Vaccinations for Children

The City of Hiroshima provides routine vaccinations as prescribed by the Immunization Act. These vaccines are listed in the tables below. Prescribed vaccination periods, schedules, and other procedures are determined by Japanese law.

If you choose to vaccinate your child before or after the stipulated vaccination period, or if you do not follow the vaccination schedule (inoculation intervals and number of doses), the vaccination will be deemed “voluntary.” In these cases, you will be responsible for the full cost of vaccines, and you may not be able to receive compensation under the Immunization Act if your child experiences adverse side effects caused by the vaccine. Try to follow the recommended schedule as closely as possible.

Routine Vaccinations (as prescribed by the Immunization Act)

When you take your child to get vaccinated, please be sure to take your Maternal and Child Health Handbook and a document that can be used as proof of address and age, such as a Health Insurance Card.

Related Information

• Name Stickers for Vaccination Vouchers

Vaccines and When to Get Them (accurate as of April 1, 2019)

Vaccines Before Starting Elementary School

Vaccine: Hib (Japanese)　

Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law
Prescribed Vaccination Period (see Note 1)	Starting Age	Doses	Schedule
From 2 to 60 months old	From 2 to 7 months old	4 shots (3 initial shots, 1 booster shot)	Initial (3 shots)	At intervals of at least 27 days before 12 months old (possibly at 20 to 26 day intervals when deemed necessary by a physician)
			Booster	At least 7 months after the initial shots
	From the day after your child turns 7 to 12 months old	3 shots (2 initial shots, 1 booster shot)	Initial (2 shots)	At intervals of at least 27 days before12 months old (possibly at a 20 to 26 day intervals when deemed necessary by a physician)
			Booster	At least 7 months after the initial shots
	From the day after your child turns 12 to 60 months old	1 shot	Once

Vaccine Vouchers

In Maternal and Child Health Handbooks and available at medical facilities

Notes

It is recommended that you start vaccinating your child when they are between 2 to 6 months old.

When you start vaccinating your child when they are between 2 and 11 months old and if they turn 12 months old before the initial shots are completed, they are required to receive one more shot (booster shot) at least 27 days (possibly 20 to 26 days if a physician deems it necessary) after the final shot.

 Vaccine: Pediatric pneumococcal vaccine (Japanese)

Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law
Prescribed Vaccination Period	Starting Age	Doses	Schedule
From 2 to 60 months old	From 2 to 7 months old	4 shots (3 initial shots, 1 booster shot)	Initial (3 shots)	At intervals of at least 27 days before 24 months old. If your child receives their 2nd shot after they turn 12 months old, the 3rd shot is not required.
			Booster	After your child turns 12 months old, and at least 60 days after completion of the initial shots
	From the day after your child turns 7 months to  12 months old	3 shots (2 initial shots, 1 booster shot	Initial (2 shots)	At intervals of at least 27 days before your child turns 24 months old
			Booster	After your child turns 12 months old, and at least 60 days after completion of the initial shots
	From the day after your child turns 12 months old to 24 months old	2 shots	At intervals of at least 60 days
	From the day after your child turns 24 months old to 60 months old	1 shot	Once

Vaccine Vouchers

In Maternal and Child Health Handbooks and available at medical facilities

Notes

It is recommended that you start vaccinating your child when they are between 2 to 6 months old.

Vaccine: Hepatitis B (Japanese)

Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses and Schedule
Before 1 year old	3 shots 2nd shot to be administered at least 27 days after shot 1 3rd shot to be administered at least 139 days after shot 1	From 2 to 9 months old

 Vaccine Vouchers

Vouchers will be sent to those eligible* and are also in Maternal and Child Health Handbooks

Notes

*Those born after April 1, 2016 

Vaccine: DPT-IPV (Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio) (Japanese) (see Note 2)

Stage	Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
	Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses and Schedule
Stage 1   Initial (3 shots)	From 3 to 90 months old	3 shots at intervals of at least 20 days	Between 3 and 12 months old
Stage 1   Booster		1 shot at least 6 months after the 3 initial shots are completed	From 12 to 18 months old, and after the 3 initial shots are completed

Vaccine Vouchers

In Maternal and Child Health Handbooks and available at medical facilities

Notes

• It is recommended that you start vaccinating your child as soon as possible after they turn 3 months old.
• Children who are confirmed to have had whooping cough can forgo the DPT-IPV vaccine, and get the DT vaccine instead.

