Skip to main content
Back to guides
Guide

Types of residential care, and how to choose

Special nursing homes, geriatric health facilities, group homes and fee-based homes. Four names that are hard to tell apart, set side by side by who they take, what they are for, how long a stay lasts and where to apply — with what the monthly bill is actually made of.

Which one to look at first

Circumstances overlap, so this is not a decision tree — it is a starting point.

The four side by side

Type Who it is for What it is for How long Applying In this city
Special nursing home (tokuyo) Kaigo rojin fukushi shisetsu Care Level 3–5 as a rule Support Levels 1–2 cannot use it. New residents at Care Level 1–2 are admitted only where there is an unavoidable reason. A home for people who need care at all times No time limit The city’s central application desk 170 places
Geriatric health services facility (roken) Kaigo rojin hoken shisetsu Care Level 1–5 Support Levels 1–2 cannot use it. Rehabilitation aimed at returning home A temporary stay Each facility directly 86 places
Group home Ninchisho taioh-gata kyodo seikatsu kaigo Support Level 2 and above, with dementia Support Level 1 cannot use it. The service is specifically for people with dementia. Living together in a small household No time limit Each facility directly 343 places
Fee-based homes and similar Tokutei shisetsu nyukyosha seikatsu kaigo Support Level 1 to Care Level 5 Of the four, this is the only one open from Support Level 1. Housing and care together No time limit Each facility directly 211 places
  • Special nursing home (tokuyo)… Publicly run, so costs are lower — which is why there is a queue.
  • Geriatric health services facility (roken)… A doctor is on staff, and the medical and rehabilitation cover is stronger than elsewhere.
  • Group home… Five to nine residents per household. It is a community-based service, so as a rule it is for residents of that city.
  • Fee-based homes and similar… Mostly privately run, with a wide range of cost and facilities. The residency fee is charged separately.

The facility lists are in Japanese.

What the bill is made of

People arrive expecting to pay 10%. That applies to one of these four lines only.

Long-term care insurance applies

Care service fee

Insurance covers 70–90%. You pay 10–30%, by your co-payment rate.

Paid in full by the resident

Accommodation

The room. Varies by whether it is shared or a private unit.

Meals

Charged separately from the care itself.

Daily living costs

Laundry, toiletries, haircuts, incontinence products and so on.

There is relief for two of them

Income and savings can bring meals and accommodation down — that is exactly what the reduced-charge certificate is for. It has to be applied for; nothing happens automatically.

No figures here on purpose: they differ by room type and facility, and they are revised. What does not change is which line the insurance reaches.

When living at home stops working

All four provide care where the person lives. What differs is what each one exists to do — and because of that, who may enter, how long they may stay, and where the application goes.

Asking first is usually faster than visiting

Which type suits depends on the person's condition and on the family's situation together. Before touring facilities, a community support centre can narrow the field for you. Asking is free.

The descriptions here follow the service explanations published by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, which is also the source of the facility data on this site. No cost estimates are given: they vary by room type, by facility and by income. The facility lists are in Japanese.

Find your support centre Official page (Japanese)

Source: the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare · 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.

Other guides

Applying for a care-level certification in Yokohama To use long-term care insurance in Yokohama you first need a care-level certification. Applications go to the Elderly and Disability Support Section of your ward office. Here are the three ways to apply, the documents, and all 18 ward contacts. Read
Surrendering a driving licence, and getting about after Voluntary surrender is handled by the police, not the ward office. In Yokohama, surrendering at 75 or over makes the Keiro Pass free for three years, but the timing decides whether it qualifies. Where to go, what to bring, and what to do about the car. Read
When managing money and contracts becomes difficult Two schemes cover this. Rights protection means the ward Anshin Centre visiting once or twice a month, from 1,250 yen a visit, but only while the person can still sign a contract. After that comes adult guardianship. Read
Caring without leaving your job Family care leave runs to 93 days per relative and can be split into three periods, paid at 67% of wages by employment insurance. Family care days are five a year and can be taken by the hour. Since April 2025 employers must explain this individually. The 93 days are for building an arrangement, not for doing the caring yourself. Read
Where the last days are spent The belief that dying at home means a police investigation is a misunderstanding: if the attending doctor can attribute the death to the illness they were treating, they issue the certificate. What a home arrangement needs, why a decision can be changed, and why to talk about it early. Read
How to apply for a special nursing home in Yokohama In Yokohama you do not apply at the ward office or at each home. All applications go by post to a single city-run reception centre, and admission is decided by assessed need rather than by the order of application. Read
Short stays, so the family can rest Short stays are not only for the person being cared for. The ministry states they exist to reduce the burden on the family, and lists a carer’s illness, family occasions and business trips as reasons to use them. Up to 30 consecutive days, counted inside the monthly ceiling. Read
How the premiums work, and what arrears cost you Everyone pays from the age of 40. At 65 it stops coming out with the health premium and becomes a separate bill from the city, which is where arrears begin. One year and you pay up front and claim back; eighteen months and refunds stop; two years and your own share rises to 30 or 40 percent, with no way to settle the debt. Read
What has to be done afterwards It looks like a lot, but the order is fixed and only the first part is urgent. The death certificate, registration within seven days, the cremation permit, one visit to the ward office, and returning the insurance card within fourteen days. Inheritance is left to the professionals. Read
What a Community Care Plaza does In Yokohama, community support centres are mostly housed in facilities called Community Care Plazas. There are 138 across the city, each covering specific towns, and using one costs nothing. Read
Not carrying it alone The most common way care goes wrong is that one person carries it alone and gives out first. Anonymous phone lines, dementia cafes and carers’ gatherings, and short stays for resting. All free, or covered by the insurance. Read
The monthly ceiling on home-care services Home-based care under the insurance has a monthly ceiling set by care level. The ceiling is defined in service units, not yen, and what a unit is worth depends on the city. Yokohama City is in grade 2, so the real ceiling is higher than the 10-yen-a-unit figure most sites quote. Read
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. Read
Renting and buying assistive equipment Wheelchairs, care beds, handrails, walking frames. The insurance rents rather than sells, except for bathing and toilet aids, which you buy and claim back. Which route applies is set by the item — you get a choice on four of them. Some items are not covered at the lighter care levels. Read