Ultimate Guide to Japanese Post Office

By Shiho Motomiya | July 25, 2022

Sending packages from other countries can be difficult, especially if there is a language barrier between you and the staff. Especially when it is your first time to send packages. You may not know how to write address on a Japanese format and how to pay for your packages. To make your visit smooth, here are some guides for you to make your experience in a Japanese post office easier.

This article is part of our extensive series on living in Japan and online Japanese lessons.

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How to Send Packages at a Japanese Post Office

It can be complicated to send packages at a Japanese post office, especially with the language barrier, but once you get used to it, it will not take a lot of time. There are a lot of choices you can use to send packages.

For sending international packages, you have 5 choices to ship the packages.

Shipping Options Japanese Post Office Offer

Shipping Options
EMS	EMS is the fastest option you can get to send international packages and is the top priority among the others. It usually takes 2 - 4 days to deliver.
Airmail	Airmail is the second fastest option on the list, the post office will be using planes to deliver them faster but the fees are relatively high. It approximately take 3 - 6 days
Surface Air Lifted (SAL) (Economy Air)	SAL is cheaper than Airmail but is faster to arrive than the Seamail option. There are only a few nations and areas where it is accessible. It will take approximately 6 - 13 days, but it may take longer because of the destination's handling system.
Sea Mail	The Sea Mail option is the cheapest option you can have but the delivery takes a month to 3 months.
UGX (ゆうグローバルエクスプレス)	This option does what EMS cannot do. They deliver oversize packages. The payment method for this is also different from others.

How to Write Addresses in English

The order on how to write addresses are somewhat different in other countries, this is how you should write the addresses in the label for your packages.

Sender’s documents
1. Name
2. House / room number and street name
3. District/town/city and prefecture
4. Postal Code
5. Phone number or FAX number

Example:
John Switch
1-2-1 Azabudai
Minato-ku Tokyo
111-1111 Japan
08012345678

Recipient’s documents
1. Name
2. House / room number and street name
3. City
4. Country
5. Postal code
6. Telephone number / FAX number

Example:
Sarah Switch
111 Clawson Street APT. 2
Staten Island, New York USA
11111
(800) 123 3456

Online Labels

It is important to remember how to write an address in a Japanese format. However, Japanese post offices don’t accept handwritten labels when sending packages, they have announced that in order to make labels, the customers will need to do it online on their website or download their app.

Here are the steps on how to make the labels:

Go to their website or download their app.
Make an account (this will make your next sending process easier).
Put your information (name, address, phone number).
Put the recipient’s information (name, country, address, phone number).
Put the shipping type and shipping option.
For parcels you will need to register the contents of the box (unit value, quantity, and total value).
Fill in the shipping information
After filling all the information needed, they will send you a QR code via email.
Print the QR code on their designated printer or go to the information window and ask them to print.

After printing the QR code, you just need to pay for the fee and you’re good to go!

As you already have an account on the post office’s website or app, you can save your address and the recipient’s address for next time. You are allowed to save multiple addresses.

How much does it cost to send…

Prices for sending packages change upon the continent, and the weight of the packages.

Letters

Letters Sending Fees

Continent	Shipping option	Weight	Price
Asia	Airmail	25g~	¥90~
	SAL	20g~	¥70~
	Seamail	100g~	¥90~
Oceania, Central America, Near East, Europe	Airmail	25g~	¥110~
	SAL	20g~	¥75~
	Seamail	25g~	¥110~
South America, Africa	Airmail	25g~	¥130~
	SAL	20g~	¥80~
	Seamail	20g~	¥90~
USA	Airmail	25g~	¥110~
	SAL	20g~	¥75~
	Seamail	20g~	¥90~

International Parcels

International Parcel Sending Fees

Continent	Shipping option	Weight	Price
China, Korea, Taiwan	Airmail	1kg~	¥2,050~
	SAL	1kg~	¥1,900~
	Seamail	1kg~	¥1,800~
Asia (excluding China, Korea, Taiwan)	Airmail	1kg~	¥2,500~
	SAL	1kg~	¥2,300~
	Seamail	1kg~	¥2,100~
Oceania, North America (excluding USA), Near East, Europe	Airmail	1kg~	¥3,850~
	SAL	1kg~	¥2,800~
	Seamail	1kg~	¥2,500~
USA	Airmail	1kg~	¥4,200~
	SAL	1kg~	¥2,900~
	Seamail	1kg~	¥2.600~
Latin America (excluding Mexico), Africa	Airmail	1kg~	¥4,550~
	SAL	1kg~	¥3,500~
	Seamail	1kg~	¥2,700~

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EMS

EMS Sending Fees

Continent	Weight	Prices
China, Korea, Taiwan	500g~	¥1,450~
Asia (excluding China, Korea, Taiwan)	500g~	¥1,900~
Oceania, Canada, Mexico, Near East, Europe	500g~	¥3,150~
USA	500g~	¥3,900~
Latin America (excluding Mexico), Africa	500g~	¥3,600~

