Houterasu Support Dial: phone number and hours

• Email inquiries

  Accepted 24 hours a day through a dedicated form; information on legal systems and consultation services is sent back by email. A reply takes several days and is available in Japanese only. If it is urgent, calling is recommended.

• Multilingual Information Service

  0570-078-377

  With an interpreter, it provides information on legal systems and consultation services in English, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Nepali, Thai and Indonesian. Weekdays 9:00–17:00 (closed on public holidays and over the New Year holidays). From IP phones and prepaid mobile phones, call 050-3754-5430. The service is free, but call charges apply.

• Crime Victim Support Dial

  0120-079-714

  For people who have been victims of crime and their families, it explains the flow of criminal procedures and the support systems and helplines available, and in some cases can introduce lawyers experienced in supporting crime victims. Weekdays 9:00–21:00, Saturdays 9:00–17:00.

• Calls are answered by Houterasu Support Dial operators. It is not a service where specialists such as lawyers or judicial scriveners answer, and it does not introduce specialists either.
• It takes a wide range of inquiries, both civil and criminal, and you can use it even if you are not sure the matter is a legal problem. People calling on someone else's behalf and minors can also use it.
• If you wish to use Houterasu's free legal consultation, they check the requirements and other details and then transfer your call to the Houterasu district office in your area (free legal consultation has certain requirements).
• The service is free, and what you discuss is kept confidential. Calls are recorded to improve the quality of service.
• They do not call you back, and you cannot choose an operator. Even if you have called before, they will ask about your situation again.

• Navi Dial (0570-078-374) cannot be called from IP phones, prepaid mobile phones or overseas. Call 03-6745-5600 instead.
• For consultations in languages other than Japanese, call the Multilingual Information Service (0570-078-377).
• Calls are not accepted on Sundays, public holidays or over the New Year holidays.

Your municipality (city, ward, town or village) also has counters for welfare, health and child-rearing concerns. Call the main number, explain what you want to discuss, and ask for the counter in charge.