Sources

Official

• Japan Tourism Agency: What is the Refund Method? (English) — Cut-over by purchase date, 90-day window, terminal location before baggage check-in, GREEN/RED, seven airports with Visit Japan Web, receipt-unit rule, consumables, transit, ¥5,000 minimum.
• Japan Tourism Agency: Frequently Asked Questions for Travelers, Refund Method (English) — Refund methods (bank transfer, card, app, cash at the port), registration at the shop, checked baggage, ¥1,000,000 items, Japanese nationals living abroad, overseas shipping (the separate-shipment method ended on 31 March 2025).
• Japan Tourism Agency: tax-free shop portal, refund method (Japanese) — Traveller leaflets in several languages.
• Japan Tourism Agency: traveller leaflet, refund method (English, PDF)
• National Tax Agency: Q&A on the refund method, overview edition (Japanese, PDF, April 2025) — The 90 days are counted from the day after purchase (Q19). Eligible purchasers (Q7). ¥5,000 minimum without categories. Identifying details for items of ¥1,000,000 or more (Q13). Refund methods (Q35).
• National Tax Agency: Overview of the Refund Method (English, PDF, April 2025) — Four-page English summary. Worked example of the 90-day count: a purchase on 1 November must be confirmed by Customs by 30 January. Receipt-unit rule, abolition of the general/consumable categories, the ¥500,000 cap and special packaging, ¥5,000 minimum without categories.
• National Tax Agency: revision of the export goods sales system to the refund method (Japanese)
• Osaka Customs: Guide to the tax exemption (refund) procedure at Kansai International Airport (English, PDF) — Terminal 1, 4th floor: 12 kiosks, Wi-Fi area and customs inspection area. Terminal 2: 4 kiosks. Recommends the Wi-Fi method because kiosks may be congested.
• Chubu Centrair International Airport: tax refund (English) — Terminal 1: customs kiosks and verification area in front of the international check-in counters; cash refund kiosks near passport control and a staffed counter near Gate 20. Terminal 2: kiosks at the CIQ Information Corner next to check-in, verification area on the way to security (10:00–21:30). The dedicated customs Wi-Fi only reaches the area around the kiosks. Read in a browser on 17 Oct 2026 (the page blocks automated fetches).
• Visit Japan Web (Digital Agency)

Each airport page also links to the airport’s official site and to the regional Customs office.

Retailer pages (fees)

• Takashimaya: Tax Refund Procedure (English) — System handling fee of 1.55% of the pre-tax price (current system).
• Hankyu Hanshin Department Stores: Tax Refund — Service fee of 1.55% of the pre-tax price (current system).
• Loft: Tax Free (English) — Tax refund commission of 1.55% (current system).

Further reading

• JNTO: Everything you need to know about Japan’s new tax-free shopping system
• japan-guide.com: Japan’s tax-free shopping rules change from November 2026
• Japan Travel: Tax-free Shopping in Japan, 2026 Changes
• LIVE JAPAN: Tax-Free Shopping in Japan, complete 2026 guide
• Unseen Japan: New tax-free rules will give shoppers less money back

Reuse of public-sector content

Explanations of the rules are written in our own words from the Japan Tourism Agency, National Tax Agency and Japan Customs materials above, under the MLIT terms of use and the Japan Customs terms of use, which allow reuse with attribution. Where content has been adapted, it is an adaptation and not the original. This site is not produced by, and does not represent, any government body, and it does not use the official Tax-free Shop logo.