For man years, many tourists have taken advantage of the tax free discounts offered by many stores in Japan.
On November 1, 2026, Japan’s tax-free shopping system will unfortunately change.
Tourists will no longer be able to get instant tax-free discounts at checkout. Instead, tourists must pay the full 10% consumption tax at the store and claim a refund at the airport departure lounge (While this may sounds positive, if the line is long, probably not even worth it).
The Tax Refund Process
Under the new refund method, getting your money back requires following a few specific steps:
Store: You will pay the full tax-inclusive price. The ¥500,000 daily limit and consumable/non-consumable category split have been abolished.
Airport: You must complete a customs inspection before check-in (especially if tax-free items are in checked bags). You process your refund applications using customs kiosks or via the Visit Japan Web portal.
Checkout: A major benefit of this new system is that the tedious “sealed packaging” requirement for consumables (cosmetics, food, and medicines) has been abolished.
As for taxes, these went into effect in early 2026:
Departure Tax: The International Tourist Departure Tax increased from ¥1,000 to ¥3,000 per person, which is typically bundled into your flight ticket.
Visa Fees: Single-entry visa fees for those who require them jumped fivefold (from ¥3,000 to ¥15,000).
Accommodation Taxes: Major tourist destinations have expanded or increased local lodging taxes. For example, Kyoto now charges up to ¥10,000 per person, per night for luxury accommodations.
Should I feel bad?
Not really. On paper, it seems like a huge boost on taxes and fees but in the long run, these last several years, people who have purchased from Japan or traveled to Japan have literally been getting things on discount because the Japanese yen is terrible.
Back then, we would say that 1000 yen is $10 US. Now, 1000 yen is equivalent to $6.13.
So, let’s say you saw a very nice item that costs 100,000 yen. Back then, it would be like $1000 US. Now, it would be $613.11, giving the non-Japanese paying consumer a pretty significant discount.
Granted, if you are now living in Japan and are being paid by a Japanese company, then unfortunately, like other Japanese who are suffering economically, you will as well.
So, let’s say that you wanted to buy a house in Japan that is 1,000,000 yen. While seven figures sounds huge, again, due to Japan’s terrible economy at the moment, that means that house would cost you $6,131.13 US. And there are more than enough YouTube videos of how people were able to get Japanese homes for so cheap.
While we hope Japan’s economy gets better, for those of you living outside of Japan, take advantage of the discount, even if taxes and fees are increased, it’s not that bad.
