Japanese symbol for “reimbursement”

返済

へんさい

Romaji: hensai

repayment; reimbursement; refund; redemption

In Japanese, reimbursement is 返済, read へんさい (hensai).

Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.

Meanings

n, vs, vt repayment; reimbursement; refund; redemption

Kanji and stroke order

返

return, answer, fade

on: ヘン
kun: かえ.す、-かえ.す、かえ.る、-かえ.る

7 strokes · JLPT 2

済

settle (debt, etc.), relieve (burden), finish

on: サイ、セイ
kun: す.む、-ず.み、-ずみ、す.まない

11 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “reimbursement”

Word	Reading	Meaning
返金	へんきん henkin	refund; repayment; reimbursement
弁済	べんさい bensai	repayment; settlement (of a debt); paying off
弁償金	べんしょうきん benshoukin	reparation; indemnity; compensation
協力費	きょうりょくひ kyouryokuhi	compensation (e.g. for participating in a clinical trial); reimbursement; cooperation fee
リインバースメント	リインバースメント riinbaasumento	reimbursement

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
返事	へんじ henji	reply; answer; response
繰り返す	くりかえす kurikaesu	to repeat; to do over again
返還	へんかん henkan	return; restoration
返信	へんしん henshin	reply (e.g. email, fax, letter); answer
返す	かえす kaesu	to return (something); to restore; to put back
経済	けいざい keizai	economy; economics
救済	きゅうさい kyuusai	relief; aid; help
済む	すむ sumu	to finish; to end; to be completed

Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.