Japan Customs for Household Goods
What Japan Customs says about household goods, cars and quarantine
A few short questions. Nothing is sent until you check and confirm.
Is a household move to Japan free of duty?
Largely, if you are settling for more than a year. Japan Customs gives the rule in one sentence: “For passengers who have been abroad for more than one year or who plan to stay in Japan for more than one year, articles imported within 6 months from his/her entry are free of duty.”
The word that matters is household. The same agency defines it: “Household effects means goods that are provided and deemed necessary for the individual and his/her family to set up and maintain a dwelling.” Its simplified clearance also covers personal effects, professional equipment and consigned articles, each defined on that page.
None of the Japan Customs pages we read carries a date, so we can say only that we read them on 8 November 2026. Who may stay long enough to qualify is a visa question, answered on the UK to Japan page.
How long do I have to clear the shipment, and can it follow me?
You have six months from landing, and the boxes may sail after you. “Those who move to Japan can import their goods as unaccompanied articles even when they ship their baggage to Japan after they arrive at Japan.” The deadline follows at once: “They must clear the baggage within 6 months since their arrival.”
The passenger page of the same agency repeats the limit in other words, “Such unaccompanied baggage must be in your custody within six months after your arrival.” One trade guide measures the clearance date against the entry stamp on the declaration form. Ask the mover for the expected discharge date before you book, not after.
What must I hand over at the airport?
A declaration, in duplicate, and you keep one stamped copy. Japan Customs says you are required “to submit them to Customs at your arrival airport”, where an officer checks the contents and returns one copy with a customs seal.
That sealed copy is the key to the shipment: “original copy is essential to conduct import clearance procedures”. Losing it is not repairable either, since “Japan Customs cannot redo the above process, whatever the reason may be”. The passenger page adds that the declaration is “necessary to obtain duty and/or tax exemption status”.
The agency gives the document only by its English title. A trade body guide names it as form C-5360, or C-5360-B for foreign nationals, and says you can ask cabin crew for two copies on the flight. Treat the form number as not confirmed by Japan Customs.
What happens when the container arrives?
A broker can do the work for you. Japan Customs says the arrival procedures “can be consigned to a professional agent (customs broker)”, and that if you hand them over “you have to submit the declaration sheet with the seal of certification returned by the Customs to the agent”.
- The airline or shipping company issues an arrival notification form.
- You or your broker collect the transport papers, including the delivery order, from that company.
- The import declaration is lodged at the unaccompanied baggage clearance section of Customs, with the sealed declaration, the transport papers, a statement of contents, your passport and receipts.
- The load moves from a customs warehouse to an inspection area; plants and animals go to the nearest quarantine station.
- Any tax is paid, and then you can take possession of the baggage.
Two trade-guide points sit around that list. Customs may inspect all shipments physically, and it is the carrier, not you, who must send cargo details to Japanese Customs at least 24 hours before the ship leaves the loading port. Which counter handles a given city is on the Tokyo, Yokohama and Nagoya pages.
What about new purchases and valuable items?
New goods are where duty creeps in. The passenger page sets one overall allowance for articles outside the named categories: their total overseas market value must stay under 200,000 yen, items worth under 10,000 yen each are left out of the sum, and there is no allowance for an article or set worth more than 200,000 yen.
Value also decides the procedure. “you may be required to take the same import procedures as those for the general cargo” if you bring commercial cargo or costly goods as unaccompanied articles, and the passenger page puts a figure on it: “When the value of the dutiable goods exceeds three hundred thousand yen” commercial procedures apply.
Above an allowance, the passenger page applies a simplified 15 percent to other articles in most cases. Whether that table is used for a removal load, and whether the 200,000 yen allowance covers new furniture bought for the move, is not stated in the household pages we read. One trade guide says newly bought items are duty-free up to 200,000 yen in total, so treat both points as not confirmed and keep receipts.
Can I ship my car, or a boat?
Possibly, under a heavier procedure. “For automobiles used before entry, the same procedure as that for import declaration of general cargoes is required.” You submit three copies of a duty-exemption application with a document “proving that the automobiles have been used”, and proof of entry to Japan.
