What Is NACCS? The Flow from Export Declaration to Permission, and the Examination Categories Explained

Hello, this is Ryuta Hamamoto from TIMEWELL. I often hear this question from people at companies just starting to export: "So how do you actually file with Customs?" As I listen, I find that many of them are stuck at the same place. They have heard the word NACCS, but they cannot picture it as a map — what the system does, and where it sits in the journey from export declaration to the goods leaving port.

I wrote this article to draw that map on a single page. What NACCS is, how the flow from export declaration to export permission proceeds, and the two things people most often stumble over in export-control practice — the "examination category" and the "confirmation under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act" — following the Customs Act and Japan Customs' primary materials step by step. I break down each technical term the first time it appears, so even readers new to trade practice can follow along with confidence.

If you first want to check whether your own products or technology might be subject to export controls, use TRAFEED's export-control compliance check to get a rough read before you read on; the discussion of the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act in the second half will feel much more concrete.

What NACCS Is: A National System Linking Customs and the Relevant Ministries

The official name of NACCS is the "Import/Export and Port-related Information Processing System." In English it is the Nippon Automated Cargo And Port Consolidated System, and NACCS is the acronym formed from its initials. Put simply, it is a national system that processes online — for the vessels and aircraft coming into and going out of Japan, and for the import and export cargo they carry — the procedures to Customs and other relevant government agencies, along with the private-sector operations tied to them¹.

It is operated by Nippon Automated Cargo and Port Consolidated System, Inc. It began in October 2008, when the Incorporated Administrative Agency Customs Information Processing Center was reorganized into a special company². It is at once a piece of national infrastructure and a working system that operators use day to day. That dual nature is perhaps one reason NACCS's position is so hard to pin down.

One more thing worth knowing, which makes the whole picture click, is how it came to be. In the past, Air-NACCS for air cargo and Sea-NACCS for sea cargo existed as separate, independent systems. They were unified on the occasion of the Sea-NACCS upgrade (October 2008) and the Air-NACCS upgrade (February 2010). At that same time, the import/export-related systems that individual ministries had been managing separately were also bundled in: MLIT's Port EDI System, the Ministry of Justice's Crew Landing Permission Support System, MAFF's Animal and Plant Quarantine System, MHLW's Imported Food Monitoring Support System (FAINS), and METI's Trade Control System (JETRAS), among others¹.

The point to hold onto here is that NACCS is not a Customs-only system. The impression of it as a Customs window is strong, but in reality the import and export procedures of several ministries are consolidated onto a single platform. That is precisely why the quarantine, food-hygiene, and other-law confirmations involved when cargo crosses the border can all be connected and processed on the same system. This unification is, to my mind, the essence of NACCS.

The Flow from Export Declaration to Export Permission

So what actually happens on NACCS when you export something? The basic skeleton is simple. A person seeking to export must file an export declaration with Customs and, after any required inspection of the goods, receive export permission. This is the rule at the very root of export clearance, set out in Article 67 of the Customs Act (Permission for Export or Import)³.

Laid out on a timeline, it goes like this. First, the exporter or a customs broker acting under a power of attorney transmits the export declaration data through NACCS. The moment Customs accepts it, the declaration takes legal effect. Customs Act Basic Circular 67-1-1 states expressly that an export declaration "takes effect when Customs accepts it"⁴. What matters here is that a declaration taking effect and permission being granted are two different things. Acceptance means only that you have reached the starting line.

After the declaration, Customs examines its contents. Where necessary, cargo inspection takes place and compliance with other laws is confirmed. Only once everything clears is export permission granted.

What most often causes confusion in terms of timing is the relationship with the bonded area. A bonded area (hozei chiiki) is a place under Customs control where foreign goods may be held temporarily until the customs procedures are complete. The export declaration itself may be filed even before the goods are brought into the bonded area. Export permission, however, is as a rule granted only after the goods have been brought into a bonded area or similar location⁵. Customs Act Basic Circular 67-1-2 requires the declaration to state whether the goods have already been brought in, and where a declaration is filed before entry, it requires the exporter to notify the filing office at the point the goods are brought in⁴. "You can file first, but permission comes only after the physical goods have entered the designated place." Keep this order in mind and you are far less likely to get your scheduling wrong.

