On 31 March 2026, a bill to amend the Customs Tariff Act, the Customs Act, and the Temporary Customs Tariff Measures Act, etc. was passed. The amendments include the establishment of a new system to prevent circumvention of anti-dumping duties and abolishment of the Special Provision for Determining Taxable Price (0.6 times rule) for individual imports, which we covered in a previous post. Summary of the amendments The key changes made by the amendments are…
Japan is reportedly considering a significant revision to its de minimis customs regime, aligning with global trends. The proposed changes aim to address the rapid growth of cross-border e-commerce shipments that currently benefit from duty and tax exemptions under the existing de minimis rules. 1. Current Framework Under Japan’s current system, imported goods valued below JPY 10,000 (approximately USD 60) are exempt from customs duties and consumption tax. This threshold was originally intended to simplify…
On September 4, President Trump issued an executive order to implement a trade agreement recently reached between the United States and Japan. The executive order memorializes a trade agreement announced by President Trump in July and provides some additional details on the terms of the agreement. The agreement introduces a general tariff framework where a baseline 15% tariff will apply to nearly all Japanese imports. If a product’s existing tariff is less than 15%, it…
On May 12, 2025, the Minister of Finance (MOF) received an application from NIPPON STEEL CORPORATION, Nippon Yakin Kogyo Co., Ltd., NAS Stainless Steel Strip MFG. Co., Ltd. and NIPPON KINZOKU CO., LTD., to impose an anti-dumping duty on nickel-added cold-rolled stainless steel coil, sheet, and strip originating in the People’s Republic of China (excluding Hong Kong and Macao) and Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and…
On July 22, President Trump announced that the U.S. had struck a trade agreement with Japan. The announcement calls for a 15% tariff on Japanese goods imported into the U.S. In return, Japan will “open their Country to Trade including Cars and Trucks, Rice and certain other Agricultural Products, and other things.” Under President Trump’s reciprocal tariff package announced in April, Japanese goods would be subject to a 24% duty. The imposition of this tariff…
On July 7, President Trump announced revised tariffs rates for certain trading partners that will take effect on August 1 and extended the postponement of his “Liberation Day” tariffs. The revised tariffs were announced via letters to 14 countries and range from 25% to 40%. These actions come mere days before President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, which were paused to allow for the negotiation of bilateral trade agreements, were due to resume on July 9 for…
Since April 24, 2024, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) had been conducting an anti-dumping investigation into graphite electrodes imported from China. As a result of the investigation, on 28 February 2025, METI and MOF issued a provisional determination that presumes the fact of dumping and the substantial damage that such dumping caused to Japanese industries.After the interested parties submitted evidence for provisional determination and were granted…
The number of import permits has been increasing significantly over the past few years due to the expansion of cross-border electronic commerce. In the midst of this trend, many cases of smuggling of illicit drugs and intellectual property infringing goods have been detected, and cases of inappropriate importation of FS-used cargo (*) by impersonation and tax evasion by low value declarations have become apparent. In light of this background, the Customs and Excise Department will…
The Japanese government launched the webpage named “Bonded Portal” on the Customs website, dedicated to providing information on the bonded system. This portal includes procedural guidance for businesses seeking approval for bonded areas, as well as various information and materials, including the guidelines for the bonded warehouse permit applications. Additionally, this portal has the subpage for soliciting opinions from the public to understand the issues and needs related to the bonded system and its operation.…
In the realm of international trade, the anti-dumping instrument plays a crucial role in safeguarding domestic industries against unfair trading practices. The high number of anti-dumping investigations initiated around the world, as well as an increasingly broad product scope (such as touted cases on hydrogen or electric vehicles), mean that many internationally active companies will need to be aware of anti-dumping. While World Trade Organization law sets out the general framework for municipal anti-dumping rules,…