UGX

UGX Sending Fees

Continent	Weight	Prices
East Asia	500g~	¥4,600~
South East Asia	500g~	¥5,100~
West Asia	500g~	¥5,200~
Oceania	500g~	¥6,800~
Europe 1*	500g~	¥7,000~
Europe 2*	500g~	¥7,700~
North America	500g~	¥6,900~

1* Ireland, Italy, United Kingdom, Austria, Netherlands, Greece, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Denmark, Germany, Norway, Finland, France, Belgium, Portugal and Luxembourg

2* Estonia, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Bulgaria, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Russia

Planning on sending Japanese gifts for your loved ones? Jump to our Ultimate Guide to Japanese Omiyage

Air vs Sea shipping from a Japanese Post Office

One thing we probably know about the difference in shipping by air and by sea is the time of delivery. Of course, shipping by air will make the packages more quicker to deliver than seamail. And the prices of these shipping options are also vastly different. However, there are some items that cannot be sent by air, such as batteries and liquids, but can be sent by sea. Since customers tend to avoid such items, just having sea mail as an option will broaden your product selection. For items that have a large actual weight compared to their volume, it is better to send them by sea, as sending them by air can be quite expensive. When using sea shipping it is important to remember to use cardboard boxes that are thicker than normal for packing packages. This is because thin cardboard can have holes during the long transportation period.

Important Phrases at a Japanese Post Office

Things you will say

This sentence is very important to remember when you want to send a package, the type of packages will be listed below.

If you want to ask how much the cost of your transaction;

How much is it?
いくらですか？
Ikura desuka?

If you want to ask how long it will take;

How long will it take?
どのくらいかかりますか？
Dono kurai kakarimasuka?

If you want to tell them what are inside your packages;

The package contains…
パッケージの中身は…
Pakke–ji no nakami wa…

If you want to know the payment options;

Can I pay by card?
カードでのお支払いは可能ですか?
Ka–do de no oshiharai wa kanou desuka?

How do I pay?
支払いはどうすればいいですか?
Oshiharai wa dousureba iidesuka?

Things the staff will say

I have introduced you to what you can potentially say to the staff who takes charge of your sending matters above, here are some question that may be likely asked to you by the staff:

What are you sending?
何を送りますか？
Nani wo okurimasuka?

Where are you sending it to?
どこに送りますか？
Doko ni okurimasuka?

Would you like to send it by sea or air?
船便か航空便で送りますか？
Funabin ka kuukoubinn de okurimasuka?

Please pay X amount.
X円を支払ってください。
X yen wo shiharatte kudasai.

Are you sending any of these (prohibited) items?
これらの（禁止）品物を送りますか？
Korekano (kinshi) shinamono wo okuraimasuka?

Post Office Vocabulary worth remembering

Here are some Japanese Vocabulary for your post office visit.

Kanji	Hiragana/Katakana	Romaji	Meaning
小包	こずつみ	kozutsumi	Parcel or Package
手紙	てがみ	tegami	Letter
国際小包	こくさいこずつみ	kokusai kozutsumi	International Parcel
葉書	はがき	hagaki	Post Card
ラベル	ラベル	raberu	Label
お支払い	おしはらい	oshiharai	Payment
国際スピード郵便	こくさいスピードゆうびん	kokusai supi–do yuubin	EMS
航空便	こうくうびん	koukuuyubin	Airmail
船便	ふなびん	funabin	Seamail
エコノミー航空	エコノミーこうくう	Ekonomi– koukuu	SAL
切手	きって	kitte	stamp

If you want to learn more easy Japanese for when running some errands, read our Ultimate Guide to Easy Japanese

List of things you ABSOLUTELY cannot send through the Japanese Post Office

Lists of things you cannot send via EMS throughout the world

Spray Cans
Perfumes
Fireworks / Firecrackers
Sun Block
Nail Polish
Items that contains over 24% of alcohol
Electronic Cigarettes
Power Banks / Portable Battery Charger

Lists of things you cannot send

Depending on the destination country:

Liquor
Tobacco
Meat

In cases where countries prohibits meat;

Instant cup noodles
Curry
Instant consomme etc…

UGX

UGX prohibits these items:

Gold, silver, white gold, other precious metals, precious stones including diamonds and semiprecious stones, currency of all countries (banknotes and coins), various jewelry goods, other valuables
Marketable securities
Correspondence and communicative means defined as correspondence under current law
Living animals
Body remains, memorial tablets and ashes
Items that can easily transubstantiate or decay
Small firearms' explosives and firearms
Explosive substances
Compressed gas
Inflammable liquids and solids, combustible solids
Photoflash lamp
Magnetic substances
Mercury
Acids and other putrefactive substances, bases and acids
Oxidants
Poison
Radioactive materials
Vaporizing materials

Other items deemed inapplicable by their company (including the items below):

Credit and cash cards
Passport
Examination admission slips
Bills of loading
Animal products
Plants (including herbal products)
Pharmacological materials, medicinal drugs, medical samples (i.e. diagnostic samples, blood, tissue samples)
Guns, weapons, swords, ammunition and their parts
Liquids
Antiquities, art objects and artifacts
Collectibles and rarities
Industrial diamonds

It is easy to say that you do not have these items on your packages, but after taking your packages, they will be checking them on X-rays before sending them to their destinations. If your package happens to have items that are prohibited, you will be notified and it will be shipped to your nearest post office for you to take. Make sure to double check your package and the lists of the prohibited items in your recipient’s country when sending international packages.

