How can I import food and selling in Japan? What is prohibited to be imported?What are the import restrictions?What documents are required for import in Japan?We will answer your questions in several articles.

Goods with control and restrictions

In deciding what goods to import and sale, the first step is to check what you can not import , the laws and regulations. We already talked about it in another article- Can I sell imported goods in Japan? This time we would like to explain more on what kind of items are related to Food Sanitation Law in Japan. Any items intended to or possibly contact with mouth or infants are considered related to Food Sanitation Law. Such as tableware, cookware and toys that are intended for the children under the age of 6. We can imagine that kidos may put anythings into their little mouths and we all want our kids to be safe with toys.

Consultation and guidance in advance

If you want to import and sale food products in Japan, not sure what import documentation are needed or what is the import duty and tax or any other questions. You can check with import agency / import trading company in Japan.

Also, we would suggest customer to contact with MHLW Japan quarantine stations for prior consultation. MHLW is the abbreviation of The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. The prior consultation is available for individuals counseling.Which means you can communication with quarantine stations by your owns.

It is better to prepare below basic details for counseling(example of importing foods)

• importer details
• exporter details
• product name
• import from which country
• import volumes
• plan when/where/how to import
• ingredient list
• production flow chart
• Issuance of government certifications in export country(if you have)

Quarantine stations will contact the requestor if required further documentations. To obtain as much information as you can will help you save time in prior concultation.

We hope you find this article is helpful!