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Yodobashi Camera tax-free shopping from 1 November 2026

Yodobashi Camera sells cameras, watches, appliances, cosmetics and medicines in large stores in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Fukuoka, Sapporo and other cities. From 1 November 2026 you pay the full price including tax and get the tax back after the customs check when you leave Japan. On 28 October 2026 Yodobashi announced that refunds go through Global Blue and that 11 stores pay the refund in cash on the spot. Checked on 29 October 2026.

By Mikako Yoshida ·Published 28 October 2026 · Updated 29 October 2026

Yodobashi Camera tax-free shopping from 1 November 2026
Dotonbori, Osaka · Photo: Sakai Yayoi (CC0)

What Yodobashi has published (as of 29 October 2026)

TopicStatusSource
Tax-free branchesAll Yodobashi Camera stores, plus Ishii Sports and Art SportsYodobashi announcement, 28 October 2026
Refund method from 1 NovemberPay the full price, refund after the customs check; cash on the spot at 11 stores if you register a credit cardYodobashi announcement, 28 October 2026
Refund fee and refund companyRefund company: Global Blue. Fee: not mentionedYodobashi announcement, 28 October 2026
Visitor couponNone on Yodobashi’s websiteYodobashi website
Gold Points on tax-free purchasesNot statedYodobashi Gold Point page
Minimum spend¥5,000 before tax at the same store on the same dayJapan Tourism Agency
Yodobashi Camera Akiba, Tokyo
Yodobashi Camera Akiba, Tokyo · Photo: 正和 (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Ask before you pay

Yodobashi has not said whether a fee is deducted, or how refunds are paid other than in cash. Before you pay, ask at the tax-free counter what you will get back and how.

How the refund method works

From 1 November 2026 a tax-free shop charges the full price including consumption tax. You show your passport when you buy and register how you want the refund paid, for example to a credit card. The shop, or a refund company working for it, pays the refund only after customs confirms at departure that you are taking the goods out of Japan.

Cash on the spot is offered at 11 stores: Shinjuku West Main Store, Multimedia Ikebukuro, Akiba, Ueno, Yokohama, Umeda, Kyoto, Meitetsu Nagoya, Hakata, Sapporo and Sendai. Choose cash at the counter and register a credit card. You still show the goods and your passport to customs when you leave; if customs does not confirm the export, the amount paid out is charged to that card. Purchases from other Global Blue shops can also be processed at these counters.

You must leave Japan and complete the customs check within 90 days of the purchase date. The minimum is ¥5,000 before tax at the same store on the same day. There is no upper limit other than the quantity you can carry out of Japan yourself.

Big stores and their floors

StoreAreaFloors to know
Multimedia AkibaAkihabara, Tokyo; 1 minute from Akihabara Station1F phones, computers and Apple shop; 2F travel goods and alcohol; 3F cameras, watches, cosmetics and medicines; 5F appliances for overseas use
Shinjuku West Main StoreShinjuku, Tokyo; Shinjuku Station west exitSeparate buildings for cameras, watches, travel goods, hobbies and toys, games, and multimedia
Multimedia UmedaUmeda, OsakaB1 computers and Apple shop; 1F medicines and daily goods; 2F cameras, beauty products, watches and alcohol; 3F travel goods
Multimedia KyotoKyoto1F cameras, beauty appliances, watches, travel goods and medicines; 2F toys and hobbies
Multimedia HakataHakata, Fukuoka1F cameras, watches, brand goods, cosmetics and travel goods
Multimedia SapporoSapporo2F cameras, watches, brand goods and travel goods; 3F cosmetics and beauty appliances

Useful before you fly

eSIM for Japan, installed before you leave home

Airalo Saily Yesim

JR Pass and Shinkansen tickets

Klook KKday

Airport transfer when you have a lot of shopping bags

Klook Trip.com Welcome Pickups

Luggage storage in Tokyo for the hours before an evening flight

Radical Storage

Hotels in Japan

Klook Trip.com

Coupons

Notes on the stores

These floors come from Yodobashi’s own floor guides, which do not mark tax-free tills. Multimedia Akiba lists appliances for overseas use on 5F. For any appliance, check the voltage and plug type before you buy.

Yodobashi’s website is in Japanese, with store pages also in English. It has no pages in Chinese, Korean or Thai.

Items of ¥1,000,000 or more

For goods costing ¥1,000,000 or more before tax, customs may ask to see certificates of authenticity or warranties. Keep them with the item in your hand luggage.

Before you leave the store and at the airport

  • Keep the receipt and register your refund method as the staff explain.
  • Customs checks each receipt as a whole. If one item on a receipt is missing at the kiosk, nothing on that receipt is refunded.
  • Before you leave Japan, do not use cosmetics or medicines bought tax-free, and do not eat or drink food or alcohol bought tax-free.
  • At the airport, do the kiosk check before you check in any bag.
  • The Japan Tourism Agency says registering on Visit Japan Web makes the procedure at tax-free shops smoother. Yodobashi has not said whether it reads the Visit Japan Web QR code.

Common questions

Does Yodobashi Camera have a tourist coupon?
Yodobashi has not published a visitor coupon on its own website as of 28 October 2026.
Is there a refund fee at Yodobashi?
Yodobashi’s announcement of 28 October 2026 names Global Blue as the refund company but does not mention a fee. Ask at the counter before you pay.
Can I combine receipts from two Yodobashi stores to reach ¥5,000?
No. The ¥5,000 minimum before tax counts only purchases at the same store on the same day.
What if I take a domestic flight before my international flight?
If you transfer from a domestic flight to an international flight before leaving Japan, you complete the customs check at the airport where your international flight departs.

Related guides

Visitor couponsOfficial coupons from electronics stores, drugstores and department stores.Refund methods and feesHow the money comes back, and the fees shops have announced.At the airportWhere the kiosks are and what green and red mean.

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