Secondhand Goods Business Act

古物営業法（こぶつえいぎょうほう）

Who needs a permit to deal in secondhand goods (古物) as a business, and what dealers must do — check who they buy from, keep records, report goods they suspect — so that stolen goods are not traded and are found quickly.

Text in force since
Promulgated
Articles: 48
Amendments on the way: 0

Read the text Open on e-Gov

What this law does

Secondhand goods (古物) are goods used even once, goods never used but already traded to be used, and either of these after some repair. "Goods" here include works of art for appreciation and vouchers such as gift certificates, tickets and postage stamps, along with similar vouchers and other items a Cabinet Order (政令) specifies, so these too are secondhand goods once used or traded to be used; large machinery such as ships, aircraft and machine tools is left out where a Cabinet Order specifies it.(Art. 2(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

Read the full overview

Buying, selling or exchanging secondhand goods as a business, for oneself or on consignment, needs a permit (許可) from the prefectural Public Safety Commission (公安委員会) where the main place of business is, and running a secondhand goods market (古物市場) where dealers trade among themselves needs one from the Commission where the market is. A business whose only dealings in secondhand goods are selling them, or buying back goods it sold from the person it sold them to, or both, is not this kind of business and needs no permit; a business that buys or exchanges secondhand goods from anyone else, or does so on consignment, needs one, whatever it goes on to do with them. Brokering sales of secondhand goods by auction (古物競りあつせん業), by a computer-system auction or another auction method a Cabinet Order (政令) specifies, is not among the businesses that need a permit, but the operator must notify the Commission where its principal office is within two weeks of starting.(Art. 2(2)(i), Art. 2(2)(ii), Art. 2(2)(iii), Art. 3(1), Art. 5(1), Art. 10-2(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Before buying, exchanging, or taking goods on consignment, a dealer must confirm who the other party is: by checking their address, name, occupation and age; by receiving a document stating these that the party has signed; by receiving them electronically under an electronic signature certified under the Act on Electronic Signatures and Certification Business (電子署名及び認証業務に関する法律), a separate Act; or by an equivalent measure a National Public Safety Commission Rule (国家公安委員会規則) specifies. No check is needed where the total price is below an amount a National Public Safety Commission Rule sets — except for goods such a Rule names as always needing one — or where the dealer buys back goods from the person it sold them to.(Art. 15(1), Art. 15(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
Each time a dealer takes in or hands over goods in a purchase, sale or exchange, or on consignment for one, it must enter in a register or an equivalent document a National Public Safety Commission Rule (国家公安委員会規則) specifies (帳簿等), or record electronically, the date, the items and quantities, their features, the other party's address, name, occupation and age (not needed for someone who receives goods such a Rule names), and which identity check it used (and, for a direct check of the party's details or an equivalent measure a Rule specifies, how it was done). None of this is needed where the total price is below the amount such a Rule sets (unless the goods are ones such a Rule names), where the dealer buys back goods from the person it sold them to, or where the goods handed over are ones such a Rule exempts. A secondhand goods market owner (古物市場主) must record, for each trade in its market, the date, the items and quantities, their features and the parties' addresses and names; registers must be kept at the place of business or market for three years from the last entry, electronic records for three years ready to be printed there at once, and their damage, loss or destruction reported at once to the chief of the police station for that place.(Art. 16(1), Art. 15(2), Art. 17(1), Art. 18(1), Art. 18(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
A dealer who suspects that goods it is about to buy, exchange or take on consignment are illicit (不正品) must report this to a police officer at once. The Superintendent General (警視総監), a prefectural police chief or a police station chief (together 警察本部長等) may, when they find it necessary, send dealers and market owners a written stolen property report (品触れ), which the recipient must date on arrival — unless it came through the electronic system of the Act on the Promotion of Administrative Affairs through the Use of Information and Communications Technology (情報通信技術を活用した行政の推進等に関する法律), a separate Act — and keep for six months. A dealer holding matching goods on the day it arrives, or taking them in within those six months, and a market owner whose market has them offered in that time, must tell a police officer at once.(Art. 15(3), Art. 19(1), Art. 19(2), Art. 19(3), Art. 19(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
If goods a dealer bought or took in exchange turn out to be stolen or lost, the victim or the person who lost them can demand them back from the dealer free of charge, even if the dealer acquired them in good faith at a public market or from a trader in the same kind of goods. The right ends one year after the theft or loss, and does not reach securities payable to order, registered securities payable to the holder, or bearer securities.(Art. 20(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

Article 1 states the law's own purpose

Secondhand goodsDealer's permitIdentity checksTransaction recordsStolen property reportsRecovering stolen goodsAuction brokersBusiness suspension

48 199 81 25 44

Amendments

A Japanese law is changed by another law or order that rewrites it — an . No amendment to this law is waiting to come into force. Its amendment history is below. The amendments this site has read the changes of are on this law's amendments page, provision by provision, in Japanese and English.

