DDP or DAP? How to ship to Amazon Japan FBA without getting stuck at customs

Short answer: for Amazon Japan FBA, decide two things before you ship: who is the importer, and who pays duties and import consumption tax before the goods reach the fulfillment center. Amazon does not act as the importer and fulfillment centers do not pay charges on delivery. Shipping terms such as DDP and DAP are only the way you record that decision.

What DDP and DAP mean

• DAP (Delivered at Place): the seller pays transport to the destination. Import clearance, duties and taxes are the importer's responsibility.
• DDP (Delivered Duty Paid): the seller pays transport and handles import clearance, duties and taxes at the destination.

In a normal export sale there are two companies — a seller and a buyer. With Amazon FBA there is usually only one: you. You ship your own goods to your own inventory in Japan. So the real question is not "DDP or DAP?" but "who stands as the importer in Japan, and how are duties paid at import?"

Who is the importer for Amazon Japan FBA?

• If you sell under your own Amazon.co.jp seller account, you are the importer. A foreign company can be the importer of its own goods without setting up a Japanese company.
• As a non-resident importer you appoint an Attorney for Customs Procedures (ACP) in Japan — a party registered with Japan Customs that acts as your contact point there.
• A licensed customs broker files the import declaration.

Amazon does not act as the importer for FBA inventory. Shipments that name Amazon as the importer, or that arrive with duties or charges still to be collected, can be refused at the fulfillment center.

The standard route for Amazon Japan

Amazon Japan fulfillment centers are set up to receive domestic inbound shipments. The usual path is: import the goods into Japan through a partner in Japan (you as importer, with an ACP), clear customs and pay duties and import consumption tax at import, then prepare the goods and send them to the fulfillment center as a domestic shipment.

How it works with LUCK-LOGI

1. You stay the importer; Fujiya Trade registers as your ACP.
2. You ship to our Tokyo facility.
3. Our partner customs broker clears the goods. We advance duties and import consumption tax for you (prepayment required), so nothing is collected on arrival.
4. We label (FNSKU), prepare and deliver to Amazon.co.jp fulfillment centers.

Before your first shipment we confirm the shipping terms, the invoice format and who pays what, in writing.

Checklist before you book the shipment

• Importer named on the invoice: you (not Amazon)
• ACP appointed and registered with Japan Customs
• Duties and import consumption tax: billed to you or advanced by your partner — never "collect on delivery"
• Commercial invoice with HS codes, unit values and country of origin
• FNSKU labels and carton labels ready, or prep arranged in Japan

This guide explains how we work. It is not legal or tax advice. Requirements are confirmed for each product and shipment.

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