Value Village ／ Everyday know-how
This answer is a draft. It stays unpublished until legal review and source verification are complete.
Visitors notice the wrapping and the bowing and conclude that Japanese gift-giving is about ceremony. Households experience it as a calendar of obligations with fairly precise budgets — and a set of rules about what not to give that are practical, not mystical.
| Occasion | When | Typical amount | To whom |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ochūgen (mid-year) | Early to mid-July (August in some regions) | ¥3,000–5,000 | Bosses, in-laws, mentors, doctors |
| Oseibo (year-end) | Early to 20 December | ¥3,000–5,000, slightly higher than ochūgen | same |
| Wedding gift (cash, goshūgi) | At the reception | ¥30,000 (friend), ¥50,000–100,000 (relative) | Odd numbers, new notes |
| Condolence money (kōden) | At the funeral | ¥5,000–10,000 (acquaintance), more for relatives | Odd or set amounts, used notes |
| Okaeshi (return gift) | Within about a month | about half (hangaeshi) of what was received | To the giver |
| Temiyage (visiting gift) | When visiting a home | ¥1,000–3,000, consumable | Host |
[Verify] Amounts are ranges reported in etiquette surveys (e.g. by the All Japan Gift Association and department stores) and shift with prices; participation rates with the latest surveys.
An oversized gift creates a debt the receiver must repay at half value. Proportion is the courtesy. For a first visit, a ¥1,000–2,000 box of local sweets is exactly right.
The paper and cord encode the occasion. A re-tieable bow on a wedding gift reads as "may this happen again". Shops wrap correctly if you tell them the purpose — ask for the occasion-appropriate noshi.
For weddings, funerals, births and children's New Year (otoshidama), cash in the correct envelope is the norm, in the correct condition: new notes for celebrations, used notes for funerals (new ones imply you were prepared for the death).
Avoid sets of four or nine (homophones for death and suffering), knives and scissors (cutting ties), combs (ku-shi, another death homophone) and, for hospital visits, potted plants ("taking root" in the illness) and camellias (heads drop). Consumables — sweets, tea, coffee, fruit, sake — are the safe default.
A gift may be politely declined once or twice before acceptance; likewise the recipient may not open it in front of you. Neither is rejection. Present it with both hands, mention modestly that it is a small thing ("tsumaranai mono desu ga" is old-fashioned; "kokoro bakari desu ga" is current).
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https://www.bunka.go.jp/english/
https://www.gift.or.jp/
https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/etiquette/
⚠️ 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.
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.
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