Rules and sources
Every rule used by the checker and the guides, with its official source, the place to look in that source, and the original Japanese wording. Each was checked on 11 October 2026.
Official sources
- Q&A on the duty-free sales system (refund method), detailed edition, July 2026 (輸出物品販売場制度に関するＱ＆Ａ（リファンド方式）詳細編), National Tax Agency
- Notice to Foreign Travelers Who Purchase Tax-Free Goods (from November 2026), National Tax Agency / Japan Customs
- Tax-free shopping under the refund method: information for travelers, Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT)
- Traveler FAQ (refund method), Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT)
- List of eligible purchasers for travelers (refund method) (免税購入対象者一覧), Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT)
- Refund Method leaflet for travelers, English (JTA/METI/NTA/Customs; image-only PDF, last modified 2026-03-26), Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT)
- Japan Tax-free Shop: refund method pages, Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT)
The National Tax Agency Q&A (Q&A on the duty-free sales system, refund method) is the main source. It explains the law, its decrees and the Agency's reading of them. We cite question numbers (問) and printed page numbers.
Rules
| ID | Rule (our summary) | Source | Original wording (Japanese) |
|---|---|---|---|
R-START | The refund method applies to tax-free sales made on or after 1 November 2026. Sales before that date follow the old system, which this site does not cover. | Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT) | 令和8年11月1日から実施されるリファンド方式 |
R-FLOW | The shop sells at the tax-inclusive price. You complete customs confirmation when you leave Japan, within 90 days of purchase. The shop (or its refund provider) then returns an amount equal to the consumption tax. | National Tax Agency | 税込価格（課税）で免税対象物品を販売します。…購入日から90日以内の出国時に税関の確認を受けます。…消費税相当額を免税購入対象者に返金（リファンド）します。 |
R-ELIG-FOREIGN | Foreign nationals who are non-residents qualify if they are in Japan with a temporary visitor (短期滞在), diplomatic or official status, or one of the listed landing permits (port-of-call, ship tourism, transit, crew, emergency, distress), or are US forces members under the SOFA. Other residence statuses are not on the list. | National Tax Agency | 「短期滞在」、「外交」、「公用」の在留資格をもって在留する者／寄港地上陸許可、船舶観光上陸許可、通過上陸許可、乗員上陸許可、緊急上陸許可、遭難による上陸許可を受けて在留する者／合衆国軍隊の構成員等 |
R-ELIG-6M | You must be able to show that less than six months have passed since you entered Japan (diplomatic, official and US forces excepted). People who have been in Japan six months or more do not qualify. | Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT) | 本邦入国後６ヶ月未満であることを確認できること（外交・公用・米軍を除く） |
R-ELIG-JP | Japanese nationals qualify only if they are non-residents who have lived abroad continuously for two years or more by the date of their last entry, proven with a passport plus one of: a My Number Card showing an overseas move, a residence certificate from a Japanese consulate (在留証明), or a certified copy of the family-register supplementary record (戸籍の附票の写し). The certificates must be issued within six months before the last entry. They must also be within six months of their temporary return. | National Tax Agency | 国内以外の地域に引き続き２年以上住所又は居所を有する…最終入国日から起算して６月前の日以後に作成されたものに限ります |
R-MIN | A purchase qualifies when the total at one shop on one day is ¥5,000 or more before tax. Several items bought at different counters of the same shop on the same day can be added together. | National Tax Agency | 同一の免税購入対象者に対する同一の輸出物品販売場における１日の販売価額（税抜）の合計額が５千円以上 |
R-EXCLUDED | Gold and platinum bullion and coins are not eligible, and neither are goods on which consumption tax is not charged. | National Tax Agency | 金及び白金の地金並びに金貨及び白金貨／消費税が非課税とされる物品 |
R-WINDOW | Customs confirmation must happen within 90 days of the purchase date. Day 1 is the day after purchase, so a purchase on 1 November 2026 has a deadline of 30 January 2027. | National Tax Agency | 購入日の翌日から計算して、90日目までの期間（例: 購入日 X1.11.1 → 確認期限 X2.1.30） |
R-LAST-DEPARTURE | Do the customs step at the airport or seaport where you finally leave Japan. If you fly on a domestic leg first and connect to an international flight, you do it at the international departure airport. | National Tax Agency | 国内線から国際線に乗り継いで出国する場合、出国空港で手続を行う必要があります。 |
R-BEFORE-CHECKIN | You cannot complete the customs step after you have checked your bags. Do it at the tax-free terminal in the departure lobby first, and allow time to finish before boarding. If you miss your flight because of the wait, neither the airline nor Customs compensates you. | National Tax Agency | 手荷物の機内預けをした後に免税手続用の端末での手続を行うことはできません。 |
