10 Steps to Export To Japan

Step 1. Market entry consultation

1. Consultation on Japanese import policies.

– Confirm that your exported product/goods are allowed to be exported to Japan.

– If fresh fruits and vegetables are eligible for export to Japan, the Phytosanitary certificate must accompany the consignment. Frozen fruits and vegetables permitted to be imported by the Japanese government must be fresh (must not be cooked before freezing)…

2. Examination of compliance with Japanese legislation of Food Standards (including: agricultural chemical residues, food additives, bacterial contamination, food processing / manufacturing processes, packaging materials and other regulations).

3. Check tax classifications and tax liability for your product.

– It is important to confirm that your importer has clearly received the tariff classifications for your products/goods from the Japanese Customs authorities to avoid wasting time at ports of import.

– Customs will respond free of charge within 30 days of the filing date. Classification results from customs offices are valid for 3 years from the date of issue. The importer is responsible, but the packer / exporter should be familiar with the process.

4. Review product labels.

– Product labels must be prepared in Japanese according to the Japanese Food Labeling Regulations.

– Labeling is required in Japanese in Japan for: food additives and retail packages of imported processed food products. Fresh fruit has only a general labeling obligation (Product Name and Country of Origin), but post-harvest antifungal agents must be labeled for specific fruits (avocado, mango, oranges, mandarin, pomegranate, plum, pear, nectar, pineapple, banana, papaya).

5. Review intellectual property rights.

– In order to protect your Trademarks in the Japanese market, you or your importer may wish to apply for a Trademark under the Trademarks Act. You may also consider using the Madrid System for International Trademark registration.

– Exporters may wish to design a special logo, brand name or packaging specific to the Japanese market and the Trademarks you register for the Japanese market may therefore be different from the Trademarks you have registered for products sold abroad.

Step 2. Prepare the export documents:

1. Certificate of Analysis and Certificate of Plant Quarantine.

– The Phytosanitary Certificate must accompany the consignment, while the Certificate of Analysis is the document confirming the results of the laboratory tests certified upon request. Only labs are approved by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW).

1. Customs declaration.

– Packers/exporters are responsible. The export declaration procedures are usually assigned to a Customs Agent. Required import documents, including: Commercial Invoice, Bill of Lading, Bill of Lading (B / L) or Air Waybill, Phytosanitary Certificate, Certificate of Analysis, labeling, packaging materials:

Step 3. Send the goods

1.Receive the bill of lading after loading the goods/products on board / plane.

2. Electronic Export Declaration (EEI) through the Automated Export System (AES) is a common way. Over 2500 USD valued shipments with an Export Certificate are required to submit an export declaration.

3.It is necessary to send the above necessary documents to the importer for customs clearance procedures in Japan.

Step 4. Import Notice

1. The importer is responsible for customs clearance beginning by submitting the Food Import Notification Form (2 copies) to the Quarantine Station at the port of import. Phytosanitary aims to prevent the spread of diseases from plants and pests before being imported into Japan. Notification records can be sent electronically through Nippon’s Automated System (NACCS) or in paper forms. Applications that accept registration records as early as 7 days in advance of the scheduled products/goods arrive at the port of import. Recently, applications can receive registration records as soon as products/goods arrive at the port of import.

The entire clearance process is usually assigned to a Customs Agent. The import notice is free but Customs Agent will usually charge 2000-5000 JPY to do this.

2. Phytosanitary stations may require additional documents such as Commercial Invoice, Bill of Products/Goods and Bill of Lading (B / L) or Air Waybill.

Step 5. Review quarantine records

1. Through inspection documents and on-site quarantine at a bonded warehouse designated by Quarantine and Customs officials to assess each shipment. Timeframes for Quarantine typically range from 10 minutes to half a day with no fees. If crop diseases and pests are detected, they can request the importer to test the samples and testing can take up to a week.

2. If a plant disease / pest is found, the Quarantine Station will request disinfection, treatment or re-export. Importers need to cover the cost of fumigation, treatment or re-export and the Customs Agent will charge additional costs for these activities if requested.

3. After the consignment passes the quarantine stage, it will receive the Plant Quarantine Certificate. The original phytosanitary certificate issued by the Quarantine Service will accompany the consignment at the time of importation and cannot be used for multiple consignments.

