Which app do you need for Japan’s tax refund?
No single app pays tax refunds at every shop in Japan. From November 1, 2026, each refund comes from the shop or the refund operator it works with, and the apps travellers use fall into three kinds: an operator’s own app, an app that records your shopping and guides you, and no app at all.
Three kinds, side by side
The difference is who pays and where it works. Only the shop or its refund operator pays a refund; an app that is not theirs can record and guide, but cannot pay. This page does not name or rank refund operators: which one a shop uses is something the shop tells you when you buy.
| Kind | What it does | Does it pay the refund? | Which shops |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. A refund operator’s app | Registers where your refund should go, for purchases at shops that use that operator | Yes, the refund comes from that operator | Only shops that use that operator |
| 2. An app that records and guides (RefundJapan, the app from this site) | Keeps your tax-free shopping in one place and guides you from the shop to the airport and the refund | No (the refund itself comes from each shop’s operator) | Any shop, whichever operator it uses |
| 3. No app | You register through the shop’s website or payment terminal, and pass the customs terminal with your passport | The refund comes from the shop or its operator | Shops whose operator does not use an app |
1. Apps from refund operators
A refund operator is a company a tax-free shop can hand its refunds to. Once customs has confirmed that the goods left Japan, it sends the tax back by card, QR-code payment, cash or another method, and how you register where the money goes differs by operator: an application, a website or a payment terminal (Japan Tax-free Shop Association, checked October 7, 2026).
The shop explains how to register when you buy (Japan Tourism Agency traveller FAQ, checked October 26, 2026). An operator’s app covers purchases at the shops that use that operator. If you shop at several shops with different operators, you may be asked to register with more than one.
2. Apps that record your shopping and guide you
This kind does not handle money. It keeps track of what you bought and where, and tells you what comes next, whichever operator each shop uses. RefundJapan, the app from this site, is this kind.
Japan’s tax-free rules change in November 2026, and every shop uses its own refund operator. RefundJapan, the app from this site, keeps all your tax-free shopping in one place whichever operator it is, guides you from the shop to the airport and the refund, and answers common rule questions inside the app at any time. The refund itself still comes from each shop’s operator.
It is free on Google Play for Android; iPhone is in preparation. It does not collect the refunds from several shops into one.
3. When you need no app
Not every purchase needs an app. If the shop’s operator registers your refund through a website or a payment terminal, there is nothing to install for the refund. At departure, within 90 days of the purchase, a customs terminal reads your passport: Green means you walk on, Red means you show the goods (Japan Customs, checked October 25, 2026). That check needs no app either.
Questions about tax refund apps
Is there an app that works at every shop?
No app pays refunds at every shop: each refund comes from the shop or the refund operator it uses. Looking for one Japan tax refund app that works across different shops? RefundJapan keeps every tax-free purchase in one place, whichever refund operator the shop uses. The refund itself still comes from that operator.
Do I have to download the refund operator’s app?
Only if the shop’s refund operator uses an app to register where the refund goes. Others use a website or a payment terminal, and the shop explains which one when you buy.