Ordered in March, Delivered in April: 8% or 1% Tax?

The short answer: delivered on or after 1 April means 1%; the exceptions are prepaid subscriptions and old-price catalogue orders

* Compiled by this site from Part 2, 1-2 of the Cabinet Secretariat's outline on the temporary cut in the consumption tax on food (Cabinet decision of 15 September 2026) and Q1-3 and Q1-6 of the National Tax Agency (NTA) Q&A on the two-year rate cut (September 2026).

The overall picture of the 1% rate and how long it lasts is in Food consumption tax drops to 1% from April 2027. The difference by amount is in a quick table of how much 1% saves.

The rate is decided by the day you receive the goods, not the day you order

The NTA says the cut applies to "transfers of food made on or after 1 April 2027". Even under a contract made by 31 March, goods handed over on or after 1 April are taxed at 1%[NTA Q&A, Q1-3 (in Japanese)]. So for most purchases, you only need to ask when the goods arrive.

The catch is how "the day you receive it" is set. A mail-order company consistently uses either the shipping day or the delivery day as its sales date[Basic Circular on Consumption Tax 9-1-2 (in Japanese)]. For a company that counts the shipping day, a parcel shipped on 31 March and arriving on 2 April is taxed at 8%.

• At the till: the moment you pay. From midnight on 1 April, 1%
• Late-night shops: a shop that closes its day at 1 a.m. may treat sales between 0:00 and 1:00 on 1 April as 31 March sales at 8% (Q1-3)
• Mail order: shipping day or delivery day depends on the company. Check the statement for items shipped at the end of March
• Orders delivered in parts: each delivery is judged separately. One box in March and one in April are taxed differently

If a purchase just after midnight is processed at 8%, the shop has not necessarily made a mistake. If in doubt, look at the rate column on the receipt.

Subscription boxes stay at 8% when there is both a 2026 contract and prepayment by March

The subscription exception works only when two date conditions are met. It covers deliveries under a contract made before 1 January 2027 and paid for before 1 April[Cabinet Secretariat outline, Part 2, 1-2(1) (in Japanese)]. The NTA gives the example of "a subscription where seasonal produce arrives every month because the price was paid in advance".

• Contracts covered: supply to an unspecified large number of people at regular intervals such as weekly, monthly or yearly (Q&A Q1-6, note 1)
• Only prepaid deliveries stay at 8%: deliveries paid for from April are 1%
• Monthly-billed subscriptions: charges from April are 1%. The exception rarely applies
• New contracts from January 2027: 1% even if prepaid
• A contract saying "¥X a month at 1% from April": 1% (contracts that assume 1% fall outside the exception)

The exception is not optional[NTA Q&A, Q1-6 (in Japanese)]. However, if the company changes the contract from January 2027 onward and refunds the difference, the rate switches to 1%. Wait for the company's notice to see what happens to the prepaid part.

Catalogue orders stay at 8% when placed by March at prices shown in 2026

The mail-order exception depends on the day prices were shown and the day you ordered. If the terms of sale were shown before 1 January 2027 and you ordered before 1 April, goods delivered after April stay at 8%[Cabinet Secretariat outline, Part 2, 1-2(2) (in Japanese)]. The NTA's example is "catalogue sales such as summer gifts or XX gift sets".

• How prices are shown: newspapers, TV, flyers, catalogues, the internet. Distribution clubs and members' clubs count
• When they count as shown: including the day they are ready to show at any time, such as when a catalogue has finished printing
• How you order: online orders and payments into a bank account count. Face-to-face door-to-door sales do not
• Terms assuming 1%: if it says "¥X at 1% for sales from April", the rate is 1%

The October 2019 rate rise had a transitional measure of the same shape. Its cut-off date was six months before the change (1 April 2019)[NTA 2019 transitional measures Q&A, Q36 (in Japanese)]. This time it is 1 January 2027, three months before.

14 situations ruled on: pre-orders, hometown tax donations, returns and travel

Check three things in order. First, does it arrive on or after 1 April? Next, is it a subscription or mail order? Last, was the contract or price from 2026?

* Ruled on by this site from the outline, the NTA Q&A (September 2026), the NTA Q&A on the reduced rate (case examples) and Tax Answers 6157 and 6201. The 1% applies to the same range of food as the 8% rate on 31 March 2027.

Anything already at 10% does not change across April. That covers eating in, catering, alcohol and catalogue gifts. The 8% versus 10% line is listed in 30 confusing cases of the 8% or 10% reduced rate.

