for example, the day we sent your answer, your report or your Application Map). This does not apply to claims for death or personal injury, or for loss caused by the intent or gross negligence of us or of anyone we use, and the 60-day period in Article 10 is not counted.

Article 13 — Severability

If any part of these Terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, that part remains in effect to the fullest extent permitted by law, and the rest of these Terms remains in full force and effect.

Article 14 — Language

If you place your order in English, the English version of these Terms applies to it. If you place your order in Japanese, the Japanese version applies.

Article 15 — Entire agreement

These Terms, the Refund policy and the Privacy Policy, together with the order confirmation, the report, the Application Map and any written offer we send you (such as the Filing offer email), make up the entire agreement between you and us about our services. Statements in social media posts, direct messages, advertisements or general articles on this website are not promises about the service. Nothing in this Article limits our responsibility for statements we make about our services, or any right the law does not allow to be restricted.

Article 16 — Events beyond our control

We are not responsible for a delay or failure to perform caused by events beyond our reasonable control, such as natural disasters, system or network failures, outages at payment or email providers, or decisions or delays of Japanese government offices or airlines. Where the Refund policy provides a full refund, that refund still applies. If we cannot perform a service at all because of such an event, we refund the amount you paid for the part not performed.

Article 17 — Our qualifications

We are a pharmacist licensed in Japan. We are not licensed as a physician, lawyer or immigration professional in any country, and we are not licensed as a pharmacist outside Japan. Our services are not medical or legal advice under the laws of the United States or any other country.