Japan Prep Guide
Tax-Free Shopping in Japan 2026: How the New Refund System Works
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Japan's tax-free shopping for visitors is changing. From November 1, 2026, shops no longer take the tax off at the till. You pay the full price and get the consumption tax back after customs confirms, at the airport, that your purchases are leaving Japan. Here's how it works, what changed, and how not to lose your refund.
In short: If you're a short-term visitor, spend at least 5,000 yen (before tax) in one shop on one day, show your passport and pay the full tax-inclusive price. Keep the goods and receipts together. When you leave Japan, within 90 days of purchase, scan your passport at a tax-free procedure terminal before you check in your bags. After customs confirmation, the shop or its refund company pays the tax back by cash, card, app or bank transfer, depending on what that shop offers.
Biggest mistake to avoid: packing tax-free items in a suitcase you've already checked in, or leaving one item from a receipt at home. Either can cost you the refund.
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What changes on November 1, 2026
According to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) and the National Tax Agency, purchases made up to October 31, 2026 follow the old system (tax removed at the till). Purchases from November 1, 2026 follow the new refund method. There's no overlap period.
| Rule | Old system (to Oct 31, 2026) | Refund system (from Nov 1, 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| What you pay in the shop | Price without consumption tax | Full tax-inclusive price |
| When you get the tax back | Immediately, at the till | After customs confirms export at departure |
| Minimum spend | 5,000 yen per shop per day | 5,000 yen per shop per day (before tax), all categories combined |
| Upper limit | 500,000 yen per day for consumables | Consumables cap removed |
| Food & cosmetics | Separate "consumables" category, sealed bags | No separate category, no sealed bag |
| Deadline to export | Generally on leaving Japan | Customs confirmation within 90 days of purchase |
Japan's consumption tax is 10% on most goods and 8% on food and non-alcoholic drinks, so the tax part of a 11,000-yen (tax-inclusive) item at the 10% rate is 1,000 yen. What lands in your account can be less if the shop or refund company charges a handling fee, so ask at the counter.
Who can shop tax-free
- Foreign visitors in Japan on a short-term stay (for example Temporary Visitor status), who have been in Japan for less than six months.
- Japanese citizens living abroad who have lived overseas for at least two years and can prove it with documents.
- Cruise passengers with a cruise landing permit.
People on work or long-term resident statuses aren't eligible. Gold and platinum bullion, and goods that are already exempt from consumption tax, are excluded.
Step by step: from the shop to the airport
1. In the shop
Look for the "Japan. Tax-free Shop" sign or ask at the counter. Show your passport (the Japan Tourism Agency says registering with Visit Japan Web makes shop procedures smoother), pay the full price and choose how you want the refund paid. The shop sends a record of your purchase to the customs system electronically. Big department stores, electronics chains, drugstores and Don Quijote are the places most visitors use; see our guide to Japanese souvenirs for what to buy where.
Items priced at 1,000,000 yen or more each (before tax) need extra details recorded by the shop, such as model and serial number. That rule applies per item, not per receipt.
2. During your trip
Don't open, eat, drink or use anything you bought tax-free. Items consumed in Japan aren't eligible; report them to a customs officer instead of using the kiosk. Keep every receipt with its goods: each receipt is checked separately, and if one item on a receipt is missing, nothing on that receipt is refunded.
Shopping bags pile up fast. To keep exploring after a big haul, you can drop bags at a shop or café through Radical Storage in Tokyo (opens in a new tab), or use station coin lockers.
3. At the departure airport or port
- Arrive early. JNTO notes that customs and airlines won't compensate you if the procedure makes you miss your flight.
- Before bag drop, scan your passport at a tax-free procedure terminal in the international departure lobby.
- A green result means no inspection. A red result means you take the goods and receipts to the customs inspection area.
- Then check in your bags as normal. Cash refunds, where offered, are paid at the airport or port after confirmation; card, app and bank refunds arrive later.
At Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu Centrair, New Chitose, Fukuoka and Naha, you can also start the procedure through Visit Japan Web in designated areas of the departure lobby. If you fly home via another Japanese airport, do the procedure at your final departure point.
Getting full suitcases plus shopping to the airport is the hard part. A pre-booked car such as a Welcome Pickups Tokyo airport transfer (opens in a new tab) takes you door to terminal, which helps if you need to arrive with time for the kiosk. Trains are cheaper; our Narita and Haneda transport guide compares fares.
Get a quote for a Tokyo airport transfer (opens in a new tab)
How you get the refund (and how long it takes)
Each shop, or the refund company it works with, decides which payout methods it offers. Options reported for the new system include:
- Cash at a refund counter at the airport or port after customs confirmation (not every shop offers this).
- Credit card refund, reported to take up to about 1–2 weeks.
- Bank transfer, reported at about 2–4 weeks depending on your bank and country.
- App-based refunds through the operator's app.
Ask about the method, timing and any fee before you pay. If a refund needs an app or an email confirmation, you'll want mobile data at the airport; an eSIM such as Airalo's Japan eSIM (opens in a new tab) is one option, and our eSIM vs pocket WiFi guide lists free and cheaper alternatives.
Shipping, airport duty-free and other exceptions
- Posting goods home yourself doesn't count. Since April 2025, items you send overseas by post or a forwarding service aren't eligible. The goods must leave with you.
- Shop-arranged export shipping is a different process: if the shop itself ships the item abroad, it's treated as an export and the airport procedure doesn't apply. Ask the shop.
- Airport duty-free shops (after security) aren't affected.
- Hotel-to-airport luggage delivery still works, but you must collect the bag at the airport and have the tax-free goods with you at the terminal before you check it in.
Tax-free questions we get most
I bought something on October 31 and fly out in November. Which rules apply?
The date of purchase decides. Purchases up to October 31, 2026 follow the old system, so the tax was already taken off at the till. Follow any instructions the shop gave you, and keep the goods with you when you leave.
Can I combine receipts from different shops to reach 5,000 yen?
No. The 5,000-yen minimum (before tax) is per shop, per day. Within one shop on one day, food, cosmetics and other goods now count together.
Is there a maximum I can buy tax-free?
The old 500,000-yen daily cap on consumables is removed. JNTO says quantities are limited to what you can personally carry out of Japan, and items of 1,000,000 yen or more need extra product details recorded.
What happens if I forget the airport procedure?
Without customs confirmation within 90 days, the purchase isn't tax-free, so you don't get the refund. If tax was refunded and the goods weren't actually exported, you may have to repay it.
Does tax-free shopping work with any card?
Tax-free shops accept the payment methods they normally accept. For which cards work where, see cash or card in Japan.
Pay now, claim at the airport
From November 1, 2026, that's how tax-free shopping works. Spend 5,000 yen or more in one shop on one day, keep goods and receipts together and unused, and scan your passport at the terminal before bag drop. Refund methods vary by shop and the rules are brand new, so read the official JNTO tax-free guide (opens in a new tab) before you fly and leave extra time at the airport.
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