Value Village ／ Before you come to Japan

What are the emergency numbers in Japan, and what is a kōban?

This answer is a draft. It stays unpublished until legal review and source verification are complete.

Japan's emergency numbers are not 911 or 112, most operators speak limited English, and the police are organised around 6,000 neighbourhood police boxes (kōban) that handle everything from lost wallets to directions. Knowing which number does what, and that the kōban is the place to go for almost anything, changes how a bad moment in Japan turns out.

The numbers

• Calling from a mobile: 110 and 119 work from a locked screen (emergency call button) as long as the phone has an active SIM/eSIM — unlike in many countries, Japanese networks do not accept emergency calls from a phone with no SIM; if you have no working line, use a public payphone (emergency calls are free, press the red button on older phones) or ask a shop to call. Your location: read the address on a utility pole or vending machine (all carry a block address), a shop name, or the "Emergency" location number on train platforms.
• What to say if no interpreter: "Keisatsu / kyūkyū onegai shimasu. Basho wa [place] desu." Keep the line open; the operator can trace many calls.

The kōban

• About 6,200 kōban (urban) and 6,000 chūzaisho (rural, officer lives in) nationwide; staffed 24 hours in cities. The red lamp and "KOBAN" sign mark them.
• Use them for: lost property (the system that returns most wallets — see the lost-property article), directions (officers keep detailed local maps), a minor accident or dispute, feeling unsafe, a lost child, someone drunk or ill, reporting a crime.
• Etiquette: walk in; no appointment. Officers will ask for ID (passport) for reports. A lost-item report (ishitsu todoke) takes 10 minutes and is what you need for insurance and for the finder's report to match.
• What kōban don't do: issue documents, handle visas, or provide medical help — they will call an ambulance if needed.
• Police powers: officers may ask for your passport (you must carry it as a visitor) and stop-and-question (shokumu shitsumon) is legal; cooperate politely — it is usually about a bicycle or a missing sticker.
• Carry: passport, hotel card with address in Japanese, travel-insurance number, your embassy's number. Embassies help with lost passports and arrests, not with medical bills.

[Verify] Kōban and chūzaisho counts with the NPA; #7119 coverage areas with the FDMA; the JNTO hotline number with the JNTO page.

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Sources

• National Police Agency — How to call the police (110) and the kōban system

https://www.npa.go.jp/english/

• Fire and Disaster Management Agency — Calling 119 in Japan (multilingual guide)

https://www.fdma.go.jp/en/

• Japan National Tourism Organization — Japan Visitor Hotline and emergency information

https://www.japan.travel/en/plan/emergencies/

⚠️ Editorial note: the source URLs above were identified by search. Our working environment cannot reach go.jp domains, so the contents have not been checked against the text. Verify every source before publication and record who checked it and when.

About this article

What we share here are ideas and everyday practices passed down among people living in Japan, together with general information drawn from public sources. They are not official recommendations, and they are not professional instruction. Practices vary between households and regions.

This is general information. Results vary from person to person and depend on your own conditions and surroundings.

Please decide for yourself, using your own judgement, whether any of this suits your situation. We cannot accept responsibility for any damage, loss or injury arising from following this article.

Rules and procedures change. Please confirm the latest official information before you act.

Sources

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