Is a Refund Available if the Shinkansen is Delayed by 1 Hour and 50 Minutes? What Should You Do When Your Train is Delayed?

When the Shinkansen is delayed by two hours or more from the scheduled time, the limited express ticket (tokkyu-ken) will be refunded.

In this article, we explain how to get a refund when the delay exceeds two hours, and why there are cases where no refund is given even if the delay is two hours.

No Refund for Shinkansen Delays of 1 Hour and 50 Minutes

If the Shinkansen is delayed by two hours or more from the scheduled time, you can request a refund for the limited express ticket.

Only the Limited Express Ticket is Refunded

To ride the Shinkansen, you need two types of tickets: a basic fare ticket and a limited express ticket (which can be a non-reserved seat, reserved seat, Green Car, or Gran Class limited express ticket).

Please note that only the limited express ticket is eligible for a refund.

On the other hand, the basic fare ticket is the cost for transportation itself, so you must pay this even if there is a delay.

How Do You Get a Refund for the Limited Express Ticket?

If the Shinkansen is delayed by two hours or more, when you pass through the Shinkansen-exclusive ticket gates or the transfer gates between the Shinkansen and conventional lines, insert both your limited express ticket and your basic fare ticket.

Your limited express ticket will be returned to you.

If the returned limited express ticket has “Refund" (払戻) stamped in red, it means you are eligible for a refund.

Refunds Are Processed at the Ticket Gate or Midori-no-Madoguchi (JR Ticket Office)

If you bring your ticket with the “delay" stamp as proof, you can receive a refund at the station ticket gate or the Midori-no-Madoguchi (JR ticket office).

Even if you do not have time to process the refund on the day of travel, you can still receive a refund at a later date within this period.

However, please note that your ticket must have the “refund" stamp to be eligible.

When You Board with a Non-Reserved Seat Limited Express Ticket

If there is a delay of two hours or more with a non-reserved seat, please go to a staffed ticket gate at your destination station—not the automatic ticket gate—and inform the staff about the delay.

You will need to have the delay certified by the staff there.

If You’re Unsure, Consult a Staffed Ticket Counter

There are times when the delay is right around the two-hour mark.

If you are unsure whether the automatic ticket gate will stamp your ticket with “delay," or if you have any concerns, be sure to consult a station staff member at a staffed ticket counter.

Cases Where No Refund Is Given Even with a 2-Hour Delay

You may think that you are eligible for a refund because the train was delayed by about two hours. However, there are cases where a refund is not granted.

Even if passengers believe the delay is two hours, the railway company may record it as, for example, 1 hour, 59 minutes, and 45 seconds. In that case, since it is 15 seconds short of two hours, you would not be eligible for a refund.

Reference: Shinkansen Services Are Frequently Restored Within Two Hours

If the delay exceeds two hours, the limited express fare becomes eligible for a refund, so railway companies make every effort to resolve issues as quickly as possible.

Additionally, even when there are train delays, the companies strive to keep the delay to around 1 hour and 50 minutes at most. Therefore, delays of more than two hours are actually quite rare.

Q&A About Delays of Over Two Hours