What to carry
What you must carry in your car in Japan
A hire car does not always come with these. Check the boot before you drive away. Every item links to the official source it was checked against, with the date.
Required by law
What you must carry in the car
- Warning triangle
Japan does not make you carry a first aid kit, a vest or a fire extinguisher in a car. What the law does require is that if your car stops on an expressway because of a breakdown, you must set out a warning device where drivers coming up behind can see it. There is a daytime version and a reflective night version, and the night version must be used in a tunnel or wherever you can see less than 200 metres. So the car needs one on board before you join an expressway. Check the boot of a hire car before you set off.
Checked 9 Sep 2026 · official source
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Winter equipment
Tyres and chains are equipment too, and the rules usually apply only between set dates or on signed roads.
Snow chains
Required where signs say so
In exceptional snowfall the transport ministry can impose a chain rule on 14 named sections of expressway and main road, mostly mountain passes. In those sections chains are compulsory on the driven wheels and winter tyres alone are not enough — a car on studless winter tyres with no chains is turned back. The rest of the time chains are optional. Signs also exist that close a road to vehicles without chains.
Checked 9 Sep 2026 · official source