Tax-Free Shopping Rules in Japan

What to know

First, check the purchase date

Japan changes its tax-free shopping system for goods sold from November 1, 2026. The date the shop sells the goods controls the method. A traveler who buys on October 31 and departs in November follows the current-system record for that purchase and does not claim a second refund.

For a purchase through October 31, the approved shop removes consumption tax during the sale or at its designated same-day tax-free counter. For a purchase from November 1, the shop charges the tax-inclusive price, Customs later confirms that the recorded goods are being carried out, and the shop or its refund provider processes the refund.

There is no transition period in which a November 1 sale can choose the old method. Keep receipts from both sides of the change separate and follow the instructions attached to each purchase.

What to know

Tax-free and airport duty-free are different

This article covers the consumption-tax exemption used by approved tax-free shops in cities, malls and other locations. JNTO distinguishes these shops from airport or seaport duty-free shops operating under Customs law, which can also exempt customs duty, liquor tax or tobacco tax in a controlled departure area.

A TAX FREE sign does not mean every product, traveler, counter, branch or payment qualifies. Ask the shop before selecting items, especially in a tenant-filled department store or shopping complex where the tax-free counter and eligible brands can differ.

Tax-free shopping is not a discount that a cashier can negotiate. Coupons, points and store campaigns have their own combination rules, and a refund provider’s charge can affect the amount you ultimately receive.

What to know

A foreign passport alone does not prove eligibility

The shopper must be a non-resident and meet an eligible residence or landing status. Most ordinary foreign tourists qualify through Temporary Visitor status and confirmation that they have been in Japan for less than six months. Diplomatic, official, Status of Forces Agreement and special landing-permit cases have separate document and time rules.

A foreign resident of Japan with an ordinary work, study or dependent status does not become eligible merely by showing a foreign passport or an international return ticket. The tax-free shop checks the exact status, date of entry and accepted documents.

Cruise-ship tourist, crew, port-of-call, transit, emergency and distress landing permissions can use different documents. Under the refund method, several of these cases require both a passport and the corresponding landing permit; a cruise-ship tourist can have an allowed passport-copy route. Let the shop verify the actual record instead of relying on a general tourist checklist.

What to know

Japanese temporary returnees have a separate test

A Japanese national is not eligible merely because they live or work abroad. The official test includes continuous overseas address or residence for at least two years and less than six months in Japan after the temporary return, supported by a passport and specified evidence.

Under the current method, accepted supporting evidence includes a qualifying Residency Certificate or copy of the Family Register Attachment created within the required period. For purchases from November 1, 2026, a My Number Card or its supported digital form showing the move overseas is added, and the permanent-domicile detail is relaxed.

Document age, wording and dates matter. Obtain the official certificate before shopping and let the store confirm it; this article cannot determine eligibility from nationality and an overseas address alone.

What to know

Bring the accepted passport or landing document

For a direct document check, present the original passport or the other document authorized for your status before the tax-free procedure is completed. A participating shop can instead receive supported passport information through the Visit Japan Web Tax-Free Shopping QR, but a photograph, ordinary photocopy, residence card, driver’s licence or payment-card name is not a universal substitute.

If your entry record is difficult to confirm—for example, because of an automated immigration gate—ask the shop what official entry evidence it can accept. Do not alter a stamp, screenshot a different person’s QR code or ask staff to enter a convenient date.

The person whose eligibility is recorded must be the shopper and exporter. Using that person’s own payment card, account and point card is the clearest setup. A different cardholder name is not described here as a universal statutory ban, but it can trigger ownership, resale or store-policy checks.

What to know

Visit Japan Web has two separate tax-free functions

At a participating store, an eligible traveler with a supported status can present a Visit Japan Web Tax-Free Shopping QR to speed up the shop’s document check. Not every tax-free shop accepts it, and the QR does not create eligibility or remove the need to carry the passport for departure.

From November 1, Visit Japan Web also offers a separate departure-confirmation route at seven major airports—Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu, Fukuoka, New Chitose and Naha—inside the designated international-departure Wi-Fi area before security. This is not the same QR interaction used at the shop.

Other airports and seaports use the installed tax-free procedure terminal or electronic terminal and Customs route. Do not complete a store QR step and assume the departure confirmation is automatic.

What to know

Shop only at an authorized location

Look for the official tax-free-shop mark or ask staff whether that sales location is authorized. The Japan Tourism Agency warns that not every approved shop displays the mark, so the absence of a sticker is not conclusive either.

Confirm whether the tax-free calculation happens at the product register or at a separate counter and whether it must be completed the same day. Bring every receipt and item that the counter requires before it closes.

Two branches with the same brand name are not automatically one store for the threshold. A department store can aggregate qualifying tenants through an authorized procedure counter only under its approved setup.