R-HAVE-GOODS | You must be carrying every tax-free item when you present your passport. Goods you cannot take out yourself, such as items already shipped, cannot be confirmed. | National Tax Agency | 免税手続用の端末に旅券を提示等する際、輸出物品販売場で手続を受けて購入した免税対象物品を全て所持している必要があります。 |
R-RECEIPT-UNIT | Customs confirms goods one receipt (one sales record) at a time. If even one item on a receipt is missing, none of the items on that receipt can be confirmed or refunded. Other receipts are judged on their own. | National Tax Agency | 同一の購入記録情報に含まれる免税対象物品のうち、一つでもその物品を所持していなかった場合には、…全ての免税対象物品について…確認を受けることはできず |
R-CONSUMABLES | Food, drink, medicines, cosmetics and other consumables that you use up in Japan cannot be confirmed. If you used part or all of a consumable, do not use the terminal. Tell a customs officer at the counter instead. | National Tax Agency | 飲食料品や化粧品のような消耗品の全部又は一部を国内で消費した場合、…税関の確認を受けることができません。 |
R-PACKAGING | Until you leave, keep tax-free goods in the state you bought them in. Taking items out of their boxes or bags, or throwing away packaging that carries the model number, can make it impossible for Customs to identify them. Non-consumables you have used are still fine as long as you take them out of Japan. | National Tax Agency | 梱包材と中身を分離することや梱包材を廃棄することはせず、購入時の状態のままにしていただく |
R-NO-SEPARATE-SHIP | If you post tax-free goods abroad yourself (for example by EMS) or otherwise do not carry them, Customs cannot confirm them even if you show the postal receipt. | National Tax Agency | 郵便局が発行する引受証及び発送伝票の控え等を提示したとしても免税対象物品を持ち出す（輸出する）ことについて税関の確認を受けることはできません |
R-DIRECT-SHIP | A separate route exists: some shops let you sign a shipping contract with a licensed international freight forwarder at the shop and hand the goods over there. That is an export exemption under a different rule. The shop sells at the tax-free price, there is no ¥5,000 minimum, and you do not go through the airport customs step for those goods. | National Tax Agency | いわゆる直送制度…購入下限額である５千円の判定を含みます。）や購入記録情報の提供は不要 |
R-EXPORT | Goods Customs has confirmed must be exported without delay. If they are not, the exempted tax is collected from you, and a penalty can apply. | National Tax Agency / Japan Customs | 確認を受けた免税対象物品は遅滞なく輸出しなければなりません。輸出しなかった場合には、…罰則の適用対象になります。 |
R-TERMINAL | At the terminal you scan your passport. A green result ends the process. A red result sends you to a customs inspection counter to show the goods; keep the receipts handy because officers may ask to see them. | National Tax Agency | 検査が不要と判定された場合（いわゆるグリーン判定）、これで税関での確認手続は終了…検査が必要と判定された場合（いわゆるレッド判定）、税関の検査場所で免税対象物品の持出し確認を受けます。 |
R-VJW | At seven airports (Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu, New Chitose, Fukuoka, Naha) you can confirm online with Visit Japan Web on your own phone, inside the departure lobby's dedicated Wi-Fi area and before the security check. You must register in Visit Japan Web before you do this. | National Tax Agency | 国際線出発ロビーの手続専用無線LANに接続可能なエリア内（保安検査場前まで）において、…Visit Japan Webを通じて税関の確認手続を行うことができます。 |
R-CRUISE | On a cruise that starts or ends outside Japan, do the customs step at the last Japanese port of call before you leave Japan. If you fly in and out of a Japan-based cruise, do it at the airport, as usual, and not during the cruise. | National Tax Agency | 国内における最後の寄港地から出国する際に、手荷物預け入れ前に免税手続用の端末により手続を行います。 |
R-NEW-PASSPORT | If you lost your passport and bought tax-free goods on both the old and the new passport, present the new passport at the terminal and tell a customs officer at the counter that you also bought with the old one. | National Tax Agency | 免税手続用の端末に新しい旅券を提示し手続を行うとともに、税関職員（窓口）に旧旅券でも免税購入手続を行った旨を申し出 |
R-REFUND-METHOD | The law does not fix how the refund is paid. Each shop, or a refund provider it uses, decides. Bank transfer, card transfer, app transfer and cash at the airport after customs confirmation are given as examples. The JTA says the shop explains how to register for the refund when you buy, so ask at the counter. | National Tax Agency | 返金手続をどのように実施するかは消費税法令において何らルールを定めているものではありません。 |
R-HIGH-VALUE | For an item priced at ¥1 million or more before tax, Customs may ask for the certificate or warranty that identifies it. Keep it with the item. | Japan Tourism Agency (MLIT) | 免税対象物品の単価（税抜価額）が100万円以上である場合には、税関の確認において当該免税対象物品を特定するに足りる事項 |
What we have not confirmed
- Whether travelers must register with a national website or scan a QR code. Official pages say the shop explains refund registration at purchase.
- Whether the Visit Japan Web QR code can replace the passport at the shop. The Q&A describes passport checks.
- Whether refund providers charge fees, and how long refunds take. The law sets neither.
- How the system behaves in practice. It starts on 1 November 2026, and we have not used it.
Change log
- 11 October 2026: first version, built from the July 2026 Q&A and the Tourism Agency pages.
Found a mistake or a newer official document? Write to [email protected].