{"id":2438,"date":"2026-11-13T12:43:39","date_gmt":"2026-11-13T12:43:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ufsauto.jp\/blogs\/?p=2438"},"modified":"2026-11-13T12:43:42","modified_gmt":"2026-11-13T12:43:42","slug":"how-to-choose-verify-japanese-car-exporter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ufsauto.jp\/blogs\/how-to-choose-verify-japanese-car-exporter\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Choose and Verify a Japanese Car Exporter: 10 Checks Before You Pay (2026)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Short answer:<\/strong> Before you send money to a Japanese car exporter, check five things: the company appears on Japan\u2019s free Corporate Number Publication Site with the same name and address it gives you; it holds a secondhand dealer licence (kobutsusho) from a Japanese police Public Safety Commission; it is a JUMVEA member or can explain why not; it sends the original auction sheet and, after purchase, the Japanese export certificate with a chassis number that matches the car; and its bank account is in the company\u2019s own name in Japan. If any of these fail, do not pay.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Every month someone messages us with the same story. They found a clean Toyota at a price that looked too good, paid a \u201cJapanese exporter\u201d they met on social media, and then the car, the documents and the seller all disappeared. The car usually never existed. The photos were lifted from a real exporter\u2019s website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Japan\u2019s used car export trade is one of the most trustworthy in the world, but the money moves across borders and the buyer rarely meets the seller. That gap is where scammers work. The Embassy of Japan in Tanzania has said it receives many reports of problems<\/a> with used cars bought online from companies claiming to be in Japan, and it cannot step into commercial disputes. Once the money is gone, it is usually gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The good news: Japan publishes most of what you need to check, for free, in English. This guide walks through the checks we would run ourselves if we were buying from someone we had never met. It applies whether you are importing to Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Kenya, Tanzania, Jamaica, the Philippines or anywhere else that takes Japanese used cars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 10 checks at a glance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
#<\/th>Check<\/th>Where to do it<\/th>Red flag<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
1<\/td>Company is registered in Japan<\/td>Corporate Number Publication Site<\/a><\/td>Name or address doesn\u2019t match, or no result at all<\/td><\/tr>
2<\/td>Holds a secondhand dealer licence (kobutsusho)<\/td>Company website footer or \u201ccompany profile\u201d page<\/td>No licence number, or they don\u2019t know what it is<\/td><\/tr>
3<\/td>Industry association membership<\/td>JUMVEA member list<\/a><\/td>Claims membership but isn\u2019t on the list<\/td><\/tr>
4<\/td>Real address and staff in Japan<\/td>Google Maps, a video call from the office or yard<\/td>Only a mobile number and a free email address<\/td><\/tr>
5<\/td>Original auction sheet for the exact car<\/td>Ask the exporter<\/td>Refuses, or the sheet\u2019s chassis number differs<\/td><\/tr>
6<\/td>Inspection certificate if your country needs it<\/td>JEVIC, JAAI or your country\u2019s approved agency<\/td>\u201cCertificate\u201d arrives as an unverifiable image only<\/td><\/tr>
7<\/td>Pro forma invoice from the company<\/td>Company letterhead, Japanese address, corporate details<\/td>Invoice from a person, not a company<\/td><\/tr>
8<\/td>Bank account in the company\u2019s name in Japan<\/td>The invoice and the bank details<\/td>Personal account, third country, crypto or money transfer app<\/td><\/tr>
9<\/td>Export certificate after purchase<\/td>Scan before shipping, original with your documents<\/td>Chassis number or dates don\u2019t match<\/td><\/tr>
10<\/td>Track record you can test<\/td>Reviews, local agents, past buyers in your country<\/td>Only testimonials on its own site, all from new accounts<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

1. Check the company is registered in Japan<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Every company in Japan has a 13-digit Corporate Number issued by the National Tax Agency. The Corporate Number Publication Site<\/a> is free, needs no account and has an English version. Search the company name, or the number if they give it to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What you are looking for is a match. The registered name and head office address should be the same as the ones on the exporter\u2019s website and invoice. If a company says it is in Yokohama and the registry says Osaka, or the company simply isn\u2019t there, stop and ask why. For more detail such as founding date and capital, the government\u2019s gBizINFO<\/a> database is also free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One caution:<\/strong> scammers sometimes borrow the name of a real Japanese company. A match proves the company exists, not that you are talking to it. That is why the next checks matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Ask for the secondhand dealer licence number<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Under Japan\u2019s Secondhand Goods Business Act<\/a>, anyone who buys and sells used goods as a business needs a permit from the Prefectural Public Safety Commission, which in practice means the local police. That includes used cars bought in Japan and sold overseas. In Japanese this licence is called kobutsusho kyoka<\/em> (\u53e4\u7269\u5546\u8a31\u53ef).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Legitimate exporters usually show the licence number in their website footer or company profile, in the format \u201c[Prefecture] Public Safety Commission, Permit No. \u2026\u201d. Ask for it. A real exporter will send it in seconds. Someone who doesn\u2019t recognise the term is not operating a licensed used car business in Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Check JUMVEA membership<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Japan Used Motor Vehicle Exporters Association (JUMVEA) is the main trade body for used car exporters. It began in 1995, publishes a list of its members and runs a payment protection scheme called JUMVEA Safe Trade (JUST), in which your payment is held by the association rather than sent straight to the seller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Kenya, JETRO Nairobi and the Embassy of Japan have recommended buying through JUMVEA members<\/a> to protect buyers\u2019 money. Two honest caveats: the Embassy of Japan in Tanzania notes it cannot guarantee every listed member, and plenty of genuine exporters are not members. Treat membership as a strong positive, not the only test. If a company claims<\/em> membership, check the list on jumvea.or.jp<\/a> yourself rather than trusting a logo on its website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Confirm a real office, yard and people<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Look the address up on Google Maps and Street View. Is it an office building, a yard full of cars, or a residential flat? Then ask for a short video call with someone in Japan who can show the car or the yard. Exporters who handle hundreds of cars a month do this routinely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warning signs include a website registered a few weeks ago, only a WhatsApp number with a foreign country code, a free email address instead of a company domain, and staff who won\u2019t give a full name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Get the original auction sheet<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Most used cars exported from Japan are bought at dealer auctions, and every auction car has an inspection sheet with a grade, mileage, chassis number and a map of scratches and dents. A trustworthy exporter sends you the original sheet for the exact car before you pay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check that the chassis number on the sheet matches the photos and the invoice. Grades of 4 and above with an interior grade of B or better are usually a safe starting point; R or RA means accident repair. Our guide on how to read an auction sheet<\/a> explains every symbol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Confirm the inspection certificate your country requires<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Many importing countries require a pre-shipment inspection in Japan, covering mileage, roadworthiness and radiation. Sri Lanka, Kenya, Tanzania and others name specific agencies. Ask which inspection your country needs and who will carry it out, and make sure the certificate number can be checked with the issuing body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See our guides to the JEVIC certificate<\/a> and the JAAI certificate for Sri Lanka<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7 and 8. Read the invoice, then check who you are paying<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Most car export scams end at the payment step, so slow down here. The pro forma invoice should come from the company, on its letterhead, with its Japanese address and contact details, the car\u2019s chassis number, the price terms (FOB, CFR or CIF) and the destination port.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then look at the bank details. The account should be held by the company, in Japan, in the company\u2019s own name. Do not pay:<\/p>\n\n\n\n