Applying for a Secondhand Goods Dealer Licence (Kobutsusho) — Steps and Filling Examples for a Corporation

If you run a business handling secondhand goods — used books, used clothing, used cars, gift-certificate shops and so on — you need a secondhand goods dealer licence (kobutsusho kyoka) in Japan.

1. Business types you can operate with a secondhand dealer licence

2. Documents needed for a corporate application and the application flow

3. How to fill in the corporate application form (with examples)

Business types you can operate with a secondhand dealer licence

Under the Enforcement Regulations of Japan's Secondhand Articles Dealer Act, the secondhand goods that require a licence are divided into 13 categories. Whether you sell in a physical store or online, handling secondhand goods requires the licence.

・Art: paintings, antiques, antique furniture — antique and art dealers

・Clothing: Western clothes, used clothing, kimono, children's clothes — used clothing shops

・Watches & jewellery: watches, gemstones, accessories — used watch shops

・Automobiles: cars, tyres, car navigation systems, parts — used car dealers

・Motorcycles & mopeds: motorcycles, tyres, parts — used motorcycle shops

・Bicycles: bicycles, tyres, parts — used bicycle shops

・Cameras: cameras, lenses, video cameras, telescopes, binoculars — used camera shops

・Office equipment: PCs, peripherals, copiers, telephones — used PC shops and similar

・Machinery & tools: machine tools, construction machinery, medical devices, tools — used machine tool dealers

・Goods: furniture, sporting goods, CDs, DVDs, records, game software, toys — used CD/DVD/game software shops

・Leather & rubber products: bags, shoes, furs — used brand-name shops

・Books: paperbacks, comics, magazines — secondhand bookshops

・Gift certificates: gift vouchers, air tickets, expressway tickets — gift-certificate shops

Documents needed for a corporate application and the application flow

1. Gather the required documents

To make the application go smoothly, collect the documents you need to submit in advance. For a corporate application these are:

・Certificate of residence (juminhyo) with registered domicile shown and My Number omitted: for all officers and the manager

・Certificate of identity (mibun shomeisho) with registered domicile shown: for all officers and the manager. This is not a driver's licence or health insurance card, but a certificate obtained from the family registry section of the municipal office where your registered domicile is.

・Certificate of registered matters (registry certificate): the "certificate of all historical matters" can be obtained at any Legal Affairs Bureau head office, branch, or local office. Anyone can obtain it, and you can apply by post or online.

・Copy of the articles of incorporation: prepare a copy with an endorsement (okugaki).

An endorsement means writing the following in red on the last page of the copied articles of incorporation:

The above is a true copy of the original.
[Reiwa X, month X, day X]
[Company name]
Representative Director [Name] (seal)

For the seal, affix the company representative's registered seal. Everything must be written in red. This is what's called an okugaki (endorsement).

2. Prepare the application form

You can obtain the full set of secondhand dealer licence application forms at a police station or from their website. The number of pages varies with the number of business premises and officers.

3. Submit the documents and pay the fee

Once the documents are ready, take them to the police station with jurisdiction. Along with the documents, you must pay a fee of ¥19,000 for the licence. Don't forget to bring it in cash.

4. Review

The review period for a secondhand dealer licence is 40 days. However, it's 40 days counted from the day after the application, excluding weekends, public holidays, and the New Year period, so in practice it can take more than two months. In particular, if you prepare the documents yourself, you may be asked to revise them several times before they're accepted. Apply with plenty of time so that the licence isn't still pending when you want to start trading.

How to fill in the corporate application form (with examples)

Form No. 1, Part 1 (a)

Where "secondhand dealer" and "secondhand market operator" are written side by side, circle "secondhand dealer."

・Date: enter the date of application. If the date you'll apply at the police station isn't fixed, leave this blank.

・To the Public Safety Commission: enter the prefecture where the police station you're applying to is located (the one with jurisdiction over your main business premises).

・Type of licence: circle "1. Secondhand dealer."

・Name or title: enter the corporate name.

・Type of corporation: circle whichever applies to the corporation applying. For a godo kaisha (Japanese LLC), it's "5. Other corporation."

・Date of birth: for a corporate application, leaving it blank is fine.

・Address or place of residence: enter the corporation's address and phone number.

・Whether or not you intend to be an itinerant dealer: circle "1. Yes." Itinerant dealing includes door-to-door sales, on-site purchasing, operating from temporary premises, and participating in secondhand markets.

・Category of secondhand goods to be mainly handled: select just one category as your main line and circle it. Even if you handle several categories, only one is circled here.

・Type: circle "1. Representative."

・Name: enter the name of the corporation's representative.

・Date of birth: enter the date of birth of the corporation's representative.

・Address: enter the address and phone number of the corporation's representative.

Form No. 1, Part 2

・Form: circle "1. Business premises: yes." There is no case where a corporation applies for a secondhand dealer licence with no business premises.

・Name: enter the trade name of your main business premises. If the head office is the centre of the business, enter the head office's location.

・Location: if it's the same as the corporation's address you entered in Part 1, leaving it blank is fine.

・Categories of secondhand goods handled: if you handle several categories, circle all of them. Also circle the category you circled in Part 1.

・Manager: enter the name of the manager of your main business premises.

・Date of birth: enter the date of birth of the manager of your main business premises.

・Address: enter the address of the manager of your main business premises.

Form No. 1, Part 4

・Whether or not you will use a method of making goods available for public viewing by automatic public transmission over a telecommunications line: if you buy and sell secondhand goods online, circle "1. Will use."

・Sender identification code: if you circled "1. Will use," enter the URL of your website.

Write the URL one character per box.