The primary materials also set out the policy on inspection. Physical inspection of export cargo is carried out by judging the export declarant, the cargo owner, the destination, and other factors comprehensively, focusing on goods deemed particularly to warrant inspection, and as a rule after the goods have been brought into a bonded area or similar location. Customs Act Basic Circular 67-1-7 states that this inspection is, as a rule, conducted by the supervising inspector⁴. Not every shipment undergoes physical inspection; the field is narrowed by focusing on risk. This way of thinking leads directly into the examination categories explained next.

The Examination Category (1, 2, or 3) Determines the Route to Permission

When you transmit an export declaration through NACCS, the declaration is immediately sorted into one of three examination categories on the basis of the risk-assessment criteria set by Customs. This category changes how much examination and inspection you then pass through — in other words, the route to permission. Japan Customs' published flow chart for import and export declarations confirms the same: Category 1 goes straight to permission, Category 2 reaches permission after examination, and Category 3 reaches permission after examination and inspection⁶.

Because words alone are hard to grasp, here are the three categories in a table.

Examination category	Common name	What Customs does	Cargo inspection	Route to permission
Category 1	Simplified handling (immediate permission)	No document examination or inspection	None	Declaration → immediate permission
Category 2	Document examination handling	Clearance documents examined	None	Declaration → examination → permission
Category 3	Inspection handling	Physical inspection in addition to document examination	Yes	Declaration → examination → inspection → permission

Note: NACCS sorts each declaration immediately into one of Categories 1 through 3 on the basis of Customs' risk-assessment criteria. Source: Japan Customs, "Handling of Import and Export Declarations Made Through NACCS Outside Office Hours"⁶.

Category 1 is what is called immediate permission. Because permission is granted almost simultaneously with the declaration, in practical terms it flows the most smoothly. In Category 2, Customs checks the substance of the declaration and the clearance documents. If there is no problem with the contents, it moves on to permission. Category 3 is the category that involves physical inspection: Customs officers actually look at the goods to confirm them before granting permission.

A common misconception on the ground is that "if you file through NACCS, permission always comes immediately." Immediate permission applies only to Category 1; in Category 2 permission follows document examination, and in Category 3 it follows physical inspection. What is more, which category you are sorted into is unknown until the moment of declaration, because factors such as the type of goods, the destination, and the exporter's track record to date are judged comprehensively. That is exactly why, even for a company that has always cleared under Category 1, I recommend building in scheduling slack that assumes an inspection, so you do not panic when Category 3 comes up.

The Documents Required, Which Customs Office to File With, and Who Files

An export declaration is made by submitting a set form to Customs. Customs Act Basic Circular 67-1-2 requires submission of the export declaration form (C-5010) and the like in three copies — the original, the copy for the permit, and the copy for statistics⁴. In NACCS you send this as electronic data, but the skeleton of the required information corresponds to that paper form.

The circulars are specific about attachments as well. Customs Act Basic Circular 67-1-5 sets out that, where necessary to judge export permission, the invoice is to be attached; that for goods requiring the permits, approvals, or completed inspections under other laws referred to in Article 70 of the Customs Act, documents evidencing those are to be attached; that for goods related to tariff reduction or exemption, the prescribed documents are to be attached; and that for goods receiving export tax exemption, documents such as the application for a certificate of export of tax-exempt export goods are to be attached⁴. Because which documents you need changes with the nature of the goods, there is no substitute for checking case by case. I have laid out the full picture of the documents you should actually assemble in the checklist of documents required for customs clearance, so please look at that alongside this article.

