We Just Launched Childcare in Japan

If you're raising children in Japan, you already know how hard it is to find reliable information in English. Prenatal checkups, birth registration, daycare applications, the school system, vaccination schedules — most of it is only available in Japanese, and navigating it without fluent Japanese is exhausting.

Where It All Started

Back in 2019, I launched the first version of this site — then called Childcare Japan. It was a Beta, rough around the edges, but the need was real. International parents kept asking the same questions: How do I register my newborn? How does nursery school enrollment work? What vaccines does my child need in Japan?

Life got busy, and around 2022 I had to close the site. But the feeling never left — the desire to make life a little easier for international families in Japan by providing clear, English-language information about raising children here. So I rebuilt it from scratch, updated everything, and relaunched it as Childcare in Japan.

Why This Matters to Me

Japan has genuinely good support systems for families — but almost none of it is explained in English. If you can't read Japanese, you end up relying on word of mouth, outdated forum posts, or just guessing. That gap is what this site is trying to close.

It's not about translation. It's about making sure that people raising children in Japan have access to the same information as everyone else — clearly explained, in plain English, so nothing important gets missed.

What It Covers

The site covers the full journey from pregnancy through primary school, organized into six categories:

Written for People Living in Japan

Every article is written in English and based on official Japanese sources — primarily こども家庭庁 (the Children and Families Agency) and 厚生労働省 (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). We don't guess or paraphrase. We explain how things actually work, in plain English, with the Japanese terms included so you know exactly what to ask for at the ward office or clinic.

A Sister Site to Life Abroad

Childcare in Japan is a sister site to Life Abroad — same team, same approach. We've been building English resources for people living in Japan since 2017. Childcare is one of the most asked-about topics we'd never fully covered — until now.

If you're expecting, or have recently had a baby in Japan, head over and take a look. If you know another parent raising children in Japan, share it with them. Word of mouth is everything for a new site.