Vaccine: Polio (Acute poliomyelitis) (Japanese) (see Note 3)

Stage	Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
	Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses and Schedule
Stage 1   Initial (3 shots)	From 3 to 90 months old	3 shots at intervals of at least 20 days	Between 3 and 12 months old
Stage 1   Booster		1 shot at least 6 months after the 3 initial shots are completed	From 12 to 18 months old, and after the 3 initial shots are completed

 Vaccine Vouchers

Available at medical facilities

Notes

• Children who have received a shot of live vaccine should receive 2 initial shots and 1 booster shot.
• Children who have received 2 live vaccines do not need to receive any additional shots.

Vaccine: Tuberculosis (BCG) (see Note 4)

Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses
Before 1 year old	1 shot	Between 5 and 8 months old

Vaccine Vouchers

In Maternal and Child Health Handbooks

Vaccine: Measles/Rubella (MR)  (see Note 5)

Stage	Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law
	Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses
Stage 1	From 12 to 24 months old	1 shot
Stage 2	During the year before starting elementary school	1 shot

 Vaccine Vouchers

In Maternal and Child Health Handbooks

Notes

• It is recommended that you vaccinate your child with the Stage 1 vaccination as soon as possible after they turn 12 months old.
• You must vaccinate your child with the Stage 2 vaccination between April 1 in the year before starting elementary school and March 31 in the year of starting elementary school.
• Children who have received a gamma globulin injection should be vaccinated at intervals of at least 3 months (or 6 months if they have received massive dose therapy).

Vaccine: Varicella (Chickenpox) (Japanese) (see Note 6)

Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses and Schedule
From 12 to 36 months old	2 shots at intervals of at least 3  months	1st shot: between 12 and 15 months old 2nd shot: at least 6 to 12 months after the 1st shot

Vaccine Vouchers

In Maternal and Child Health Handbooks and available at medical facilities

Notes

• Those who have contracted varicella in the past are not eligible for vaccination.
• If you have been vaccinated in the past, please contact your local health center.
• Children who have received a gamma globulins injection should be vaccinated at intervals of at least 3 months (or 6 months if they have received massive dose therapy).

Vaccine: Japanese Encephalitis (Japanese) (see Note 7)

Stage	Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
	Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses and Schedule
Stage1   Initial (2 shots)	From 6 to 90 months old	2 shots at intervals of at least 6 days	3 years old
Stage 1   Booster		1 shot at least 6 months after the 2 initial shots are completed	4 years old

Vaccine Vouchers

In Maternal and Child Health Handbooks

Notes

• Since April 2010, the government has reissued recommendations to vaccinate against Japanese Encephalitis.
• Those who were born between April 2, 1995 and April 1, 2007 and have not completed full Japanese Encephalitis inoculation may receive special provisions to complete inoculation until they turn 20 years old. For more information, click here (Japanese).

Vaccines After Starting Elementary School 

Vaccine: DT (Diphtheria, Tetanus)

Stage	Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
	Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses
Stage 2	From 11 to 13 years old	1 shot	11 years old

Vaccine Vouchers

Vouchers will be sent to those eligible.

Notes

• DT Pre-Vaccination Screening Questionnaire (Japanese)

Vaccine: Japanese Encephalitis

Stage	Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
	Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses
Stage 2	From 9 to 13 years old	1 shot	9 years old

Vaccine Vouchers

Available at medical facilities.

Vaccine: Cervical Cancer Vaccine (for girls only)

Prescribed Vaccination Period, Schedule, and Other Procedures Determined by Law		Recommended Vaccination Period
Prescribed Vaccination Period	Doses and Schedule
From elementary school grade 6 until high school grade 1	3 shots Cervarix: 2nd shot to be administered at least 1 month after the 1st shot. 3rd shot to be administered at least 5 months after the 1st shot, and at least 2 and a half months after the 2nd shot.   Gardasil: 2nd shot to be administered at least 1 month after the 1st shot. 3rd shot to be administered at least 3 months after the 2nd shot.	Middle school grade 1

Vaccine Vouchers

Available at medical facilities

Notes

Standard Cervical Cancer Vaccination Schedule

Cervarix:

• 2nd shot: 1 month after the 1st shot
• 3rd shot: 6 months after the 1st shot

Gardasil:

• 2nd shot: 2 months after the 1st shot
• 3rd shot: 6 months after the 1st shot

Definitions 

“At intervals of XX days”

The DPT-IPV vaccination calls for the initial shots to be administered “at intervals of at least 20 days.” This means that, if your child is vaccinated on a Tuesday, they can receive the next dose on the Tuesday three weeks later.

