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Guide

Home modification under long-term care insurance in Yokohama

Handrails and removing steps are covered by long-term care insurance up to 200,000 yen. You must apply before the work starts — afterwards nothing is paid.

How it goes

  1. Talk to a care manager first

    The written statement of need has to be prepared by a care manager or a community support centre. Neither the resident nor the contractor can write it.

    Free of charge

    Find your centre

  2. Choose a contractor and get a quote

    The choice made here decides how you pay — not what you pay.

    A registered contractor

    You pay only your own 10–30% share. The city pays the rest directly to the contractor.

    Any other contractor

    You pay the whole cost first, then claim the benefit back afterwards.

    The work itself may be done by either. Only the way you pay differs.

  3. File before any work starts

    File with the Insurance and Pension Division at your ward office.

    Before the work

    This is where people lose the money

    Work started before this application is not covered at all — not partly, not later. “We had it fitted, then asked” is the most common way this goes wrong.

    The desk you consult (Elderly and Disability Support) and the desk you file with (Insurance and Pension) are different.

  4. Wait for approval, then start

    Work starts once the notice about the modification reaches you.

  5. Work is completed and paid for

    Keep the receipt. Under the registered route you pay only your own share here.

  6. File the claim after completion

    The second filing — with the receipt and photographs of the finished work.

    After the work

  7. The benefit is paid

    Up to 200,000 yen of the cost qualifies, and 70–90% of that is paid, depending on your co-payment rate.

If the work starts before you apply, nothing is paid. This is the single most common mistake — people fit the handrail first and ask afterwards.

Who can use it

Anyone certified at Support Level 1-2 or Care Level 1-5 and living at home.

How much

The ceiling is 200,000 yen of work. The insurance pays all but your own share: 180,000 yen if you pay 10%, 160,000 at 20%, 140,000 at 30%. The rate is the one that applies on the date you pay for the work.

What counts as covered work

  1. Fitting handrails
  2. Removing steps and level differences
  3. Changing floor material to prevent slipping or ease movement
  4. Replacing doors, for example with sliding doors
  5. Replacing the toilet, for example with a western-style one
  6. Work needed to carry out any of the above

These six categories are set nationally. Work outside them may still qualify for a city scheme (that page is in Japanese).

You may not have to pay the whole amount up front

If you use a contractor registered for direct payment, you pay only your own share and there is no claim to make afterwards. Any contractor can do the work, but this option requires a registered one.

Photographs

Dated photographs are required both before and after the work. Forgetting the "before" photograph means the claim cannot be paid.

Find your support centre Official page (Japanese)

Source: Yokohama City · Last verified 2026-09-12. Rules change. Check the source page before you act on this. This is a plain-English summary of public information, not an official translation.

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