Mains-powered electronics & appliances × Foreign seller — no entity in Japan (own-name import via ACP)

Rules verified as of 2026-08-08 · reviewed quarterly (next review: November 2026)

Typical products: AC adapters, kitchen appliances, lighting, PCs & monitors (their PSU/adapter), power strips

If the device also has Wi-Fi/Bluetooth, the Giteki regime applies on top — see the wireless category. The AC adapter itself is very often the regulated 電気用品 even when the device runs on DC.

Which regimes apply

PSE — Electrical Appliance and Material Safety Act (電気用品安全法)

Mains-powered electrical appliances and mobile power banks are regulated 電気用品. 116 'specified' items (diamond PSE) need certification by a registered conformity body; 341 'non-specified' items (circle PSE) allow self-confirmation. The IMPORTER must notify METI of its business within 30 days of starting imports, verify conformity with the technical standards, keep inspection records, and ensure the PSE mark is affixed before sale.

File the business notification (事業届出) with METI within 30 days of the first import
Confirm the model meets the technical standards (for specified items: certificate from a registered body)
Keep self-inspection records
Affix / verify the PSE mark and the notifier's name before sale

Sources: METI — DENAN overview · Specified items list (116) · Non-specified items list (341)

Dec 2025 cross-border e-commerce rules (特定輸入事業者・国内管理人)

Since 25 December 2025, foreign businesses selling regulated products (PSE/PSC/gas/LPG categories) DIRECTLY to Japanese consumers — e.g. via online marketplaces — are explicitly covered by the four product-safety acts as 特定輸入事業者, and appoint and notify a domestic administrator (国内管理人) in Japan who bears safety-compliance responsibilities. Notification procedures run through METI's electronic systems (GBiz-ID).

Determine whether your direct-to-consumer sales include regulated (PSE/PSC) products
Appoint a qualified 国内管理人 (domestic administrator) and file the notification
Keep the administrator informed for recalls / accident reporting duties

Sources: METI — foreign businesses now covered (特定輸入事業者)

Customs: duty, consumption tax and the importer of record

Every commercial import needs an importer of record with post-release disposal authority, correct HS classification, duty and 10% consumption tax. A non-resident importer files through an Attorney for Customs Procedures (ACP, 税関事務管理人) and needs a tax agent for JCT recovery.

Classify the product (HS code) and check the duty rate
Convert values with the official customs FX rate
Non-residents: appoint ACP (form C-7500) before the first declaration

Sources: Customs Answer 9601 — ACP

→ Tools: tariff finder & landed-cost calculator · customs FX rates · Guides: IOR, ACP

Who can be the importer — verdict

You CAN be the importer of record as a non-resident by appointing an Attorney for Customs Procedures (ACP) before the first declaration, and a tax agent to recover import JCT. BUT product regimes that require a domestic notifier or license holder (PSE, PSC, food sanitation, PMD) are NOT satisfied by the ACP — you need a Japan-side responsible business for those: a partner importer, or (for direct B2C sales of PSE/PSC goods since Dec 2025) a notified 国内管理人.

Your checklist

Appoint an ACP (税関事務管理人) — Customs form C-7500 — before the first import declaration
Appoint a tax agent (納税管理人) with the tax office if you will recover import JCT
Confirm who fulfils each product regime on the Japanese side (see the regimes above)
Register the invoice/classification pack: HS code, duty rate, customs FX rate
[PSE] File the business notification (事業届出) with METI within 30 days of the first import
[PSE] Confirm the model meets the technical standards (for specified items: certificate from a registered body)
[PSE] Keep self-inspection records
[PSE] Affix / verify the PSE mark and the notifier's name before sale
[Dec 2025 cross-border e-commerce rules (特定輸入事業者・国内管理人)] Determine whether your direct-to-consumer sales include regulated (PSE/PSC) products
[Dec 2025 cross-border e-commerce rules (特定輸入事業者・国内管理人)] Appoint a qualified 国内管理人 (domestic administrator) and file the notification
[Dec 2025 cross-border e-commerce rules (特定輸入事業者・国内管理人)] Keep the administrator informed for recalls / accident reporting duties
[Customs: duty, consumption tax and the importer of record] Classify the product (HS code) and check the duty rate
[Customs: duty, consumption tax and the importer of record] Convert values with the official customs FX rate
[Customs: duty, consumption tax and the importer of record] Non-residents: appoint ACP (form C-7500) before the first declaration