4. A food import notification sample will receive a stamp of approval prior to import if the food product is not subject to testing and is assessed for compliance with the Food Hygiene Act. The Quarantine and Customs Service may request additional information (not listed on the Food Import Notice Form) prior to customs clearance. Subsequent imports of the same product, this requirement may be waived.

Step 6. Field inspection

The quarantine stations specify the items to be inspected, as well as the test and the sampling methods after documenting and checking records and conducting field checks. Examining documents usually takes a few hours. There are 3 types of Food Safety Inspection, if required, as follows:

1. Self-test: Importers arrange for food safety testing by themselves at MHLW certified laboratories. Self-testing is often required when a product/goods is imported into Japan for the first time.

After the test, the importer is issued a Certificate of Analysis and provides it to the Quarantine Station. Usually, the lab comes to the warehouse to collect the samples and send the Certificate of Analysis within 1 week after the sample is taken. Importers have to pay the cost of self-testing. The validity period of the Certificate of Analysis is usually 1 year. When the Certificate of Analysis expires, the self-examination must be resumed. If any violation occurs with previous consignments, Quarantine Stations may request importer to conduct a self test even with a valid Certificate of Analysis.

2.Check by order: Some products/goods from some exporters / countries have certain errors in the past, Quarantine Stations will ask the importers to check the consignment. This is called a command check. Importers must pay the cost of the ordered inspection.

3. Monitoring regularly occurs when Quarantine Stations randomly select lots and conducts to test for the purpose of overall monitoring of the food safety of imported products/goods. Usually, it takes 1 week or less for the results of the supervised test. Quarantine stations will cover the cost of the test.

If the product is found to be violating in terms of technical specifications and food hygiene standards, the Quarantine Station will issue an order to recall, re-export, remove / destroy, and change the use of the product to its non-food intended purpose (if any). Accounted for 40% of the rejected cases are fruit and seed products due to Aflatoxin detection. A food safety violation can also affect other shipments of the same product/goods from other exporters. Importers will usually pay for storage costs during the inspection process. To be cautious importers often start with a small batch to ensure smooth clearance.

Step 7. Import certification

After achieving food safety, the importer should store the products/goods in the bonded area until received the approval on the Food Import Notification Form. During this time the importer can clear and circulate / distribute the goods on the market.

Step 8. Clearance

1. Send the electronic import declaration form to the Customs through NACCS or in paper forms. Import declarations can be submitted after discharge or up to 2 weeks before the products/goods arrive at the scheduled port of import.

2. Pass the document inspection

3.Confirmation of preferential tariff application: In order to apply the preferential tariff, a product/goods must be originating and meet Japan’s Preferential Rules of Origin, unless the product/goods is of small value less than 200,000 JPY (about 1860 USD). The self-declaration system requires the importer to declare the product/goods as originating. Japanese customs offices will eventually determine the product/goods’ origin.

4. Preferential rates are applicable to product/goods that qualify as originating under the applicable preferential rules of origin. In order to claim the preferential tax rates at Japanese customs offices, the following proof of origin is usually required: A Certificate of Origin issued by the Competent Authority of the exporting country (system of certification of third party).

5. Payment of import tax and consumption tax.

6. Import certification.

Step 9. Consume goods in the market

Even when imported food products pass customs clearance to be circulated in the Japanese market, there is still food safety supervision. Importers are still responsible for the food safety of imported food products. The Food Hygiene Act requires each prefectural health center to have a food safety monitoring plan in accordance with the instructions of the Japanese government agency for importers / distributors / wholesalers / retailers. Monitoring includes sampling of imported food products, field inspection of the importer’s food safety system, monitoring of food labeling,… If detected a violation, the Center can recall request (e.g. recall of milk chocolate bars, which are considered potentially risky, but not mentioned on food labels).

Step 10. Responsibility to End Users

Faced with food safety issues, importers often purchase financial liability insurance to reduce the financial risks from recalls and consumer claims related to food safety risks like illness or accident. Financial liability for recalls and health claims is a matter of dispute between Japanese importers and overseas exporters / manufacturers. Therefore, parties discuss in advance about food safety risks in the market and determine the types of insurance required to cover costs or damages related to product recalls or health claims. Importers can recall product/goods voluntarily, if they foresee any non-compliance issues.