Insights & Guides
Practical knowledge on Japan market entry — from company setup and visas to trade logistics and branding.
How Much Does Japan IOR Actually Cost? Fees, Structure, and What to Budget (2026)
Overseas manufacturers often approach Japan market entry with a single question: "What does IOR cost?" The answer is not a single number. The total cost of importing through an Importer of Record...
Japan IOR for Chemicals and Raw Materials: Import Compliance for Non-Resident Manufacturers (2026)
Foreign chemical manufacturers and raw material suppliers exporting to Japan face a compliance picture that is categorically more complex than general merchandise. The importer of record for a...
Japan IOR for Spare Parts and After-Sales Service Imports: Shipping Replacement Parts Without a Japan Entity (2026)
Foreign manufacturers that have sold capital equipment, machinery, or consumer products into Japan face a recurring compliance problem: the after-sales supply chain. Spare parts, replacement...
Japan ACP as a Permanent Import Strategy: When to Stay Non-Resident and When to Incorporate (2026)
Most foreign companies treating Japan as a serious market arrive with a default assumption baked in: "We'll use ACP for now, then incorporate once we're ready." That framing is almost always the...
Japan EOR Total Cost of Employment Guide: What Hiring via Employer of Record Actually Costs Foreign Companies (2026)
Most foreign companies discover Japan employment costs for the first time at the worst possible moment: after they have extended an offer, negotiated a gross salary, and built a budget around it....
Japan Import Consumption Tax Recovery Guide: How Non-Resident IOR and ACP Importers Claim Input Tax Credits
Companies importing goods into Japan pay consumption tax at the border. For many, that tax never comes back. Whether it does, and how, depends entirely on the import structure chosen and whether...
Japan ACP for Southeast Asian Manufacturers: Staying Named as Importer on Japan Customs Declarations Without a Japan Entity (2026)
Southeast Asian manufacturers exporting to Japan through Japanese trading companies or distributors as nominal importers are running the same compliance problem that the October 2023 Japan Customs...
Japan EOR for Clean Energy Companies: Hiring Your Market Entry Team Without Setting Up a Japan Entity (2026)
Japan's energy transition is creating consistent on-the-ground hiring demand across solar, wind, battery storage, EV infrastructure, and hydrogen sectors. Foreign clean energy companies entering...
Japan IOR and ACP for US Manufacturers: How to Import to Japan Without a Japan Entity (2026 Guide)
US manufacturers exporting to Japan through Japanese distributors or trading companies as nominal importers are carrying customs exposure that has been explicitly non-compliant since the October...
Japan ACP for European Manufacturers: How to Use EU-Japan EPA Tariff Preferences Without a Japan Entity
The EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (commonly known as JEEPA) eliminated or significantly reduced import tariff rates on a wide range of European manufactured goods entering Japan....