Items that cannot be handled as shipments
Items that cannot be sent to any country in the world
Items regulated by law
- Valuable/irreplaceable item
(Money, Passports, Securities, Stamps, Credit cards, Confidential correspondence, Jewelry, Precious metals and Other irreplaceable items) - Drugs available only by prescription
- Items that require a government's permit or approval for export
Drones (including parts), modems, routers, microscopes, spectrometers, light sources, hyperspectral cameras, and gyroscopes etc. - A large quantity of one kind
Large quantities of items with price tags or tags attached or in original boxes, hobby collectibles or luxury items that are obviously in large quantities for personal use, etc. - Items not accepted by customs as household goods (to be moved)
Electric kickboards, Electric scooters, Electric two-wheeled vehicles, Ships (including rubber boats and kayaks), etc. - Articles listed in the Washington Convention (including products like handbags, belts, etc.)
- Plants (including Plants with soil, Seeds, etc.)
- Narcotics/stimulants, Smoking supplies, poppy/opium/marijuana seeds, CBD products, and poisonous substances
- Swords and blades, model swords or blades, handguns, imitation guns, model guns (including airsoft guns), weapons, and ammunition
- Counterfeit/pornographic products (magazines, video tapes, photographs, etc.)
- Goods that infringe on rights including trademarks, patents, copyrights, etc.
Hazardous materials
Required action
After checking to make sure there are no hazardous materials in the parcels, sign and submit the Exporter Confirmation Form （with Dangerous Goods and Expensive Goods confirmation).
Items requiring special attention
Taxed items
Depending on your destination (country), different items will be taxed, but in general new items are taxed. In addition, regardless of what type of item something is, if the customs office at your destination decides that the quantity or monetary amount of an item exceeds the range of personal or family use, taxes may be charged, and importing a parcel may be restricted, so please consult with us in advance.
Items that should not be sent by air shipment.
If possible, we recommend sea shipment for fragile items such as computers and other precision equipment, luxury tableware and decorations.
Items subject to restrictions when brought into Japan
Even items you brought from Japan may be subject to the following laws or regulations at the time of importation in Japan, as they may be difficult to distinguish from items you purchased overseas.
In this case, there may be import restrictions such as for the number of items you can import, and you may also be required to take additional special procedures such as submitting an inspection certificate issued by the government agency of the exporting country.
| Washington Convention | Items regulated under the Washington Convention (including products like handbags, belts, etc.)
Japan Customs |
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| Plant & animal quarantines | Items restricted under the Plant Protection Act and the Animal Infectious Diseases Control Law (rice, beans, fruit, vegetables, cut flowers, seeds, dried flowers, tatami mats, some processed items made from plants such as the ornamental pedestal part of a hina-ningyo doll display, the meat, bones, and hides of artiodactyls, etc., internal organs, eggs, processed products, etc.).
Plant Protection Station website: Animal Quarantine Service website: |
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| Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act | Items that exceed the restrictions on the table below, and which are medicines, medical equipment, cosmetic products, etc. regulated under the Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act
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| Examples of items taken outside of Japan that wound up causing problems when importing back into Japan. |
Also, when you go overseas, if you take a large number of items you have collected as a hobby in Japan, because there is no way to discern between those items and items you may have purchased abroad, when you return to Japan, if you have many recently made or recently sold items, they may be taxed, and there have been cases in which items were suspected of not being sold in Japan. So, we recommend limiting hobby items to the absolute minimum. Examples: |
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| Other | Documents certifying proof of stay overseas When moving back into Japan from abroad, the parcels you import within 6 months after entering Japan are duty-free. In order to receive this application of duty-free treatment, the submission of documents certifying that you have resided overseas for over 1 year is required. Thus, when renewal procedures arise for documents certifying proof of stay overseas such as a visa, we request that you carefully store copies of the certification prior to renewal. |