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Payment Methods

Here is the list of payment methods you can use in a Japanese post office.

Credit / Debit / Prepaid Cards
- They accept JCB, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Diners Club International, and UnionPay
Electronic Money
- They accept iD, WAON, and QuicPay
- They also accept transportation cards people normally use, PASMO, Suica, Kitaca, Toica, etc.
Smartphone Payment
- They accept Yuucho pay, PayPay, au pay, dharai, rakuten pay, line pay, etc.
UGX
- UGX payment is different from other shipping options, when you deliver using UGX the post office will be sending you an invoice including your full shipping fees and handling charges the following month.

If you are planning to open a bank account in Japan, check out our Ultimate Guide to Banking in Japan

Courier services vs Japanese Post Office

Japanese Post Offices have lots of rivals in their services. These are some popular rival companies of the Japanese Post Office.

Yamato Transport

The Yamato Group has developed innovations to meet the needs of the times, such as the first regular-route logistics shipping company in Japan and the creation of the TA-Q-BIN, which started as a method for sending individual-to-individual parcels before expanding to support backorders, mail orders, and business-to-business parcels. You can send parcels via phone and online with English support or going to the sales office directly but they only offer Japanese support. They have full English support for their international customers. You can also visit their website in English, Japanese, and Chinese.

Yamato Transport also offers sending packages abroad, they offer door to door service to more than 200 countries and regions. Their rates also differ depending on the destination and the size of the parcel. They have 2 methods when sending the package, it’s either they pick the package at your place or you can go to your nearest Yamato Transport Sales Office. Unlike the Post Office, you will need to write the label for the package. However, there are some countries where Yamato transport cannot deliver personal parcels.

Countries where personal parcels are not available.

Continent	Countries
Asia	China, Philippines, Mongolia, India
North / Central America	Canada, Mexico
South America	Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, Venezuela
Europe	Portugal, Russia
Middle East	Qatar, Saudi Arabia

Sagawa Express

Sagawa Express is the central firm of SG Holdings Group. Sagawa Express seeks to provide comprehensive solutions in partnership with each group firm, in addition to enhancing and expanding delivery operations. They offer tons of services including large size express delivery, global express delivery, air express delivery and other more services. Visit Sagawa’s website in English and Japanese.

Just like Japan Post Office and Yamato Transport, Sagawa Express also offers international delivery. They offer door to door delivery services to over 220 countries and regions. The rate also varies by the destination, weight and dimension of the package. They will send a monthly invoice for the payment of the package. Labels are also important to write when sending international packages. After all your parcels and labels are prepared, you need to call for pickup as they do not offer going to their sales office.

PO Box in Japanese Post Office

PO boxes in Japan Post Office are free. All you need to do to open a PO box is to go to your local post office and register for your PO box. However, the Japanese Post office often rents the PO boxes to big companies only, so you will need to submit a usage request form and they will check the availability if you ever get accepted to use the PO box.

There are several conditions regarding the use of this service. The main conditions are:

People who receive mail and other deliveries approximately every day.
They need to use the P.O. Box for more than 6 months.
They need to be able to collect mail and other items on time.

As the terms of the Japanese Post Office can be difficult there are other alternatives in order to acquire a PO box in Japan.

3 PO box companies you can use:

SRS
- They are a PO box company that anyone can use. You can register via online, fax, sending mail, or going directly to their retail store.
- They have 4 stores (Namba, Nagoya, Akasaka, and Shinjuku)
MT PO Box
- They are a PO box company that lets their clients use nicknames for their packages to receive. They advertise safety from stalkers. You can also register via online, fax, sending mail, or going directly to their retail store.
- They are located in Shinjuku.
PostCast
- It is a service in which they receive your deliveries on your behalf and forward them to the address you specify or store them at their center.
- You can register via online and choose their payment option of credit cards or bank transfer payment.

MailMate

MailMate is a virtual mailbox service that not only forwards your mail to you, but also provides a cloud-based dashboard for you to view your mail items.
This service provider is popular among expats in Japan who are leaving Japan temporarily or permanently and need a way to continue to access their Japanese mail.

Final Thoughts

There are many and easy ways you can send a package for your family outside of Japan. However, it gets very difficult to process it when there is a language barrier. It is important to be prepared on how to do it, especially when you are planning on settling down in Japan. Hopefully, this article has all the information you need to know when visiting the post office. Now, try visiting the supermarket to get another experience in a Japanese lifestyle!

Visiting a Japanese supermarket for the first time? Check out our Ultimate Guide to Shopping in a Japanese Supermarket.

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