The exemption has a catch. “Automobiles are free of duty on the condition that they are neither resold nor given to another person within 2 years from the date of the import permission.”
On ownership, the passenger page says vehicles may count as household effects when registration or sales papers show that cars were used and “the boats have been in use for more than one year prior to its arrival in Japan”. It states one year for boats and does not clearly repeat it for cars. A trade guide says a car must have been owned and used for more than a year; we cannot confirm that from Japan Customs.
Local standards are the larger risk. The same trade guide says every imported car must pass Japanese emission and safety rules through an inspection called SHAKEN, and that modification can be extremely expensive. We found no official source for that cost, so ask a mover before paying to ship a car. Our car shipping guide covers the British end.
Which foods, plants and everyday items cause trouble?
Meat is the plainest case. GOV.UK writes: “It is illegal to bring meat products including sausages, bacon and ham to Japan without permission from the Japanese Animal Quarantine Service”.
Plants are quarantined. “Plants, used agricultural machinery, etc. imported from a foreign country are subject to quarantine for inspection” But the same page says that “inspections under the Plant Protection Law are not necessary for processed articles” including furniture and fixtures, so a wardrobe is not the worry; a houseplant is.
Food for the household is a grey area. The food-law page says a declaration to the health ministry “is not necessary for those goods to be imported for private use”, but also says you should “make sure whether your import goods can be regarded as those for private use” by contacting a quarantine station. A trade guide says food in a shipment is strongly discouraged because it triggers inspection and extra handling fees.
Medicines and cosmetics have quantity limits: “There are quantity restrictions on the import of medicine and cosmetics.” The passenger page gives two months of use for medicines and 24 applications for cosmetics. A trade guide adds that Vicks inhalers and Sudafed count as prohibited, and that straw in packing materials is prohibited; it also says wooden packaging that lacks the ISPM 15 mark will be inspected.
Weapons need a permit: “No person shall bring hunting guns, air guns, swords, etc. into Japan without a permit to possess”. A diplomat-focused customs sheet from Sirva (updated October 2023) says rice, beans, grains, dried vegetables, dry flowers, spices and coffee beans need a phytosanitary certificate, and that power-assisted bicycles, kickboards and drones are highly regulated.
What do we know about pets?
The official evidence we read is thin. Japan Customs lists the Rabies Prevention Act in its table of related laws, covering dogs, cats, raccoons, foxes and skunks, under the Animal Health Division of the farming ministry. The quarantine agency's own rules were not read, so we state no pet rule as confirmed.
A trade body guide describes a long process: a microchip, rabies vaccinations, a blood test, a waiting period before travel, and notice to the quarantine service at least 40 days before arrival. It says a pet that does not meet the rules can be held for up to 180 days, and starts its planning advice at 7 to 8 months before the move. It also says “Pets cannot be imported as part of household goods shipments.” It places the UK in the group needing the full process, citing a 2026 pet-travel source. Take all of this as not confirmed and read our pet moving guide for the British end.
What did we not confirm?
Several points that a mover will need settled. First, how many items count as reasonable: the passenger page says household effects may come in “within the limit deemed reasonable” and gives no figure.
Second, the new-goods allowance and the car-ownership period described above. Third, the pet rules, and fourth, the date of every Japan Customs page. Japan Customs directs questions to a service of its own: “please contact the nearest Customs Counselor”.
The Japan removals guide lists every page we hold. Other FAQ answers on the same Japan Customs site cover parcels posted from abroad, which a container shipper does not use, and were left out.
Questions about Japan customs and household goods
Are household goods free of duty when I move to Japan?
Japan Customs says goods imported within six months of entry are free of duty for people who have been abroad over a year or plan to stay in Japan over a year.
Can the shipment arrive after I do?
Yes.
Japan Customs allows goods to ship after you arrive, but they must be cleared within six months of your arrival.
What stops a declaration being redone?
The sealed copy you receive at the airport.
Japan Customs says it cannot redo that step for any reason, including a lost copy.
Can I ship a car to Japan?
Possibly.
Japan Customs treats a used car like general cargo, wants three copies of an application, and requires that it is not sold or given away for two years.
Tell us about your Japan shipment
Share your departure postcode, arrival month, visa type and whether a car or pet is travelling.
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