“XX months after”

The Cervarix cervical cancer vaccine calls for the 3rd dose to be administered at least 2 and a half months after the 2nd dose. The period of time referred to here as “2 and a half months” differs from month to month. The Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare defines this period of time in the following way:

If the month that comes 2 months later has 31 days, then “half a month” is defined as 16 days; if it has 30 days, 15 days; if it has 29 days, 15 days; and if it has 28 days, 14 days.

Standard Child Vaccination Schedule

Between 2 months and 1 year old	1 year old	3 years old	4 years old	5 years old
Hib (3 initial shots)   Pediatric pneumococcal vaccine (3 initial shots)   Hepatitis B (3 shots)   DPT-IPV (3 initial shots)   BCG (1 shot)	Measles/Rubella (stage 1)   Varicella (2 shots)   Hib (booster shot)   Pediatric pneumococcal vaccine (booster shot)   DPT-IPV (booster shot in stage 1)	Japanese Encephalitis (2 initial shots in stage 1)	Japanese Encephalitis (booster shot in stage 1)	Measles/Rubella (stage 2)

Hiroshima City Vaccination Leaflet (Japanese)

Notes

Note 1: Defining Ages

All ages in the Immunization Act are defined in accordance with the Act for Age Counting and Article 143 of the Civil Code. Under the regulations stipulated in these laws, a person is considered one year older on the day before their birthday. Below are examples illustrating this. Be sure to take this into consideration when you are getting vaccinations.

Example: From 3 to 90 months old = For people born on October 9, this period of time would be defined as spanning from January 8 of the following year until April 8 following their 7th birthday.

Note 2: Information on DPT-IPV

The DPT-IPV vaccine is a combination vaccine that is used to inoculate against four diseases: diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, and polio. This vaccine is the DPT vaccine combined with a polio vaccine.

Note 3: Information on the Polio Vaccination

Since September 2012, the polio vaccination has not been administered during group vaccinations; instead it is administered individually at medical facilities. 

For more information about the polio vaccine, see the following link:

• Get Vaccinated to Stop the Spread of Polio (Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare)＜外部リンク＞ (Japanese)

Note 4: Information on the BCG Vaccination

Since FY 2008, BCG vaccinations have been administered at medical facilities.

Additionally, since April 1, 2013, the prescribed vaccination period changed from “before 6 month old” to “before 1 year old.” The recommended vaccination period was changed from “from 3 to 6 months old” to “from 5 to 8 months old.”

Note 5: Information on the Measles/Rubella (MR) Vaccination

The 3rd and 4th stages of the MR vaccination was a five year temporary measure implemented between FY 2008 and FY 2012. 

• Is your child starting elementary school soon? Be sure to complete the MR Vaccination! (Japanese)

Note 6: Information on the Varicella (chickenpox) Vaccination

Since October 1, 2014, the varicella vaccination has become a routine vaccination.

Those who have contracted varicella (chickenpox) in the past are not eligible for vaccination against the disease.

Additionally, the varicella vaccination schedule changes depending on the age of your child and their varicella vaccination history. See the link below for further information about vaccination schedules, doses, etc.

• Information on the Varicella Vaccination (Japanese)

Note 7: Information on the Japanese Encephalitis Vaccination 

In the past, there were cases of people falling seriously ill after receiving the Japanese encephalitis vaccination (the mouse-brain-derived inactivated vaccine). As a precaution, we refrained from proactively promoting Japanese encephalitis vaccinations from FY 2005 to FY 2009.

However, a new Japanese encephalitis vaccination has since been developed, providing a safe and reliable way to vaccinate against the disease.

Those who were born between April 2, 1995 and April 1, 2007 can receive any and all of the remaining doses from the 4-part Japanese encephalitis vaccination as a routine vaccination before they turn 20 years old.

Check your Maternal and Child Health Handbook and get any vaccines you missed!

See the link below for further information pertaining to those born between April 2, 1995 and April 1, 2007.

• Information on the Japanese Encephalitis Vaccination (Japanese)

Since FY 2010, recipients of the Japanese encephalitis vaccination do not need to pay a portion of the vaccine costs.

