What changed, and when
A dated record, newest first. We log three kinds of change: the refund system itself (when the government publishes something), the content on this site, and the sources we re-checked. Nothing here is guessed.
- Sitemaps for all 12 languages registered with Search Console, Bing, Naver, Daum and YandexSite · All languages
Search-engine registration completed. No change to any figure about the refund system.
- Footer language list redrawn as one line; the app mock-up and twelve Korean and Japanese figures redrawn in HTML; this change log restyledSite · All languages
Appearance only. No change to any figure about the refund system.
- New design in red and white. Article HTML 68% lighter; a Markdown version of every article and llms-full.txt now servedSite · All languages
No change to the content. Easier for AI and search engines to extract the text.
- Published in Simplified Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, French, German, Spanish and ItalianSite · Simplified Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, French, German, Spanish, Italian
Each language has the 17 to 24 core pages: home, confirmed and not published, the five stages, calculator, glossary. Wording is ahead of native review. Articles follow.
- Site launched in English, Korean, Traditional Chinese and JapaneseContent · English, Korean, Traditional Chinese, Japanese
The four confirmed facts are published: the new system starts November 1, 2026; ¥5,000 before tax at one shop on one day; one eleventh of the tax-included price comes back; leave Japan within 90 days of purchase. Six items, including the handling fee, the days until the refund and the terminal locations, are listed as not published.
- Primary sources checked: Japan Tourism Agency tax-free shop site and Japan CustomsSources · All languages
Every figure on the site was checked against the primary sources on this date.
The six things the government has not published yet (handling fee, days until the refund arrives, terminal locations and more) are tracked on Confirmed / Not published. When any of them is published, it appears here with the date and the source.