Part of: Akihabara Figures: Where to Buy New vs Used
Browse more: Money, Cards & Payments in Japan
From purchases made on 1 November 2026, Japanese tax-free shops stop taking the consumption tax off at the till. You pay the full tax-inclusive price, show your purchases at a customs kiosk at the airport before you check in your bags, and the tax is refunded to you afterwards by the shop or its refund agent. The minimum spend stays the same: 5,000 yen before tax, in one shop, on one day.
That is the whole change in one paragraph. The details below are what decide whether you actually get the money back — and the one that catches people is the order of things at the airport.
The point where the tax disappears moves from the shop to the airport. Until the end of October 2026, a tax-free shop sells you the item at the pre-tax price. From 1 November, the shop charges tax as normal, and you get it back only after customs has confirmed at departure that the goods are leaving Japan. The Japan Tourism Agency calls this the "refund method."
The reason is simple enough: under the old system, goods bought tax-free were sometimes resold inside Japan and never left. Charging the tax first and refunding it after the export check closes that gap. For an honest visitor, the practical result is an extra step at the airport and a wait for the money.
| Until 31 October 2026 | From 1 November 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price you pay in the shop | Tax removed at the till | Full price, tax included |
| When you get the tax back | Immediately | After the customs check at departure |
| Minimum spend | 5,000 yen (before tax), same shop, same day | Same — no change |
| Split between general goods and consumables | Yes | Abolished |
| 500,000 yen cap on consumables and sealed bags | Yes | Abolished |
| Limit on quantity | — | What you can personally carry out of Japan |
| Deadline | — | Leave Japan within 90 days of purchase |
On my Akihabara anime tour I now tell guests to keep every receipt in one envelope as they shop, since under this new order of operations a lost slip costs you the refund itself, not just a few minutes at the till.
Before you check in any luggage, go to a tax-free kiosk in the international departures area and scan your passport. The screen then shows green (done, no inspection) or red (take your purchases to the customs inspection point). You need every item from that receipt with you, so the purchases must still be in your hand or in the suitcase you have not yet checked in.
This order matters more than anything else in this article. The official guidance is explicit on three points:
At the seven busiest airports — Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu, Fukuoka, New Chitose and Naha — you can also complete the step online through Visit Japan Web, while connected to the dedicated Wi-Fi in the departures area before security.
After customs confirms the export, the shop or the refund company it works with pays you. The method is chosen by the shop, not by the government: bank transfer, credit card, an app, or cash at the airport are all listed as possibilities. The shop explains how its refund works when you buy, so that is the moment to ask.
This is the part that varies most, and it is why no single "you get X back in Y days" figure exists. Two shops on the same street can use different refund agents with different methods. If you are making one large purchase — a figure, a camera, a set of knives — ask at the counter how and when the refund arrives before you pay. The staff at tax-free counters deal with this question all day.
If you would rather pay by card and avoid carrying cash, cash or card in Japan covers where cards work, and ATMs that take foreign cards covers the rest.
Not if you want the refund on it. The sealed bags for food, drinks and cosmetics are abolished, but that does not mean you can open them: if you eat or use consumables in Japan, you cannot get the tax back on them. And the check works per receipt — if even one item from a receipt is missing, the refund for everything on that receipt is lost.
That second rule changes how you should shop. If you plan to eat some of the snacks you are buying and take the rest home, pay for them separately, so the ones you eat do not cost you the refund on the ones you keep. If you have already used something, the official instruction is not to use the kiosk for that receipt but to tell a customs officer at the counter.
Taking goods through the check and then not exporting them is treated as a tax offence: the tax is collected and penalties apply.
Almost anything for personal use that you take out of Japan, as long as you spend at least 5,000 yen before tax in one shop on one day. The exceptions are gold and platinum bullion and coins, and items that are exempt from consumption tax anyway. Quantity is limited to what you can carry out yourself.
The "what you can carry" limit replaces the old separate caps. In practice it means that buying twenty of the same figure is the kind of purchase a shop may question, because it no longer looks like personal luggage. For single items priced at 1,000,000 yen or more before tax, the shop records the serial number, and customs may ask to see a certificate or warranty — keep them with the item.
Where to find the shops worth spending 5,000 yen in is the subject of where to buy anime figures in Akihabara; second-hand chains are covered in the Book-Off guide.