Further Information

Medical Facilities Offering Vaccinations

Appointments might be needed to get vaccinated at some medical facilities. Be sure to phone the medical facility in advance.

You can search for medical facilities that offer vaccinations on the Hiroshima Prefecture medical emergency information network, Medical Emergency Net Hiroshima website below.

• Medical Emergency Net Hiroshima Website＜外部リンク＞

If you move to Hiroshima City

Maternal and Child Health Handbook and Vaccination Vouchers issued by the City of Hiroshima are required to get vaccinations in Hiroshima City. Vaccination vouchers are issued by your local ward health center after all necessary paperwork, registrations, and procedures regarding your recent move have been completed at your local ward office’s Citizens Affairs Division or branch office. Be sure to bring along your Maternal and Child Health Handbook to obtain vaccination vouchers.

If you were registered as a resident in Hiroshima City in the past and already have vaccination vouchers, you will still need to complete all necessary procedures. For more information, please inquire at your local ward health center.

If you move out of Hiroshima City

City-issued vaccination vouchers can only be used by those who are registered as residents of the City at the time of inoculation. If you move out of the City of Hiroshima’s jurisdiction, you will no longer be able to use these vaccination vouchers.

For information about vaccinations, please inquire at your local government office for your new address.

Reissuing Vaccination Vouchers and Getting Vaccinated at Medical Facilities Outside Hiroshima City

If you lose a vaccination voucher and need it reissued, please go to your local ward health center.

There are certain procedures you must follow if you would like to get vaccinations at medical facilities outside of Hiroshima City. If you would like to get vaccinations at a medical facility located within Hiroshima Prefecture, it is possible to do so free of charge with Hiroshima Wider Area Vaccination Vouchers.

If you would like to get vaccinations at a medical facility not located within Hiroshima Prefecture, please inquire at your local ward health center about partial financial support(Japanese).

• Click here to download the Application for Vaccination Voucher Reissue, etc (PDF) (Japanese)

Ward Health Centers 

Name	Address	Telephone Number
Naka Health Center Longevity and Health Services Division (in the Naka Ward Community Welfare Center)	Ote-machi 4-1-1	504-2528
Higashi Health Center Community Support Division (in the Higashi Ward General Welfare Center)	Higashi-kaniya-cho 9-34	568-7729
Minami Health Center Longevity and Health Services Division (in the Minami Ward Office Annex)	Minami-machi 1-4-46	250-4108
Nishi Health Center Longevity and Health Services Division (in the Nishi Ward Community Welfare Center)	Fukushima-cho 2-24-1	294-6235
Asaminami Health Center Longevity and Health Services Division (in the Asaminami Ward General Welfare Center)	Nakasu 1-38-13	831-4942
Asakita Health Center Longevity and Health Services Division (in the Asakita Ward General Welfare Center)	Kabe 3-19-22	819-0586
Aki Health Center Longevity and Health Services Division (in the Aki Ward General Welfare Center)	Funakoshi-minami 3-2-16	821-2809
Saeki Health Center Longevity and Health Services Division (in the Saeki Ward Office Annex)	Kairoen 1-4-5	943-9731

Laws and Ordinances Regarding Immunization (Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Administrative　Management Bureau Law and Ordinances Data Provision Links) 

• Immunization Act (Japanese)＜外部リンク＞
• Immunization Act Enforcement Order (Japanese)＜外部リンク＞
• Immunization Act Enforcement Regulations (Japanese)＜外部リンク＞
• Immunization Act Implementation Rules (Japanese)＜外部リンク＞

Hiroshima Child Care Support App 

The City of Hiroshima has developed a Child Care Support smartphone app to help support new parents. Keep track of your maternal health, your child’s health, and fetus and child development; manage vaccination schedules; and get loads of information about events for kids, child care support facilities in the city, and so much more. (The Hiroshima Child Care Support App is only available in Japanese.)

• Hiroshima Child Care Support App (The City of Hiroshima Website) (Japanese)
• Download the Hiroshima Child Care Support App Leaflet (Japanese)

Inquiries regarding this page

Preventive Medical Services Section, Health Promotion Division , Health Department, Health and Welfare Bureau

1-6-34 Kokutaiji-machi, Naka-ku, Hiroshima City
Tel: 082-504-2622 // Fax: 082-504-2258
Email: k-suishin@city.hiroshima.lg.jp