Mental Health Licensing & Regulation in Japan: 2025 Guide

If you are seeking mental-health support in Japan, for yourself or for a family member, it helps to know which qualifications the law itself recognises, and what the law demands of the physicians the state designates for psychiatric care. This guide sets out what Japan's statutes say on both points, drawing on the official English translations where they exist and on the Japanese original where they do not, and what you can reasonably ask.

How mental-health care is regulated in Japan, in short

The central statute is the Act on Mental Health and Welfare for Persons with Mental Disorders or Disabilities. It is a welfare and care statute as much as a medical one.

The Act states its own aim: to advance the welfare of people living with mental disorders or disabilities, and to improve the mental health of citizens. It does that by providing for their medical care and protection, and by providing aid to promote their social reintegration, independence and participation in socio-economic activities.²

The Act works in combination with the statute providing comprehensive support for the daily life and social life of persons with disabilities, so mental-health care is deliberately tied into the wider disability-support system.

The qualifications the law itself names

Japan recognises several distinct mental-health qualifications, and one useful way to see which ones the law itself requires is to look at the posts it regulates. The Child Welfare Act does exactly that when it sets who may direct a child guidance centre.

It requires the director to be a person falling under one of seven listed categories:³

• a physician having knowledge and experience concerning mental health;³
• a person who has completed a university department specialised in psychology, or an equivalent course;
• a certified social worker;
• a certified mental health social worker;
• a certified public psychologist;
• a person who has worked, or used to work, as a child welfare officer for two years or more, or as an employee of a child guidance centre for two years or more after obtaining the child welfare officer qualification;
• a person found to have ability equivalent or superior to those listed, where an Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare specifies it.

That list is the state naming the qualifications it recognises for that role. The certified public psychologist appears there as a recognised national qualification, alongside the two social-work qualifications and the medical route.³

The same provision adds a further requirement. A director of a child guidance centre must also receive training conforming to standards specified by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare.

One limit applies to this guide. The Act that created the certified public psychologist qualification does not appear in the Ministry of Justice's official English translation database. The examination requirements and the procedure for registering are not set out here.

The designated mental health physician

Japan's mental-health statute is precise about who may become a designated mental health physician. The requirements the Act sets for that designation are demanding.

The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare designates a physician as a designated mental health physician on application,⁴ and only where that physician meets every one of the statutory requirements.

The Act sets out the required experience. A candidate needs five or more years of experience in diagnosis or medical treatment. On top of that, they need three or more years of experience in the diagnosis or medical treatment of mental disorders or disabilities. They must also have experience of the degree specified by the Minister in the kinds of case the Minister specifies.⁴

Training is the final requirement. The physician must have completed a training course offered by a person registered by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare. The Minister must also find that they have the knowledge and skills necessary to perform the duties the Act assigns to designated physicians⁴ under Article 19-4.

The Act also limits when that training may have been taken. The course must have been offered within one year before the application.

The Act also provides for the designation to be taken away. Where a physician has had it revoked under Article 19-2, the Minister may decline to designate them again until five years have passed.

The designation carries defined duties. Under Article 19-4, a designated physician judges whether a person needs to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital or to remain in one,⁵ whether restrictions on a hospitalised person's activities are necessary, and whether a temporary discharge is appropriate.

Under Article 29, a prefectural governor may admit a person who has a mental disorder or disability and who is at risk of harming themselves or others unless admitted for medical care and protection.⁵ At least two designated physicians chosen by the governor must examine that person and reach the same conclusion before the governor may act. Under Article 36, the administrator of a psychiatric hospital may restrict a hospitalised person's activities only to the extent essential for that person's medical care and protection. Correspondence, and visits from prefectural or other administrative staff, may not be restricted.

Japan's national psychology qualification, and the title the Act protects

The passages quoted in this section are taken from the Japanese original of the Act.

Japan has a national psychology qualification, the Certified Public Psychologist, in Japanese 公認心理師, created by an Act of 2015. That Act says its purpose is to establish that qualification, "公認心理師の資格を定めて",¹ so that the work is properly conducted.