Next, the question of which Customs office to file with. The rule is that you file with the Customs office having jurisdiction over the location of the bonded area or similar place into which the goods to be exported are placed. This is the filing rule set out in Article 67-2 of the Customs Act (Procedures for Export Declaration or Import Declaration)³. But this rule has an exception that changed practice significantly: the "liberalization of the customs office for import and export declarations," implemented on October 8, 2017⁷. AEO operators — specifically AEO exporters and AEO-authorized customs brokers, among others — became able to file with any Customs office, no longer bound to the Customs office with jurisdiction over where the goods are stored. Filings made under this liberalization must be done through NACCS⁷.

Here too a misconception tends to arise. It is sometimes taken to mean that "since it has been liberalized, anyone can file with any Customs office," but the scope is limited to AEO operators. An AEO (Authorized Economic Operator) is an operator whose systems for cargo security management and legal compliance have been recognized by Customs. Keep in mind that it does not automatically apply to ordinary exporters.

There is also a choice as to who files. An export declaration may be made by the exporter of the goods itself, or a customs broker delegated by the exporter may file on its behalf. Customs business (the work of, on another party's request, acting as its agent to carry out customs procedures and the like) is defined and regulated by Article 2 of the Customs Business Act (Act No. 122 of 1967)⁸. People sometimes assume that "only customs brokers can use NACCS," but self-filing by the exporter itself is also possible, and delegating to a customs broker is not mandatory. If you have the specialist knowledge and the staff in-house, file yourself; if not, leave it to a customs broker. Realistically, this call is best made in light of your transaction volume and your in-house export-control system.

Overlook It at Your Peril: The FEFTA Confirmation and the NACCS FEFTA-Related Services

Within the flow of export clearance, the point I most want to flag is the confirmation of other laws. Article 70 of the Customs Act (Proof or Confirmation) provides that, for goods requiring permits, approvals, or inspections for export under other laws, Customs confirms at the time of declaration that these have been completed³. The leading example of these "other laws" is export control under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act (FEFTA).

When you export goods or technology relating to national security, you must first obtain export permission from the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry. This is an entirely separate procedure from the customs declaration. Confusing the two leads to accidents. Some assume "the FEFTA export permission can be obtained together with the customs NACCS export declaration," but in reality the order is fixed. For controlled goods and technology, you apply to METI in advance and obtain the permit, and then, at the time of the customs declaration, you have that permit verified (the other-law confirmation under Article 70 of the Customs Act) — a two-step structure.

That export permission application to METI can now also be made on NACCS. The NACCS FEFTA-related services (formerly the Trade Control Subsystem, once known as JETRAS) is the system that digitized everything from applications for import and export permits and approvals under the FEFTA to the endorsement of import/export permits and approval certificates at the time of the customs declaration⁹. Since July 2022, applications for export permission under the FEFTA-related services have been, as a rule, electronic-only, except for a few procedures not yet supported¹⁰. If you carry over the mindset of the paper era, you can walk in the wrong door entirely.

And at the entrance to the FEFTA lies export classification (gaihi hantei). Export classification is the work of confirming, on the basis of specifications and performance, whether the goods or technology you intend to export fall under the control lists set out in the appended tables of the Export Trade Control Order and the like, or are non-applicable. If the result is "applicable," permission from the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry is required; and even if "non-applicable," a separate check under the catch-all controls is still needed. I cover how to carry out the determination and how to think about documents that evidence non-applicability in detail in the essentials of the non-applicability certificate, so do read it before you run FEFTA confirmation in-house.

This export classification is the most labor-intensive and the most error-prone step in export control. TRAFEED, which we provide, is an export-control AI agent compliant with METI's standards; it supports multiple languages and achieves an AI determination accuracy of 95% or higher (per our own study based on a joint demonstration with Okayama University and past examination data). In the field of security export control, it is the world's first such service (as of March 2026, per our own study). That said, AI is only a tool that supports the determination; the premise that the final export classification is made by your company's export-control manager does not change. People remain the protagonists of the judgment, and the tool lightens their load. That is the way we intend it to be used.