13 amendments already in force

1 June 2025
The text on this site
Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Penal Code, etc.
刑法等の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整理等に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
1 April 2024
Act Partially Amending the Basic Act on the Formation of a Digital Society, etc. to Promote Regulatory Reform for the Formation of a Digital Society
デジタル社会の形成を図るための規制改革を推進するためのデジタル社会形成基本法等の一部を改正する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
16 June 2023
Act Partially Amending the Basic Act on the Formation of a Digital Society, etc. to Promote Regulatory Reform for the Formation of a Digital Society
デジタル社会の形成を図るための規制改革を推進するためのデジタル社会形成基本法等の一部を改正する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
17 June 2022
Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Penal Code, etc.
刑法等の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整理等に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
1 April 2020
Act Partially Amending the Secondhand Goods Business Act
古物営業法の一部を改正する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
1 April 2020
Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Civil Code
民法の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整備等に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
16 December 2019
Act Partially Amending the Act on Use of Information and Communications Technology in Administrative Procedures, etc., and Other Acts to Improve Convenience for Persons Concerned in Administrative Procedures, etc. and to Simplify and Streamline Administrative Operations through the Use of Information and Communications Technology
情報通信技術の活用による行政手続等に係る関係者の利便性の向上並びに行政運営の簡素化及び効率化を図るための行政手続等における情報通信の技術の利用に関する法律等の一部を改正する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
14 December 2019
Act on the Development of Related Acts to Rationalize Measures concerning the Restriction of Rights of Adult Wards, etc.
成年被後見人等の権利の制限に係る措置の適正化等を図るための関係法律の整備に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
14 September 2019
Act on the Development of Related Acts to Rationalize Measures concerning the Restriction of Rights of Adult Wards, etc.
成年被後見人等の権利の制限に係る措置の適正化等を図るための関係法律の整備に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
14 June 2019
Act on the Development of Related Acts to Rationalize Measures concerning the Restriction of Rights of Adult Wards, etc.
成年被後見人等の権利の制限に係る措置の適正化等を図るための関係法律の整備に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
24 October 2018
Act Partially Amending the Secondhand Goods Business Act
古物営業法の一部を改正する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
2 June 2017
Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Civil Code
民法の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整備等に関する法律
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov
1 April 2012
e-Gov gives no title for this amendment
The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

Who it applies to

It applies to

Secondhand goods dealers (古物商): those permitted to buy, sell or exchange secondhand goods as a business, for themselves or on consignment. Each must post a sign at every place of business or temporary store, carry its permit when peddling or auctioning, show it when the other party asks while peddling, and — except in cases a National Public Safety Commission Rule (国家公安委員会規則) sets, such as a very small business — make its name, the Commission that permitted it and its permit number available to the public online. It must return the permit without delay when it closes the business, and closing and returning it ends the permit.(Art. 2(3), Art. 12(1), Art. 11(1), Art. 11(3), Art. 12(2), Art. 8(1), Art. 8(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
Online sellers (特定古物商): a dealer that will show goods online and take orders by a means a National Public Safety Commission Rule sets must say so in its permit application and give the code identifying where the goods are shown, and must notify the Commission of a later change. The Commission publishes online each such dealer's name, that code and its permit number. Such a dealer must always make its name, the permitting Commission and its permit number available online, together with the goods it deals in, with no small-business exception.(Art. 5(1)(vi), Art. 7(2), Art. 8-2(1), Art. 8-2(2), Art. 12(2), Art. 12(3)) (the provisions it rests on)