What to know

Current rules through October 31: minimum spend

For a current-system sale, calculate the discounted price excluding consumption tax for the same eligible shopper at the same tax-free shop on the same day. General goods require a total of at least ¥5,000, with no general-goods maximum stated in the traveler rule.

Consumables—such as food, beverages, medicines and cosmetics—require at least ¥5,000 and no more than ¥500,000 excluding tax. A total below ¥5,000 or above the consumables cap does not qualify in that category merely because the tax-inclusive shelf price crosses a boundary.

General goods and consumables are separate categories by default. If neither category independently reaches ¥5,000, a store can sometimes combine them only by treating the included general goods as consumables, applying the required special packaging and the ¥500,000 cap. Confirm before payment; do not add the categories yourself.

What to know

Current rules through October 31: keep consumables sealed

Current-system consumables are placed in an approved sealed bag or box. Do not open that package or use, eat, drink, apply or consume any included item in Japan. Opening can cause consumption tax to be collected at departure.

A general item that qualified separately normally does not require the consumables package and can be used while you retain and export it. If the shop combined it with consumables and sealed it under the consumables rule, keep that entire package closed.

Do not ask staff to leave one sealed item out for immediate use while recording it as tax-free. Buy a separate tax-paid item or ask the shop to cancel and correctly rebuild the sale.

What to know

Current rules through October 31: personal export, not resale

The current scheme covers daily-life goods taken out by the eligible shopper as purchases such as souvenirs. It is not for business inventory, commercial resale, a third-party buying service or large orders placed on behalf of strangers through social media.

Do not transfer, sell, give away or consume the recorded tax-free goods in Japan. Japan Customs warns that missing goods lead to tax collection and that transfer before departure can also lead to a penalty.

A large quantity, repeated identical goods, another person’s payment identity or an implausible itinerary can cause the store to examine whether the purchase is genuinely eligible. The store can refuse the tax-free procedure even if the shelf product is normally eligible.

What to know

Current rules through October 31: contact Customs first if the goods will be checked

At the airport or seaport where you leave Japan, present the passport or other required document to Customs. Officers can inspect whether you still possess the recorded goods, so keep the items identifiable and reachable.

If the goods will be in checked baggage, contact Customs and obtain the required confirmation before handing the bag to the airline or ship operator. Do not assume a receipt or photograph can replace an item that Customs requests to see.

Leave extra time when carrying many or high-value purchases. If the goods are missing, transferred or consumed, report the situation and pay any consumption tax collected rather than hiding the record.

What to know

Do not mail tax-free goods yourself later

For purchases made from April 1, 2025, the old separate-shipment treatment was abolished. You cannot mail tax-free purchases yourself later by EMS, international parcel or courier and use a shipping slip instead of possessing the goods at departure.

A shop can offer a distinct approved direct-shipping arrangement in which the contract is made and the goods are handed to the carrier at the store. Availability and legal route differ, and from November 1 this can be handled under a separate export-exemption process rather than the traveler refund record.

Ask before paying: “Kaigai chokusō wa dekimasu ka?”—“Can the shop ship this directly overseas?” If the shop does not support the approved route, plan to carry the goods yourself.

What to know

From November 1: pay tax first, then claim the refund

For a sale made on or after November 1, the approved tax-free shop charges the tax-inclusive amount. Register the refund destination or method exactly as the shop or its provider explains and keep the purchase record.

At departure, Customs confirms that you possess the recorded goods and are carrying them out of Japan. Customs does not hand you the shopping refund. After confirmation information reaches the seller, the tax-free shop or its contracted refund provider processes the amount equivalent to consumption tax.

Refund destination, timing and possible service charge are not one national checkout rule. Possible routes include bank transfer, card transfer, app-based refund or cash at the departure port after confirmation. Ask the shop what you will receive, when, where and in which currency.

What to know

From November 1: the goods and amount rules change

The minimum remains ¥5,000 excluding tax for the same eligible shopper, store and day, but general and consumable goods are combined into one category. The ¥500,000 consumables maximum, special packaging and current daily-life-use classification are abolished.

The former daily-life-purpose test is removed, so business or resale intent is not itself the old category exclusion. The traveler procedure is still limited to quantities the purchaser can personally possess and carry out at departure; goods transferred in Japan cannot be confirmed as present, and larger freight needs a separate export route. Gold and platinum bullion, gold and platinum coins and items already exempt from consumption tax are excluded.

For an item with a unit price of at least ¥1 million excluding tax, Customs may request a warranty, certificate of authenticity or other identifying document. Keep the model, serial-number and authenticity records with the item.

What to know

From November 1: finish Customs within 90 days

Complete departure confirmation within 90 days from the purchase date. The official count runs from the day after purchase to the 90th day; a November 1 purchase, for example, has a January 30 deadline.

Before checking any bag, bring the passport and all tax-free goods to the tax-free procedure terminal in the international departure lobby. A Green Result completes the confirmation; a Red Result requires you to take the goods to the designated Customs inspection area.