In Closing: The Key Points to Nail Down for NACCS Filing

Let us finally tie everything so far into a single line. NACCS is a national shared platform that bundles the import and export procedures of several ministries, not Customs alone, and an export proceeds in this order: you file, it is accepted, it is sorted into an examination category, it passes examination and inspection, other-law compliance is confirmed, and permission is granted. A declaration can be filed even before the goods enter the bonded area, but permission is, as a rule, granted after entry. Simply keeping this time lag in mind raises the precision of your shipment planning considerably.

It is also worth tracing the legal basis once. The skeleton of export clearance is in Article 67 of the Customs Act and Customs Act Basic Circulars 67-1-1 through 67-1-7; the rule on where to file is in Article 67-2 of the Customs Act; and the confirmation of other laws is in Article 70 of the Customs Act. The operating basis for NACCS itself rests in the NACCS Act (Act No. 54 of 1977) and its Enforcement Order (Cabinet Order No. 220 of 1977) and Enforcement Regulations (Ministry of Finance Ordinance No. 30 of 1977). You do not need to memorize the fine wording of the provisions, but knowing where each rule is written lets you return to primary sources whenever a judgment call gives you pause.

As of this writing (July 2026), NACCS, having gone through its 6th generation (in operation from October 2017), is at the time of the upgrade to its 7th generation (October 2025). The details of the functions changed by the upgrade must be confirmed against primary sources, so in practice always check the latest published materials from the NACCS Center and Japan Customs. The often-cited figure that "the great majority of import and export procedures go through NACCS" is likewise best verified against the latest published materials rather than stated as fact.

One last thing. The NACCS filing procedure itself and export control under the FEFTA are not separate matters; they are continuous. To avoid getting caught on the other-law confirmation at the customs gateway, you need an in-house system that can run the export classification and export review that come before it. If you are unsure whether "our products are subject to controls" or "how to build up an export-control system," tell us your situation in a one-on-one consultation on TRAFEED. We will help, starting by sorting out together where you stand on export compliance.

---

References and Primary Sources

Footnotes

1. NACCS (Nippon Automated Cargo and Port Consolidated System, Inc.), "What Is NACCS / Business Overview" https://www.naccs.jp/aboutnaccs/ / JETRO, "Overview of NACCS: Japan" https://www.jetro.go.jp/world/qa/04A-010139.html ↩ ↩²

2. NACCS (Nippon Automated Cargo and Port Consolidated System, Inc.), Company Profile (established in October 2008 by converting the Incorporated Administrative Agency Customs Information Processing Center into a special company) https://www.naccs.jp/aboutnaccs/aboutnaccs.html ↩

3. Customs Act (Act No. 61 of 1954), Articles 67, 67-2, and 70 / e-Gov Law Search https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/329AC0000000061 ↩ ↩² ↩³

4. Customs Act Basic Circulars (Zeikan No. 100 of March 1, 1972), Chapter 6, Section 1, General Export Clearance, 67-1-1 to 67-1-7 (Japan Customs PDF) https://www.customs.go.jp/kaisei/zeikantsutatsu/kihon/TU-S47k0100-s06-01~02.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

5. Japan Customs, "5001 Overview of Export Clearance Procedures" (Customs Answer) https://www.customs.go.jp/tetsuzuki/c-answer/extsukan/5001_jr.htm ↩

6. Japan Customs, "Handling of Import and Export Declarations Made Through NACCS Outside Office Hours" (flow chart of Categories 1, 2, and 3) https://www.customs.go.jp/tsukan/naccs-time.pdf ↩ ↩²

7. Japan Customs, "On the Liberalization of the Customs Office for Import and Export Declarations" (implemented October 8, 2017) https://www.customs.go.jp/zeikan/seido/jiyuka.html ↩ ↩²

8. Customs Business Act (Act No. 122 of 1967), Article 2 / e-Gov Law Search https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/342AC0000000122 ↩

9. METI, "Electronic Filing (NACCS FEFTA-Related Services)" https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/external_economy/trade_control/05_naccs/naccs.html ↩

10. NACCS Bulletin Board (METI Trade Control Department), "On the Digitization of Export Permission Applications" (electronic-only as a rule from July 2022) https://bbs.naccscenter.com/pickup/gaitame.html ↩