The qualification is a registration, not a diploma. What the Act protects is the name. A 公認心理師 is defined as someone who has taken the registration under Article 28, "第二十八条の登録を受け". They then work using that name across health care, welfare, education and other fields, "保健医療、福祉、教育その他の分野において".¹

What the name tells you

The Act restricts the name twice over. A person who is not registered may not call themselves a 公認心理師: "公認心理師でない者は、公認心理師という名称を使用してはならない".¹

It then goes further. A person who is not registered may not use the characters 心理師 in their title at all, "その名称中に心理師という文字を用いてはならない".¹ So those characters are the signal, wherever they sit in the name. A title ending in 心理師 points to the national register. A title ending in 心理士 does not, and that single character is the difference. The check works on the written title, so if you are given a title aloud, ask how it is written.

The registration can be revoked under the Act, or use of the name and of the characters 心理師 suspended for a set period, "期間を定めて公認心理師の名称及びその名称中における心理師という文字の使用の停止を命ずる".¹

The Act also imposes a continuing duty: a 公認心理師 must work to improve their knowledge and skills as the environment around people's mental health changes, "知識及び技能の向上に努めなければならない".¹

What this means when you are choosing care

Two practical points follow. First, the qualification names in this guide are the ones the state itself uses. It is reasonable to ask a practitioner which of them they hold, rather than relying on a general description like counsellor or therapist. The provisions quoted in this guide restrict the use of a name. A person who is not registered may not call themselves a 公認心理師, and may not use the characters 心理師 in their title. They do not, on their own, set out who may offer psychological help.

Second, Japan's mental-health statute creates a distinct ministerial designation, the designated mental health physician,⁴ with the experience and training requirements set out above. Asking whether a doctor holds that designation is a fair and specific question.

How to check a practitioner, and the rights of a hospitalised person

For a psychiatrist, or any physician, there is also a check you can run yourself. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare runs a qualification search covering physicians and dentists currently registered with the Ministry, searched by the full name in kanji with a space between family name and given name.⁶ The results show the profession, name, registration year and, where one applies, current administrative disciplinary action.⁶ The search is at licenseif.mhlw.go.jp.

The Act also gives a hospitalised person a route to challenge the decision. When a prefectural governor orders admission, the person must be given information about the request for discharge or other measures under Article 38-4.⁵

It is also worth remembering what the Act is for. Its aims run to reintegration, independence and participation in social and economic life, so questions about what happens after a period of care are squarely within what the system is meant to address.

See also our guide to academic credentials for mental-health professionals in Japan. If you are looking for a practitioner, you can browse therapists in Japan on our directory and filter by language and fee.

Quick reference

Team TherapyRoute

References

1. [1] Act on Certified Public Psychologists (公認心理師法), Act No. 68 of 16 September 2015. Article 1 states the purpose as establishing the qualification of the 公認心理師. Article 2 defines a 公認心理師 as a person who has received the registration under Article 28 and, using that name, works in health care, welfare, education and other fields with specialist psychological knowledge and skill. Article 3 lists the disqualifications. Article 43 imposes a duty to keep knowledge and skills current. Article 44 provides that a person who is not a 公認心理師 must not use that name, and must not use the characters 心理師 in their title. Article 32 allows registration to be revoked or the use of the name suspended for a period. elaws.e-gov.go.jp/document.
2. [2] Act on Mental Health and Welfare for Persons with Mental Disorders or Disabilities (Japan, official English translation) - the purpose of the Act and the duties it places on national and local government for the welfare and social reintegration of persons with mental disorders or disabilities. japaneselawtranslation.go.jp.
3. [3] Child Welfare Act (Japan; official English translation, Japanese Law Translation, Ministry of Justice) - Article 12-3: the qualifications a director of a child guidance center must hold, which include a physician with mental-health knowledge and experience, a certified social worker, a certified mental health social worker, and a certified public psychologist. japaneselawtranslation.go.jp.
4. [4] Act on Mental Health and Welfare for Persons with Mental Disorders or Disabilities (Japan, Act No. 123 of 1950; official English translation, Japanese Law Translation, Ministry of Justice) - Article 18: the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare designates a physician as a designated mental health physician, requiring five or more years of experience in diagnosis or medical treatment, three or more years in mental disorders or disabilities, and completion of a registered training course. japaneselawtranslation.go.jp.
5. [5] 精神保健及び精神障害者福祉に関する法律 (Mental Health and Welfare Act), official English translation — Articles 19-4, 29, 36 japaneselawtranslation.go.jp.
6. [6] 厚生労働省 医師等資格確認検索システム (MHLW physician qualification search) — usage notes: searches physicians and dentists currently registered with the Ministry by full kanji name; results show profession, name, registration year and current administrative disciplinary information. licenseif.mhlw.go.jp.