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Guide

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.

The ceiling by care level

Care level Monthly ceiling At 10 yen a unit Your 10% of that
Support Level 1 5,032 units 50,320 yen 5,032 yen
Support Level 2 10,531 units 105,310 yen 10,531 yen
Care Level 1 16,765 units 167,650 yen 16,765 yen
Care Level 2 19,705 units 197,050 yen 19,705 yen
Care Level 3 27,048 units 270,480 yen 27,048 yen
Care Level 4 30,938 units 309,380 yen 30,938 yen
Care Level 5 36,217 units 362,170 yen 36,217 yen

Yokohama City is in grade 2

A unit is not 10 yen here. In Yokohama City it is 10.72–11.12 yen, depending on the service, so the real ceiling is roughly 7.2–11.2% higher than the yen column above. Most sites quote the 10-yen figure without saying this.

Anything above the ceiling is paid in full by the user — the insurance does not cover the excess.

What this ceiling does not cover

Living in a facility

Care in a nursing home is charged per day and sits outside this ceiling entirely.

Home modifications

A separate allowance of 200,000 yen, counted on its own.

Buying equipment

Specified items have their own annual allowance.

The unit figures are national and have been unchanged since October 2019. What varies by city is the yen a unit is worth.

The ceiling is in units, not yen

Every service under the insurance carries a number of units. How many units you may use in a month is capped by your care level — that cap is the monthly ceiling.

What a unit is worth in yen depends on the city and on the type of service. You will often see a figure like "362,170 yen for Care Level 5". That is the national calculation at ten yen a unit. In urban areas a unit is worth more than ten yen, so the real ceiling is higher.

You are not meant to use it all

The ceiling is a limit, not a target. You pay 10–30% of what you actually use, not of the ceiling. What to use, and how much, is decided with your care manager or a community support centre.

What happens if you go over

Anything above the ceiling is paid in full by you. The insurance does not cover the excess. A care plan is normally built to stay inside the limit, so talk to your care manager in advance if you need more in a particular month.

The unit figures are national and set by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. What a unit is worth is set by the city's grade, and the current grades run from April 2024 to March 2027.

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.

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