Ask the shop. Whether a store will ship tax-free goods abroad is up to each store. What you can no longer do is buy tax-free and post the goods home yourself — that route was abolished on 31 March 2025.
This matters for bulky purchases. If a shop offers overseas shipping, the export happens through the shop and the tax-free procedure at the airport does not apply. If it does not, you are carrying the item out yourself. For moving a suitcase between hotels before the flight, luggage forwarding in Japan is the tool — but remember that anything you need to show at the tax-free kiosk has to be with you at the airport, not travelling separately.
Checking the suitcase first, opening a consumable that shares a receipt with things you want refunded, and arriving at the airport with no spare time. All three lose the refund, and none can be fixed afterwards.
| Mistake | What happens | What to do instead |
|---|---|---|
| Checking in the suitcase before the kiosk | No inspection possible, no refund | Kiosk first, check-in second |
| Eating one snack from a shared receipt | Whole receipt loses the refund | Buy the things you will eat separately |
| Arriving late | No time for a red-result inspection | Allow extra time at the airport |
| Doing the check at a domestic transfer airport | Not your exit point | Check at the airport you leave Japan from |
| Waiting past 90 days | Outside the refund window | Leave within 90 days of purchase |
NOTax-free shopping is not ending; it is changing shape. From 1 November 2026 the shop charges you the full price, and the tax comes back after customs confirms at the airport that you are taking the goods out of Japan. The 5,000 yen minimum per shop per day stays, and the sealed consumables bag and the 500,000 yen cap go away.
YESPurchases made up to 31 October 2026 follow the old system: tax is removed at the till. The new process applies to purchases from 1 November.
YESYou show your passport when you buy, as before. The shop records the purchase and sends it electronically; there is no paper slip stapled into the passport.
NOThe minimum is per shop, per day.
The official figure is a few seconds from scanning the passport to the result. The time you need to allow is for a possible inspection, not the kiosk itself.
If you have lived outside Japan for two years or more, yes, with proof. From November a My Number card showing that you moved abroad is accepted alongside the existing documents, and the permanent domicile no longer needs to be shown.
It works well, as long as the purchases go in your hand luggage or the case you check in only after the kiosk. Things to do in Akihabara and what to pack for Japan cover the rest of the day.
NOFrom 1 November 2026 the sealed bags for food, drinks and cosmetics are abolished, together with the 500,000 yen cap on consumables. That does not mean you can open them: if you eat or use consumables in Japan you cannot get the tax back on them, and the check at the airport kiosk works per receipt.
There is a minimum, not a maximum: 5,000 yen before tax in one shop on one day. The old 500,000 yen cap on consumables is gone, and quantity is limited to what you can personally carry out of Japan. For a single item priced at 1,000,000 yen or more before tax, the shop records the serial number.
Not for the kiosk itself. The kiosk reads your passport — the shop has already sent the purchase record electronically, so there is no paper slip to present. At the seven airports with Visit Japan Web (Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu, Fukuoka, New Chitose and Naha) you can complete the step through that service instead, over the dedicated Wi-Fi in the departures area before security.
Kiosk first, check-in second. Everything else — the method, the timing of the refund — the shop tells you when you buy.
About the author. I am Yuuki, a Japanese teacher and Akihabara anime tour guide based in Tokyo. I run private anime tours in Akihabara, rated 4.96★ on Airbnb across 171 reviews, and the question of how tax-free works comes up at almost every figure shop we walk into. I also teach Japanese one-on-one online as an italki Top 1% teacher, 5.0★ across 358 reviews.
Yuuki guides private anime tours in Akihabara — see the tour — and teaches Japanese online at animesenseijp.com.
Sources
旅行者向け特設ページ｜消費税免税店サイトwww.mlit.go.jp
旅行者向け よくある質問（リファンド方式）｜消費税免税店サイトwww.mlit.go.jp
https://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/tax-free/content/001977883.pdfwww.mlit.go.jpA private half-day with a local otaku guide, planned around your fandom. Three to four hours in English, never mixed with other travelers, rated 4.96 by 171 Airbnb guests. Booking here goes straight into my calendar.
Book the private Akihabara anime tour direct See Yuuki's Japan Kit