Consumption Tax Calculator for Japan (消費税)
Add or remove Japanese consumption tax at 10% or 8% — including the eat-in versus takeaway rule.
Japan's value added tax is called consumption tax — 消費税, shōhizei. This calculator opens with Japan selected so you can add tax to a tax-excluded price or take it back out of a tax-included one, then switch rate or country whenever you need to.
Two rates are in use. The standard rate is 10% and applies to most goods and services. A reduced rate of 8% applies to food and drink, excluding alcoholic drinks and excluding dining in, and to newspapers supplied by subscription at least twice a week. The headline percentage a shopper pays is split internally between a national consumption tax and a local consumption tax, but that split does not change the total you calculate.
The 8% band is where nearly all the confusion lives. The same onigiri can be 8% or 10% depending on whether you take it away or eat it in the shop, because dining-in is treated as a catering service rather than a supply of food. Convenience stores and cafés genuinely do ask which you intend, and the answer changes the price you pay.
How to calculate Japanese consumption tax
- Choose the direction — add tax to a 税抜 (tax-excluded) price, or remove it from a 税込 (tax-included) price.
- Enter the amount in yen.
- Select 10% for standard supplies, or 8% for takeaway food and drink and qualifying newspaper subscriptions.
- If the item is food eaten on the premises, or an alcoholic drink, use 10% rather than 8%.
- Read the net, the tax and the total together, and change country in the selector for other markets.
The two rates: 10% standard and 8% reduced
Consumption tax rose to 10% in October 2019, and the reduced 8% rate was introduced at the same time so that everyday food would not go up with everything else. Almost everything you buy in Japan — clothes, electronics, transport, services, restaurant meals — is taxed at 10%. The 8% band is a deliberate exception with a narrow, written definition rather than a general "essentials" principle.
That definition covers food and beverages, but explicitly excludes alcoholic drinks and excludes food served for consumption on the premises. It also covers newspapers delivered under a subscription published at least twice a week. Anything not inside those descriptions is standard-rated, which is why bottled water is 8% while a beer is 10%, and why a magazine is 10% while a subscribed newspaper is 8%.
Eat in or take away: the 10% versus 8% rule
The rule turns on what is being supplied. Handing over food to take away is a supply of food and drink at 8%. Providing seating, tableware and service so the customer can eat on the spot is a catering service at 10%. The physical item can be identical; the tax follows the circumstances of the sale, judged at the point of purchase by the customer's stated intention.
In practice this is why a convenience store clerk asks whether you will use the eat-in corner, why food courts and station kiosks post two prices, and why a coffee to go can cost less than the same coffee at the counter. Fast-food chains handle it the same way. Home delivery and takeaway from a restaurant are 8%; the same dish eaten at the table is 10%. Room service and catering supplied at a customer's specified location are treated as services and are standard-rated.
税込 and 税抜: how Japanese prices are displayed
Japanese retailers are required to show prices in a tax-included form, so the figure on the shelf label — marked 税込 or 総額 — is normally what you hand over. Many labels show both, with the smaller 税抜 figure printed alongside, which is a common source of double-counting when copying a price into a spreadsheet.
To recover the pre-tax amount from a tax-included price, divide by 1.10 at the standard rate or 1.08 at the reduced rate. A 1,100 yen tax-included price is 1,000 yen before tax with 100 yen of consumption tax; an 1,080 yen tax-included price at the reduced rate is 1,000 yen before tax with 80 yen of tax. Subtracting the percentage instead of dividing will always overstate the tax.
The qualified invoice system (インボイス制度)
Japan moved to a qualified invoice system — the インボイス制度 — in October 2023. Under it, a business can only claim a purchase tax credit if it holds a qualified invoice issued by a registered invoice issuer, showing that issuer's registration number and stating the amounts and tax separately for each applicable rate.
The knock-on effect has been significant for very small businesses and sole traders. A supplier who is not a registered issuer cannot give its business customers a creditable invoice, which changes the commercial calculation about whether to register even when turnover is low. Transitional measures have applied to soften the change, so if you are trading in Japan, confirm the current position and your own registration status with the National Tax Agency.
Who is a taxable business in Japan
Whether a business must account for consumption tax has traditionally depended on its taxable sales in a base period — broadly, businesses under a 10 million yen level were treated as tax-exempt enterprises, with rules that also look at the first half of the preceding year. Newly established companies have their own rules based on capital and early-period sales.
The invoice system has cut across this, because an exempt business is not a registered issuer and so cannot pass on a creditable invoice. Registering voluntarily brings full compliance obligations with it. The interaction between the base-period test, voluntary registration and the transitional relief measures is genuinely intricate, so it is a question for the NTA or a Japanese tax accountant rather than a rule of thumb.
Tax-free shopping for visitors
Japan operates a well-known tax-free shopping scheme for non-resident visitors, available at licensed stores and identified by the ubiquitous "Tax-Free" signage. Purchases are split for these purposes into general goods and consumables, with different minimum spend conditions and packaging rules, and the goods are expected to leave the country.
The mechanics of the scheme have been under reform, including moves towards refund-at-departure rather than exemption at the till, and the required documentation is tied to the traveller's passport and entry record. If you plan to shop tax-free, check the current procedure before you travel — and note that the exemption applies to consumption tax only, not to any duty in the destination country.
Common mistakes, and what this calculator is not
The classic errors are applying 8% to a meal eaten in, applying 8% to alcohol, treating any newspaper or magazine as reduced-rate when only qualifying subscriptions are, and subtracting 10% from a 税込 price instead of dividing by 1.10. Another is double-taxing: adding 10% to a shelf price that already included it because the label showed both figures.
Rates, the invoice rules and the tax-free scheme all change, and the boundary cases in food and drink are matters of legal definition rather than common sense. This page does arithmetic on the rate you select and is not tax advice. Confirm the treatment of your supply with the National Tax Agency (国税庁) or a licensed tax accountant. All calculations run locally in your browser.
Frequently asked questions
What is the consumption tax rate in Japan?
The standard rate is 10%. A reduced 8% rate applies to food and drink other than alcohol and other than dining in, and to newspapers supplied by subscription at least twice a week.
Why is takeaway 8% but eating in 10%?
Handing food over to take away is a supply of food and drink, which is reduced-rated at 8%. Providing seating and service so you can eat on the premises is treated as a catering service, taxed at the standard 10%.
How do I remove consumption tax from a Japanese price?
Divide by 1.10 at the standard rate or by 1.08 at the reduced rate. A 1,100 yen tax-included price is 1,000 yen plus 100 yen of tax. Do not subtract the percentage — that overstates the tax.
Are prices in Japan shown with tax included?
Yes, tax-included display is the norm, often marked 税込 or 総額. Many labels also show the smaller 税抜 figure, so check which one you are copying before adding tax again.
What is the invoice system (インボイス制度)?
Japan's qualified invoice regime, in force since October 2023. Purchase tax credits require a qualified invoice from a registered issuer showing its registration number and the amounts by rate.
Is this tax advice?
No. It is a calculator that applies the rate you choose. Rates, invoice rules and the treatment of specific goods change, so confirm your position with the National Tax Agency or a licensed tax accountant.