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Exporting consumer products from Japan

Goods leave Japan on an export declaration to Customs, with any permits other laws require. Food, drink and pet food get certificates under the 2019 Export Facilitation Act when the destination asks; the NTA certifies liquor and MHLW cosmetics. METI licenses controlled goods under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act, and chambers of commerce certify origin.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Export declaration
To Japan Customs, with the invoice and other laws' permits
Food, drink and pet food certificates
MAFF, MHLW, prefectures and registered bodies
Liquor certificates
Regional taxation bureaus
Cosmetics certificates
Japan Cosmetic Industry Association and MHLW
Export controls
METI, under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act
Consumption tax
Exempt on export, with the export permit kept 7 years

By product

What each kind of product needs to leave Japan.

Before the goods leave

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1Does the destination's government ask for a Japanese certificate for the product? Read more
  2. 2Do the goods need METI permission or approval? Read more
  3. 3Does the buyer want a certificate of origin or an EPA rate? Read more
  4. 4Who declares the goods to Customs, and with which documents? Read more
  5. 5Is the export permit kept as proof for the tax exemption? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

Export certificates under the Export Facilitation Act

When a destination's government asks for one, MAFF, MHLW, MOF, prefectures or registered bodies issue the certificate under the 2019 Act.

  • A competent minister may issue an export certificate, showing a product meets the destination's import conditions, when that country's government calls for it and the exporter applies (Article 15).
  • Ministers may also designate conforming areas (Article 16) and certify conforming establishments (Article 17) where a destination makes that an import condition.
  • Each destination and product has its own handling rules (取扱要綱), listed in the tables to the procedural rules.
  • Applications go through MAFF's export certificate issuing system; a new system, JEXS, is due to replace it in January 2027.
  • Since 1 April 2025, certificates issued by the State cost 870 yen per application; nuclear-related certificates are free.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps each certificate with the shipment and lot it names, dated, and reads it against what the destination asks for. Ask about this

Export declaration and customs clearance

Goods leave Japan on an export declaration to Customs and an export permit, with the permits other laws require.

  • Exporters declare the goods to the Director-General of Customs and obtain an export permit, after any physical examination (Customs Act, Articles 67 and 70).
  • The declaration gives the goods' code, name, quantity and price, the destination, the consignor and the carrier, and is lodged with an invoice; a packing list and permits under other laws may be needed.
  • The exporter or a customs broker acting for it files the declaration; goods are usually permitted once in the hozei (bonded) area.
  • Where another law requires a permit, approval or inspection, Customs does not permit export until it is shown (Customs Act, Article 70).
  • Exporters keep books and documents, such as contracts, invoices and packing lists, for 5 years from the day after the export permit.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the invoice, packing list and export permit with the shipment and lot, dated, and shows what is missing before the goods are declared. Ask about this

Export controls (FEFTA)

Under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act, some goods need METI permission or approval before export.

  • Exporting goods listed in Appended Table 1 of the Export Trade Control Order to the regions listed needs the permission of the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry (FEFTA, Article 48).
  • Row 16 of that table, the catch-all, covers goods in tariff classes 25 to 40, 54 to 59, 63, 68 to 93 and 95 that are not listed elsewhere: permission is needed where a METI order specifies the case, or METI notifies the exporter, because the goods may be used to develop nuclear, biological or chemical weapons, missiles or conventional arms.
  • Appended Table 2 goods need METI approval, and exports to Russia of goods listed in Appended Table 2-3, item (iii) and specified by METI order also need approval.
  • Customs confirms the permission or approval before it permits the export.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the classification and any licence with the product and shipment, dated, and answers importers' questions from that record. Ask about this

Certificates of origin

Non-preferential certificates from chambers of commerce, and proof of preferential origin under Japan's EPAs.

    • Chambers of commerce across Japan issue ordinary certificates of origin, which certify the country of origin from the commercial invoice; they do not certify the place of production within Japan.
    • Under Japan's EPAs, preferential origin is shown either by a certificate of origin from a designated body (third-party certification) or by an origin statement made by the exporter, producer or importer (self-certification).
    • Exports from Japan can use self-certification under the Japan-Australia EPA, CPTPP, the Japan-EU EPA, the Japan-UK EPA, RCEP (to Australia, New Zealand and Korea) and the Japan-US Trade Agreement.
    • The Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry is designated by METI to issue third-party EPA certificates of origin, except for the Japan-Singapore EPA, which local chambers issue.

