Fertility Clinics in Tokyo for Women and Men Made Simple

Fertility can be a difficult subject to talk about, and even more difficult to ask others for advice. There’s a stigma for both women and men that fertility treatment is a last resort, as the majority are able to get pregnant naturally. This is decidedly not the case. With all fertility clinics in Tokyo beyond capacity, thereby requiring 6-month-in-advance reservations or resorting to lotteries in choosing who will be allowed to start, there is a strong demand for fertility treatments.

Table of Contents

1. Fertility Clinics in Tokyo
   • Initial Check
2. IUI
   • IUI Grant
3. IVF
   • Stage 1
   • Stage 2
   • Stage 3
   • IVF Cost Chart
   • IVF Grant
4. Conclusion

Fertility Clinics in Tokyo

Tokyo has a number of fertility clinics available, each with a different system for admitting new patients. Most of these fertility clinics are oriented towards female fertility, with minor support for male fertility. Many of these clinics will refer people to a male fertility clinic during the process.

Fertility clinics require multiple, near-weekly visits for the duration of the treatment. Choosing one near your home or workplace, or one that has late hours, is essential in successfully completing treatment. Additionally, some of the listed clinics do not officially provide English support. Many doctors have some level of English speaking skills, and if you or your partner are confident in Japanese, this may not be a concern.

Here is a short list of Tokyo-based fertility clinics, some with English-speaking services: 

• *Fertility Clinic Tokyo (Shibuya, Tokyo)
• *Kiba Park Clinic (Koto, Tokyo)
• Shinjuku ART Clinic (Shinjuku, Tokyo)
• Megumi Clinic (Ogikubo, Tokyo)
  *provides services in English

Japan lacks the widespread support for families that differ from a single male partner and a single female partner. If your family differs from this, some fertility clinics in Tokyo (and Japan in general) may be unable to provide services. A large hurdle for many clinics is if you and your partner do not have documents showing that you are family. Many clinics also lack the support for single-parents that are seeking fertility treatments. The laws are changing, but at a much slower pace than in other countries. Please contact the clinics directly to learn about their requirements.

Initial Check

Once you have chosen a clinic and made a reservation, you will need to go in for an initial checkup. This involves a full medical examination for the (future) mother, and a semen sample check for the (future) father. Depending on the clinic, this sample may need to be taken at the clinic. Or, if you live nearby, you may be able to bring the semen sample if collected within the past hour. This process is covered by national health insurance, but you can expect to pay ¥20,000 or more for the initial checkup and consultation.

IUI

Doctors will likely recommend IUI (intrauterine insemination), or 人工受精 (じんこうじゅせい – jinkoujusei), for couples to try first. This non-surgical procedure involves 

1. the mother taking some preparatory supplements
2. a semen sample collected from the father
3. healthy semen cells being chosen
4. the semen cells being placed in the mother

It is recommended that couples try IUI at least 5 to 6 times before IVF is offered as an available treatment. These treatments will be timed around the mother’s monthly cycles, so they can only be done about once per month.

IUI will typically cost ¥16,500 per try, in addition to extra checkup fees. Supplements and hormone medications will also be prescribed, costing an additional ¥20,000 per month. These costs are after insurance has been applied.

During this time, if it is found that the father needs to be referred to a men’s fertility clinic, treatment for the father will begin. Unfortunately, insurance cannot be applied to men’s fertility treatments. Monthly visits cost around ¥20,000, with monthly hormone medicine costing an additional ¥15,000. On the initial visit, and every two months after, the clinic will request a semen sample check and blood check for hormone levels. These typically cost ¥15,000 and ¥25,000 respectively.

IUI Grant

After multiple unsuccessful IUI treatments, or after a successful IUI treatment, Tokyo has a ¥50,000 grant available for families. This requires documentation from the fertility clinic. Most clinics can offer guidance on how to file for the grant.

IVF

IVF (in vitro fertilization), or 体外受精 (たいがいじゅせい – taigaijusei), will be recommended after the 5th or 6th unsuccessful IUI treatment. This involves surgery for the mother under general anesthesia. IVF can be broken into three stages.

Stage 1

As part of a normal checkup, the quality and quantity of eggs available will be checked. If an adequate amount is found, the initial surgery will be scheduled. During this time, medicine will be prescribed to the mother to increase her production of eggs. This cost is included with those listed in stage 2.

Stage 2

The mother will need to schedule a half day for surgery and will be requested to use the rest of the day to recover. The mother will be given a general anesthesia, and eggs will be collected. The number of eggs varies from person to person. The eggs will then be inseminated with the semen sample provided by the father. 

From here, there are two options available to parents. First, the semen can be spread over the eggs, effectively similar to how this interaction would happen in the body. Or, for an additional cost, healthy sperm cells can be selected and directly injected into the eggs. Different clinics have different pricing policies, but the additional cost is typically ¥10,000 per egg.

The eggs are then incubated for a limited time, and then frozen. From the total number of eggs inseminated, clinics will look at the quality of the embryos and decide which can be returned to the mother’s body. If none of the eggs are healthy enough to be returned, the process has to start all over again from stage 1.

Stage 2 will typically cost ¥300,000 each time.

Stage 3

If enough embryos are found to be healthy enough to be returned, the clinic will select the healthiest single egg to be returned. For the first time, regardless of how many embryos are healthy, only a single egg can be returned to the mother’s body. On subsequent procedures, two eggs at a time can be returned.

The egg will need to be carefully brought to an appropriate temperature to be returned to the mother.

The return process is non-surgical, and is similar to IUI. The process and associated medication costs an additional ¥300,000. The remaining frozen eggs will be kept for up to a year, but this can be extended with an additional fee.

If the returned egg does not result in a pregnancy and the clinic still has some viable embryos from the mother, stage 3 can be repeated for an additional ¥300,000 fee. If no other embryos are viable, the process has to start over from stage 1.

IVF Cost Chart

Stage	Move to Next Stage	Repeat Current Stage	Restart Process	Cost
Stage 1	Enough healthy eggs are produced in the mother’s body	There are not enough healthy eggs produced in the mother’s body	NA	Standard checkup fee (~¥20,000)
Stage 2	Healthy eggs are removed, inseminated, and embryos develop	NA	Embryos do not develop	¥300,000
Stage 3	Healthy embryos are returned to the mother and result in pregnancy	The embryos do not result in pregnancy, but there are viable embryos still available	The embryos do not result in pregnancy, and there are no more viable embryos available	¥300,000

IVF Grant

For a single pass from stage 1 to stage 3 in the IVF process, the Tokyo government will provide a grant of up to ¥300,000. For subsequent tries, the amount that can be applied for decreases. Please consult your clinic for more information on the required documentation and filing process.

Conclusion

Fertility treatment is a long and expensive process. For a couple to go through the entire process, from IUI 6 times with male fertility treatment to a single pass through the IVF process, they can expect to pay a minimum of ¥1,250,000 over the course of 9 months before grants are applied. 

Japan has several changes on the horizon to encourage more births and offer more support for fertility treatment – for both women and men. It is not an easy decision to make, but there is support available. What may be more reassuring is knowing that many other people have gone through the same experience.

Need help with figuring out life in Tokyo? Our Tokyo 101 guides take the stress out of navigating life in Japan’s capital.

Featured photo by Jonathan Sanchez on Unsplash