For purchases from 1 November 2026, Japan’s tax-free shopping becomes a refund system. You pay the price including consumption tax in the shop. When you leave Japan, within 90 days of purchase, customs checks that you are carrying the goods out, and the shop or its refund provider then refunds the tax. The old ¥500,000 cap on consumables is abolished.
Last checked: 19 October 2026. This guide is based on official leaflets from the Japan Tourism Agency (JTA), the National Tax Agency (NTA) and Japan Customs, and on a Ministry of Justice tax reform request published by the Ministry of Finance. Ask each shop how its refund works, because the details depend on the shop.
1 Nov 2026Refund system starts (purchase date)
90 daysTo leave Japan with the goods
¥5,000Minimum purchase, excluding tax
Abolished¥500,000 consumables cap
How Japan tax-free shopping changes
Until October 2026, eligible visitors bought goods without consumption tax at the counter. Under the new Refund Method, the tax is charged first and refunded only after customs confirms export. The JTA’s traveller leaflet sums it up in three revisions.
| Stage | Until October 2026 | From 1 November 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| When purchasing | Tax-free purchase (or counter refund) | Price includes consumption tax; you register refund details, such as a credit card |
| When departing | Customs check after security (restricted area) | Customs check before security (general access area), within 90 days of purchase |
| Refund | Not applicable | Refund processed after the customs check |
There is no transition period during which both systems run side by side. What counts is the purchase date: goods bought on or after 1 November 2026 follow the refund method.
Who can shop tax-free
The JTA’s list of eligible purchasers for the refund method covers non-residents of foreign nationality who can show they have been in Japan for less than 6 months since entry. This includes people who entered as:
- short-term visitors (the status used by visa-free tourists)
- holders of landing permission at a port of call or for transit
- cruise ship tourists (passport, or a copy, plus the cruise landing permit)
- crew members, and people landing in an emergency or after distress (passport plus the permit)
- diplomatic and official status holders and US forces members under the Japan-US SOFA (no 6-month check)
Japanese nationals living abroad can also qualify if they have lived outside Japan continuously for 2 years or more and are within 6 months of a temporary return. From the refund system, the Individual Number Card (My Number Card) is accepted as proof, in addition to the existing documents.
People who live and work in Japan are not eligible. Check our Japan entry requirements guide for the visitor rules that come first.
What you can buy
- The minimum purchase is ¥5,000 excluding tax in one shop on one day (JTA), now counted without separating general goods and consumables (NTA).
- The ¥500,000 upper limit for consumables and the special sealed packaging are abolished.
- Gold and platinum bullion, gold and platinum coins, and goods that are exempt from consumption tax are excluded.
- You may only buy quantities you can personally carry out of Japan when you leave.
The JTA warns that food, drink or cosmetics you use or consume in Japan are not eligible for a refund.
Step by step: the refund process
- At the shop: show your passport. Pay the price including tax and register how you want the refund paid (for example, a credit card). The shop will explain its refund steps; ask if anything is unclear.
- Keep everything together: keep all goods from each receipt unused and in your possession.
- At the departure airport or port: arrive early. Before the security check, go to the terminal for tax-free procedures and complete the customs verification.
- Customs result: a GREEN result means the tax-free procedure is complete. A RED result means a customs officer checks the goods; if the check fails, you are not eligible for a refund.
- Check in your bags at the airline counter after the customs step.
- Refund: after customs confirms export, the shop or a refund provider it uses pays the tax back.
The 90-day rule
You must receive the customs confirmation when departing within 90 days of the purchase date. The NTA explains that the 90 days run from the day after purchase: goods bought on 1 November must be confirmed by 30 January of the following year.
Domestic connections
If you fly on a domestic flight before your international departure, the JTA says you must complete all refund procedures at the outbound (international) airport.
The one-receipt rule
Customs confirms goods per purchase record, which in practice means per receipt. If even one item from a receipt is missing, none of the goods on that receipt can be confirmed, and the shop cannot refund the tax on any of them.
| Receipt (3 items) | What you show customs | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Items A, B and C | All three items | Refund possible for all three |
| Items A, B and C | Only A and B (C used up) | No refund for any item on that receipt |
If you plan to use some purchases during your trip, ask the shop to put them on a separate, normal-tax receipt.
Expensive items
For goods costing ¥1 million or more excluding tax, shops record extra product details such as serial numbers, and customs may ask you to present certificates of authenticity or warranties with the item.
If you do not take the goods out
The JTA leaflet states that if you do not take goods cleared by customs out of Japan, the consumption tax equivalent is collected and you may face a penalty.
Visit Japan Web and the refund method
At Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu, New Chitose, Fukuoka and Naha, you can use Visit Japan Web instead of the tax-free terminal, within the designated areas of the international departure lobby where the dedicated wireless network is available. The JTA adds that registering with Visit Japan Web before or after entering Japan makes immigration and tax-free procedures smoother. See our Visit Japan Web guide.
How JESTA may affect tax-free checks
Today, tax-free shops check eligibility mainly through the landing stamp in your passport. When JESTA starts (the government’s target is fiscal year 2028), approved short-stay visitors are planned to pass walk-through gates without a passport stamp.
Because of this, the Ministry of Justice’s Immigration Services Agency asked, in its FY2027 tax reform requests, for a review of how tax-free shops confirm eligibility after JESTA is introduced. This is under review; no new verification method has been announced. JESTA itself is not required yet. Read what JESTA is and how JESTA will work.
Bringing goods into Japan is a separate topic, covered in our Japan customs declaration guide.
Frequently asked questions
When does Japan’s new tax-free refund system start?
It applies to purchases made on or after 1 November 2026. There is no transition period in which both systems run.
Do I pay consumption tax in the shop under the new system?
Yes. Tax-free shops sell at prices that include consumption tax. The tax is refunded after customs confirms at departure that you are taking the goods out of Japan.
How long do I have to leave Japan with tax-free goods?
You must receive the customs confirmation at departure within 90 days of the purchase date, counted from the day after purchase.
Is there still a ¥500,000 limit on consumables?
No. The split between general goods and consumables, the ¥500,000 limit for consumables and the special packaging rule are all abolished. You can only buy what you can carry out yourself.
What happens if I lose one item from a receipt?
Customs checks goods per purchase record. If one item from a receipt is missing, none of the goods on that receipt can be confirmed, so no tax is refunded for that receipt.
Sources
- Japan Tourism Agency: Refund Method leaflet for travellers (PDF, English)
- Japan Tourism Agency: Refund Method leaflet for shops (PDF, Japanese)
- Japan Tourism Agency: Eligible tax-free purchasers under the refund method (PDF, Japanese)
- Japan Tourism Agency: Refund method page for travellers (Japanese)
- National Tax Agency: Tax-free shopping system shifted to the Refund Method (PDF, English)
- Ministry of Finance: FY2027 tax reform request by the Ministry of Justice on JESTA (PDF, Japanese)
- Digital Agency: Visit Japan Web