Once a bag has been checked, it cannot be retrieved merely to finish this procedure. Arrive early: abandoning confirmation because boarding time is close means no completed Customs procedure and no refund.

After confirmation, export the confirmed goods without delay. If you fail to take them out of Japan, Customs can collect the amount equivalent to the exempted consumption tax and penalty provisions can apply.

What to know

One missing item can cancel a whole purchase record

Customs confirms goods by purchase record, usually one sale or receipt. If even one recorded item is not in your possession, none of the goods on that record can receive confirmation or the refund.

Keep each receipt’s goods together, including small samples, accessories and bonus items that appear in the record. A separate receipt or another shop’s purchase remains a separate record.

If an item was returned, lost, consumed or sent elsewhere, do not present an unchanged record as complete. Ask the shop to correct or cancel the record where possible and tell a Customs officer about a consumed item.

What to know

No special bag does not mean consumables can be used

From November 1, special consumables packaging is abolished, so merely opening ordinary retail packaging is not automatically the old sealed-bag violation. However, you still need to possess and export every recorded item.

If you use or consume any part of food, beverages, cosmetics, medicine or another consumable, that purchase record cannot receive the normal Customs confirmation and refund. Report the consumption at the Customs counter rather than using the terminal as if all items remain.

A non-consumable can generally be used while still being possessed and exported, but discarding identifying packaging, model information or a warranty can make inspection harder. Preserve what connects the actual item to the purchase record.

What to know

Use the final Japanese departure point

If a domestic flight connects to an international flight, complete the procedure at the airport from which you actually leave Japan, not at the first domestic airport. Keep the goods accessible through that point.

For an overseas-origin cruise that leaves Japan, use the final Japanese port as directed. For a Japan round-trip cruise that calls overseas and then returns before you later fly out—a fly-and-cruise itinerary—the official FAQ says to complete the stay’s procedure at the final departure airport, not during the cruise’s temporary foreign call.

Seaport and airport layouts differ. Check the departure facility’s instructions before travel day and allow time before bag drop, security and boarding.

What to know

Track the refund with the shop, not Customs

Customs supplies confirmation; the seller or its refund service pays. Keep the receipt, shop name, purchase-record reference and refund-registration confirmation until the money arrives.

If the refund does not arrive, contact the tax-free shop or named refund provider. Customs cannot change the destination account, quote a provider fee or trace the shop’s transfer.

Do not assume the refund will be immediate cash, automatic credit to the original card or exactly the headline 10 percent in your home currency. The tax rate, tax-inclusive calculation, exchange rate, store process and disclosed service terms can affect what appears.

What to know

Returns before Customs confirmation require a record update

Tax-free status does not create a general right to return goods. The shop’s return and defect policy still controls, and it can require the item, receipt, passport, payment method and original packaging.

Before refund-method Customs confirmation, ask the same shop to process the return and the tax-free record correction together. An uncorrected record with a returned item looks incomplete at Customs and can block the entire receipt.

A partial return can change whether the remaining same-day purchase still reaches ¥5,000. Do not independently remove an item, open a current-system sealed package or assume the refund record updates when a payment-card credit appears.

After Customs confirmation information is fixed, a later defective-goods return follows the shop’s policy and provider process; the National Tax Agency’s detailed Q&A says the already confirmed purchase record is not simply reopened or cancelled. Tell the shop when confirmation occurred and follow its instructions.

What to know

Common reasons the procedure fails

At the shop: an ineligible status, six months or more since entry where the time test applies, missing official documents, a nonparticipating counter, unsupported Visit Japan Web QR, a total below ¥5,000, a current-system consumables total above ¥500,000 or, under the current system, suspected resale can stop the procedure.

After a current-system sale: opening a sealed consumables package, consuming or transferring goods, self-shipping them, losing an item, checking the bag before Customs contact or lacking the passport and goods can lead to tax collection.

Under the refund method, departing after the 90-day deadline, checking baggage first, missing one item from a receipt, consuming part of a consumable, going to the wrong departure point or running out of time can prevent Customs confirmation. Failing to register a usable refund route can prevent payment even after confirmation.

What to know

Use short questions before paying

“Menzei dekimasu ka?” means, “Can I buy this tax-free?” “Kono shōhin wa menzei taishō desu ka?” asks whether this product is eligible.

“Visit Japan Web no QR kōdo wa tsukaemasu ka?” asks whether the shop accepts the QR. “Kono fukuro wa Nihon de akete mo ii desu ka?” asks whether a package may be opened in Japan; a current-system sealed consumables package must remain closed.

For the new method, ask “Henkin hōhō to tesūryō o oshiete kudasai”—“Please tell me the refund method and fee.” At departure, “Menzeihin o azukeru mae ni, zeikan no kakunin wa doko de ukemasu ka?” asks where to obtain Customs confirmation before checking the goods.