    How we help: Compliant Always keeps each certificate or origin statement with the shipment it covers, beside the bill of materials behind it, and answers importers' origin questions from the record. Ask about this

    Consumption tax exemption on export

    Sales that are exports are exempt from consumption tax, on proof of export.

      • When a sale is an export transaction, consumption tax is exempted; input tax on purchases for that export can still be credited.
      • Proof is needed: for goods given an export permit, the export permit (a document certified by the Director-General of Customs), kept for 7 years.
      • Postal exports of 200,000 yen or less use Japan Post's receipt and dispatch slip instead.

      How we help: Compliant Always keeps each export permit with the sale it proves, dated, and shows which shipments still lack one. Ask about this

      Who answers for what

      WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
      ExporterThe export declaration, certificate applications where the destination asks, any METI licence, and the records it keeps.Certificates, permits and invoices kept with each shipment, dated.
      ManufacturerLicences, plant certifications and the production records behind certificates and origin claims.Licences and certifications kept with each product, with renewal dates.
      Customs broker or forwarderLodging the declaration for the exporter, with the documents other laws require.The shipment's documents in one place before the declaration.
      Certifying authorityMAFF, MHLW, the NTA, the quarantine services, METI and chambers of commerce, each for its own certificates.Each certificate read against what the destination asks for.

      Where certificates are issued

      Most export certificates for food are applied for at MAFF's Regional Agricultural Administration Offices, the Hokkaido Regional Agricultural Administration Office or the Okinawa General Bureau; some are issued by prefectures or cities with public health centres, or by registered issuing bodies.

      Liquor certificates are issued by the regional taxation bureau for the brewery's location. Plant and animal export inspections are done by the Plant Protection Station and the Animal Quarantine Service at ports and airports.

      Where are the goods going?

      Most of what products have to meet is set where they are sold. Each guide sets out the rules on arrival, with the official source for each.

      Questions businesses ask

      What does Japan require before goods are exported?
      An export declaration to Customs and an export permit. Where another law requires a permit, approval or inspection, such as METI export control or plant quarantine, Customs does not permit export until it is shown.
      Does Japan issue export certificates for food?
      Yes, when the destination's government asks for one. Under the Export Facilitation Act, MAFF, MHLW, the Finance Minister, prefectures and registered bodies issue certificates, designate areas and certify establishments, following handling rules for each destination and product.
      How do I apply for a Japanese export certificate?
      Mostly through MAFF's export certificate issuing system, logging in with a gBizID. A new system, JEXS, is due in January 2027. State-issued certificates cost 870 yen per application; nuclear-related ones are free.
      Do consumer goods need an export licence from Japan?
      Most do not. METI permission is needed for goods in Appended Table 1 of the Export Trade Control Order, including some encryption products, and for catch-all goods where METI specifies the case or notifies the exporter. Some goods for Russia need approval.
      How do I get a certificate of origin in Japan?
      Ordinary certificates come from chambers of commerce. For EPA rates, exporters self-certify under agreements such as the Japan-EU EPA and CPTPP, or JCCI issues a certificate under third-party agreements.
      Is consumption tax charged on goods exported from Japan?
      No. Export sales are exempt from consumption tax, and input tax can still be credited. The exporter keeps the export permit for 7 years as proof.
      Is liquor tax charged on sake exported from Japan?
      No, where the brewery removes it for export, files its return on time and records the export from the export permit (Liquor Tax Act, Article 29).
      Do Fukushima-related import restrictions still apply to Japanese food?
      In a few places. As of 21 November 2025, 50 of the 55 countries and regions that introduced measures had lifted them; Russia, China, Hong Kong, Macau and Korea kept some.
      How does Compliant Always help with exporting from Japan?
      Our team reads the rules for the routes you ship. Compliant Always shows which export documents apply to your product, keeps them with the shipment beside what the destination asks for, and watches the sources for changes. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

      Sources

      Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

      Tell us what you make, and we will show you the rules for it.

      Name the product and the markets you sell in. We will come back to you with what applies in Japan and what your paperwork needs to show.

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