4 more

Secondhand goods market owners (古物市場主): those permitted to run a market where dealers trade secondhand goods among themselves. Only dealers may trade there, and the owner must appoint a manager (管理者), post a sign, record each trade and — except in cases a National Public Safety Commission Rule sets — make its name, the permitting Commission and its permit number available online.(Art. 2(4), Art. 14(3), Art. 13(1), Art. 12(1), Art. 17(1), Art. 12(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
Managers (管理者): a dealer or market owner must appoint one for each place of business or market, responsible for running its business there properly, and a permit is refused where there are reasonable grounds to believe the applicant will not appoint them. A minor, anyone under Article 4, items 1 to 7, or anyone a National Public Safety Commission Rule names as unable to do the work through a mental or physical disorder cannot be a manager. The dealer or market owner must try to give managers the knowledge, skill or experience a Rule names for telling whether goods are illicit, and the Commission may recommend dismissing a manager who breaks the law in the job and is unfit for it.(Art. 13(1), Art. 4(1)(x), Art. 13(2), Art. 13(3), Art. 13(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
Secondhand goods auction brokers (古物競りあつせん業者), who broker sales of secondhand goods by a computer-system auction or another auction method a Cabinet Order (政令) specifies, and need no permit but must notify the Commission. They must try to confirm who sellers are and to keep records, and must report goods they suspect are stolen to a police officer at once. They may apply for the Commission's certification that their methods help prevent trade in stolen goods, and so may operators abroad whose services reach people in Japan.(Art. 2(5), Art. 2(2)(iii), Art. 3(1), Art. 10-2(1), Art. 21-2(1), Art. 21-4(1), Art. 21-3(1), Art. 21-5(1), Art. 21-6(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Dealers' and market owners' agents, employees and other staff (代理人等): a dealer must have staff who peddle for it carry an employee card, which they show when the other party to a trade asks. A breach by staff in the business that risks hindering the prevention or discovery of trade in stolen goods can bring an instruction on the business, and, where the risk is serious, a suspension or revocation, and staff who commit an offence in the business are punished themselves.(Art. 11(2), Art. 11(3), Art. 23(1), Art. 24(1), Art. 38(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

Special rules and exceptions (3)

A dealer holding an auction outside a secondhand goods market must notify the Public Safety Commission in advance of its date and place — or, for an auction held by showing the goods online and taking bids by a means a National Public Safety Commission Rule sets, of the identifier of where it is shown, its period and other matters a National Public Safety Commission Rule sets — but none of this applies where the dealer trades through an auction broker's service.(Art. 10(1), Art. 10(3), Art. 10(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
What an individual dealer who is not a minor does in the secondhand goods business cannot be undone on the ground that the dealer's legal capacity is limited.(Art. 19-2(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
A minor who lacks an adult's capacity to do business is refused a permit, except where the minor is the heir of a dealer or market owner and the minor's legal representative falls under none of the grounds for refusal in items 1 to 8 and 11 of Article 4.(Art. 4(1)(ix)) (the provisions it rests on)

How it is enforced (8)