Hometown tax donations, gift vouchers and points do not move the rate

However you pay, food received on or after 1 April is taxed at 1%. The means of payment has nothing to do with the rate.

• Hometown tax donation (ふるさと納税): a donation is not a transaction for consideration, so no consumption tax applies[NTA No.6157 (in Japanese)]. The donation amount is the same even if the gift arrives in April
• Gift vouchers and prepaid cards: buying them is tax-exempt[NTA No.6201 (in Japanese)]. The rate is the one on the day you exchange them for food
• Paying with points: the rate on the day of purchase. Points earned in March and used in April mean 1%
• Credit cards: decided by the day you buy (receive), not the day the bill is paid

Thank-you gifts are bought by the municipality from businesses and sent out. A lower rate on that purchase does not change your donation or your deduction. For deduction limits and steps, see the glossary entry on hometown tax donations and the complete guide to hometown tax donations.

Should you hold orders until April? Decide by whether the price falls, not the rate

Waiting only pays if the shop lowers its price in April. A 1% rate does not rewrite contracts or price tags on its own. Even in the NTA's examples, the 1% price is set by the company in its contract or display.

If you sign up for an annual prepaid subscription this year, read the terms first. If they say nothing about April onward, the April to December deliveries may stay at 8%. What to wait for and what not to is set out as a calendar in purchases worth waiting for until the 1% rate.

A mail-order site's "rate applies from" notice tells you the rate on the delivery day

1 April is also the peak of the switchover for sellers. A display exception was made for shops that cannot re-label prices in time. From 1 February to 31 March 2027 they may show 1% tax-inclusive prices, and from 1 April to 31 May, 8% tax-inclusive prices. The condition is a notice so that shoppers do not mistake it for the actual amount payable[Cabinet Secretariat outline (in Japanese)].

• In April, the price tag and the till may differ in store. The till amount is what you pay
• Mail-order companies are expected to post notices such as "1% for deliveries from X"
• At the end of March, check which rate the "tax-inclusive" price on the product page uses

Filings and refunds on the seller side are covered in what businesses must do for the 1% food rate.

Who this does not suit, and cautions: the bill is under debate in the Diet, and details await cabinet orders

The rulings above reflect the outline and NTA Q&A stage. Nothing is final until the bill passes.

• Depends on the bill passing: the NTA Q&A itself says it applies "if passed and enacted"
• Details await cabinet orders and circulars: the treatment of online supermarkets and similar may change with new Q&A items
• Companies will differ: for the same subscription, some will refund the difference and some will not
• Returning and re-buying is not recommended: March purchases are refunded at 8%, and many shops only accept food returns for defects
• The return to 8% in 2029: the outline does not yet cover transitional treatment for the day the rate goes back to 8%

There is no need to put off essential food shopping for a difference of a few hundred yen. The large amounts are in contracts such as annual prepaid subscriptions.

Summary

• For food purchases spanning April 1, 2027, the tax rate is, in principle, determined by the date you receive the item.
• Even if you order on March 31, if the item is delivered on or after April 1, the 1% rate applies. For a ¥10,000 item, the price falls from ¥10,800 to ¥10,100.
• Exceptions are subscription deliveries contracted in 2026 and prepaid by March, and catalog mail-order purchases priced in 2026 and ordered by March — these remain at 8% even after April.
• For mail order, whether the shipping date or arrival date applies depends on the company's own standard. Check the statement for items shipped in late March.
• Furusato nozei, gift certificates, points, and card payments do not affect the tax rate determination. This is all contingent on the bill passing.

References (sources)

• Cabinet Secretariat, Outline on the temporary cut in the consumption tax rate on food and the introduction of the worker burden relief payment (Cabinet decision of 15 September 2026) (in Japanese) - Part 2, 1-2 (regular supply contracts and mail order), display exception
• NTA, Q&A on the two-year cut in the consumption tax rate on food (September 2026) (in Japanese) - Q1-3 to Q1-6
• NTA, Q&A on the reduced consumption tax rate (case examples) (in Japanese) - Q35, 39, 69, 72
• NTA, Q&A on transitional measures for the tax rate applying from 1 October 2019 (basic approach) (in Japanese) - Q36 to Q39
• NTA, Basic Circular on Consumption Tax, Chapter 9 Section 1 Subsection 1: timing of transfers of inventory (in Japanese)
• NTA Tax Answer No.6157, Items outside the scope of taxation (in Japanese)
• NTA Tax Answer No.6201, Tax-exempt transactions (in Japanese)

This article is general information. It describes the position if the bill is enacted; for individual decisions, consult the tax office, the mail-order company's customer desk or a tax accountant.