Using a My Number card as your National Health Insurance card

Using the card at a clinic

At a clinic or pharmacy, the card reader connects to the online eligibility system, which checks your coverage. The IC chip does not record your visits or medication history. Clinics and pharmacies do not keep your card.

What the card gives you

• Medication and specific health check information is shared with the clinic automatically, so treatment can be based on accurate information. You must agree to share your information.
• Without applying for a certificate of limit for high-cost medical care, you do not pay above the self-payment limit under the high-cost medical expense system.
• My Portal shows your coverage, specific health check, medication and medical expense information. It also makes the medical expense deduction easier at tax filing.

If your insurance details change, it can take a few days to a week for the change to appear.

Other ways to register

• Bring the My Number card and the 4-digit PIN set when the card was issued.
• Register at any participating clinic or pharmacy, including one you have not used before.
• Registration is also possible with a smartphone or computer and an IC card reader that supports My Number cards, or at a Seven Bank ATM (for example in a Seven-Eleven store).

Without a My Number card

If you do not have a My Number card, see the ward's guide to applying for a card for the first time.

Electronic certificate expiry

The electronic certificate on the card expires on the fifth birthday after issue. The date is printed on the card; if it is not, check My Portal. For three months after the end of the month in which it expires, the card can still be used as your health insurance card. In that period a clinic can check only your coverage, not your treatment or medication information. The same three months apply when the card itself expires. For renewal, see the ward's guide to renewing the electronic certificate.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare leaflet on checking the expiry date when using the card as health insurance is available.

Using a smartphone

Since 19 September 2025, a smartphone can be used as your health insurance card. Add the registered My Number card to the smartphone and hold the phone over the reader; you do not need to take the card out. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare website has a search page for participating clinics and pharmacies.

Eligibility certificate

After you register the card, your eligibility certificate can still be used. With the certificate, you can receive insured care even without the card.

Keep your PIN private

Do not tell your PIN to anyone. A person who gets your card could use it to read your medical information on My Portal. If you lose the card, report it so that it can be suspended.