The Public Safety Commission must refuse a permit to, among others: a bankrupt not yet discharged; anyone until five years have passed since they finished serving, or ceased to be liable to serve, a sentence of imprisonment (拘禁刑) or heavier, or a fine for an offence under Article 31 or for certain offences under the Penal Code (刑法), a separate Act; anyone within three years of an order under Article 12 or 12-6, or an instruction under Article 12-4, paragraph 2, of the Act on Prevention of Unjust Acts by Organized Crime Group Members (暴力団員による不当な行為の防止等に関する法律), also a separate Act; anyone with no fixed residence; and anyone whose permit was revoked under Article 24, paragraph 1, within the past five years. A corporation is refused if one of its officers falls under one of these grounds, and a refusal is given in writing with reasons.(Art. 4(1)(i), Art. 4(1)(ii), Art. 4(1)(iv), Art. 4(1)(v), Art. 4(1)(vi), Art. 4(1)(xi), Art. 5(3)) (the provisions it rests on)
The Commission may revoke a permit obtained by deception or other wrongful means, one held by someone who falls under a ground for refusal (other than the one about appointing managers), or one whose holder did not start business within six months or has stopped for six months or more and is not trading. Where it cannot find the holder's place of business or whereabouts, it may give public notice and revoke the permit if the holder has not come forward within 30 days. Chapter 3 of the Administrative Procedure Act (行政手続法) does not apply to a revocation of this second kind.(Art. 6(1), Art. 6(2), Art. 6(3)) (the provisions it rests on)
Police officials (警察職員) may, when they find it necessary and during business hours, enter a dealer's place of business or temporary store, a place where goods are kept, a secondhand goods market, or the site of an auction a dealer holds outside a market (other than an online one or one through an auction broker), inspect goods and registers, and question the people concerned; they must carry identification and show it to them. The police (警察本部長等) may also, when they find it necessary, require dealers, market owners and auction brokers — and operators abroad certified under Article 21-6 — to report on stolen goods.(Art. 22(1), Art. 22(2), Art. 22(3), Art. 22(4), Art. 10(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Where there are reasonable grounds to suspect that goods a dealer bought, exchanged or took on consignment are stolen or otherwise obtained through a crime against property (盗品等), the police (警察本部長等) may order the dealer to keep them (差止め) for a set period of up to 30 days. Where there are such grounds about goods a seller is offering through an auction broker, they may order the broker to stop the auction of those goods.(Art. 21(1), Art. 21-7(1), Art. 19(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Where a dealer or market owner, or their agent or employee, breaks this Act, an order under it or another law in the business, and this risks hindering the prevention or prompt discovery of trade in stolen goods, the Public Safety Commission may instruct (指示) the dealer or market owner to take the steps needed. Where the risk is serious, or an instruction or other order under this Act is disobeyed, the Commission of the main place of business may revoke the permit or suspend all or part of the business for up to six months, and a Commission of another prefecture where the business trades may suspend it. The Commission must hold a hearing (聴聞) before suspending, and any hearing on revocation or suspension is notified and publicly announced at least a week ahead and held in public.(Art. 23(1), Art. 23(2), Art. 24(1), Art. 24(2), Art. 25(1), Art. 25(2), Art. 25(3)) (the provisions it rests on)
Running a secondhand goods business or market without a permit, getting a permit by deception or other wrongful means, letting someone else run the business under one's own name (名義貸し), or disobeying a suspension order under Article 24 is punishable by imprisonment (拘禁刑) of up to three years or a fine of up to 1 million yen, or both.(Art. 31(1), Art. 9(1), Art. 36(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Taking in goods from anyone other than a dealer, to buy or exchange, or to sell or exchange on consignment, anywhere but the place of business or the other party's home — unless at a temporary store (仮設店舗) whose date and place were notified in advance — is punishable by imprisonment (拘禁刑) of up to one year or a fine of up to 500,000 yen. Skipping the identity check; failing to make the register or making false entries, or not keeping it; trading with anyone but dealers in a secondhand goods market; not dating or falsely dating a stolen property report (品触れ), not keeping it, or not reporting goods that match it; not reporting, or falsely reporting, a register's damage, loss or destruction; or disobeying an order to keep goods or stop an auction, is punishable by imprisonment of up to six months or a fine of up to 300,000 yen, and for these offences, like those in Articles 31 and 32, both may be imposed together. Failing through negligence to report goods that match a stolen property report brings detention (拘留) or a petty fine (科料).(Art. 32(1), Art. 14(1), Art. 33(1), Art. 36(1), Art. 37(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
Fines of up to 200,000 yen apply to a permit application or attached document with false entries, a missing or false notice of an auction held outside a market, an auction broker's missing or false notice of its business, and displaying a broker certification, or one like it, without holding it; fines of up to 100,000 yen apply to missing or false notices of changes, not returning a permit, not carrying the permit when peddling or auctioning, or not having staff who peddle carry an employee card, not posting the sign or online details that Article 12 requires, refusing, obstructing or evading an entry or inspection, and making no report or a false one. Where an offence under Articles 31 to 35 is committed in the business of a corporation or individual by its representative, agent or employee, that corporation or individual is fined as well. When a permit holder dies, a relative who lived with them or their legal representative must return the permit without delay, as must the representative of the corporation that survives or is formed by a merger ending a corporate holder; not doing so brings a civil fine (過料) of up to 50,000 yen.(Art. 34(1), Art. 35(1), Art. 11(1), Art. 11(2), Art. 38(1), Art. 8(3), Art. 39(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

How it connects to other laws

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It also names 7 laws not yet held here.

Where the translation comes from

203
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91not translated

The Ministry of Justice's translation is shown only where the Japanese it translates matches the law in force today. Everywhere else the English is a machine translation, marked on the paragraph itself.

Only the Japanese is the law, and no lawyer has reviewed the machine translation.

Sources

Everything this page rests on

e-Gov (Digital Agency)古物営業法 — the text in force from 2025-06-01Original
e-Gov (Digital Agency)古物営業法 — revision historyOriginal
Japanese Law Translation, Ministry of JusticeSecondhand Goods Business Act — Ministry of Justice translationOriginal
Machine translation, not official
Written for this site with AIEnglish titles of amending laws, written for this site
Written for this site with AIDescriptions of each law, written for this site
Worked out by this site from e-Gov's text

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