Moving from the Czech Republic to Japan (2026): Complete Guide

Relocating from the Czech Republic to Japan means crossing two very different customs regimes: an EU export leaving the Czech Republic through the Celní správa České republiky (Czech Customs Administration), and a strictly documented duty-free import on the Japanese side handled by Japan Customs. This guide covers both halves — the Czech departure, deregistration and tax exit, and the Japanese arrival, forms and quarantine rules — plus a short note on the reverse Japan → Czech Republic direction. It is written for a resident of the Czech Republic (a Czech citizen or a long-term foreign resident) shipping a household of personal effects, and possibly a pet or vehicle, to a new life in Japan.

Key takeaways

• Your Japanese status of residence decides everything: household goods are duty-free only if you enter Japan to stay more than one year, and articles must be imported within 6 months of your entry (Japan Customs 7301).
• On arrival you must file the Declaration of Accompanied Articles and Unaccompanied Articles, Customs Form C No.5360-B, in two copies; a stamped copy is returned to you to clear your shipment later (Japan Customs — passenger clearance; Form C5360-B PDF).
• Leaving the Czech Republic, a household shipment bound for Japan is a formal EU export lodged electronically through the Celní správa České republiky (Celní správa ČR — Vývoz).
• An oral export declaration is only allowed for goods of a commercial nature under 1,000 EUR or 1,000 kg — a full household exceeds this and needs a standard electronic declaration (portal.gov.cz — ústní vývozní prohlášení).
• Czech citizens who move abroad should notify the ohlašovna in writing to end permanent residence and return the ID card within 15 working days (Ministerstvo vnitra — Ukončení trvalého pobytu).
• Bringing a dog or cat requires roughly 7 months of preparation: microchip, two rabies vaccinations, an antibody titer ≥ 0.5 IU/ml, a 180-day wait, and advance notice to Japan’s Animal Quarantine Service at least 40 days before arrival (MAFF AQS).
• The Czech Republic is landlocked — sea freight routes overland to a northern-European port; transit times below are freight-industry estimates, not official figures.

1. Your Japanese visa status determines the customs treatment

Before customs on either side matters, you need a legal basis to live in Japan. For any stay over 90 days you — through a sponsor in Japan such as an employer, school or relative — apply to the Immigration Services Agency of Japan for a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) confirming you qualify for a specific status of residence. A COE is valid for 3 months, within which you must obtain the visa at a Japanese mission and enter Japan (Immigration Services Agency — COE validity notice).

That status is what unlocks duty-free import. Japan Customs grants free entry of household effects to a person who has been abroad for more than one year or who plans to stay in Japan for more than one year (Japan Customs 7301). A short-term or tourist entry does not qualify, so keep your COE, visa, employment contract or lease handy — customs may ask for evidence that your residence is genuinely transferring to Japan.

2. The Czech export side: authority, deregistration and tax exit

The customs authority. Exports from the Czech Republic are handled by the Celní správa České republiky (Czech Customs Administration) (Celní správa ČR — Stěhování fyzických osob).

The export declaration. Because Japan is outside the EU customs territory, your shipment is a formal export. Since 1 July 2009 an export declaration can only be lodged electronically (except for fallback and emergency procedures) through the Czech e-customs export system (Celní správa ČR — Vývoz). A simplified oral declaration exists only for goods of a commercial nature whose value does not exceed 1,000 EUR or net weight 1,000 kg (portal.gov.cz) — a full household typically breaches both thresholds, so expect a standard electronic declaration. In practice your international moving company or a customs broker files this against a detailed, valued packing inventory; personal effects leaving the EU carry no Czech export duty, but the declaration is what officially discharges the goods from the EU.

Ending permanent residence (trvalý pobyt). A Czech citizen leaving for good notifies the ohlašovna (the registration office at the place of permanent residence) in writing — with a certified signature, signed in person, or via data box or electronic signature. The office records the end of permanent residence within three working days, and you must surrender your ID card within 15 working days (Ministerstvo vnitra — Ukončení trvalého pobytu). This step is optional, but it affects voting registration, official correspondence and health-insurance obligations.

Tax residency exit. You are a Czech tax resident if you have a permanent home there (a dwelling you intend to keep) or spend at least 183 days in the country in a tax period; residents are taxed on worldwide income (Finanční správa — daňová rezidence, metodická informace 2026). Residency is assessed per tax period, so a genuine move that removes your home and centre of vital interests can shift you to non-resident status. There is no separate "exit" form, but the Finanční správa advises explaining the change in your tax-return attachments, and you can request a tax-domicile certificate to prove your position to either authority.

3. Ports and transit: how goods actually leave the Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is landlocked, so there is no Czech seaport. Two realistic routes exist:

• Sea freight (household containers). Your goods travel overland by road or rail to a northern-European deep-sea port — most commonly Hamburg or Bremerhaven in Germany, sometimes Rotterdam or Koper (Slovenia) — and sail to Japanese ports such as Tokyo, Yokohama or Kobe.
• Air freight (fast, small, expensive). Consolidated cargo departs from Václav Havel Airport Prague (PRG) to Japan.

Transit times (freight-industry estimates, not official figures): port-to-port sailing Hamburg → Yokohama is commonly cited at roughly 35–50 days, and realistic door-to-door timing — including the road leg, consolidation and customs on both ends — runs about 8–12 weeks for sea and 1–3 weeks for air. Treat these as planning ranges; actual schedules depend on sailings, transhipment and clearance.

4. The Japan import side: the C No.5360-B and clearance

Japan’s system hinges on one document. On arrival you declare all unaccompanied baggage on Customs Form C No.5360-B ("Declaration of Accompanied Articles and Unaccompanied Articles"), submitted in two copies; the officer stamps and returns one copy, which you (or your agent) must present when the shipment lands to clear it duty-free (Japan Customs — passenger clearance; Form C5360-B PDF). Miss this declaration at the airport and the duty-free treatment for the sea shipment is jeopardised.

The rules that matter:

• Ownership and use. Household effects and personal or professional equipment already owned and used before entry are free of duty and tax, in quantities customs deems reasonable and not for sale (Japan Customs 7301).
• The 6-month window. Unaccompanied articles must be imported within 6 months of your entry to keep the exemption (Japan Customs 7301).
• Supporting evidence. Bring your passport, the stamped C5360-B, and proof of the move (visa/COE, employment or lease documents) plus a valued inventory.

Note the separate accompanied-baggage allowances that apply to what you carry on the plane — for example the personal duty-free allowances for alcohol and tobacco — which are distinct from the household-effects relief (Japan Customs 7105).

5. Pets: official rules on both ends

Japan treats the Czech Republic as a non-designated (rabies-risk) region, which triggers the full import protocol. Begin about 7 months before departure. The Japanese Animal Quarantine Service (AQS) requires, in order: an ISO 11784/11785 microchip implanted before the first rabies shot; two or more rabies vaccinations (the first no earlier than 90 days of age, the second at least 30 days after the first); a rabies antibody test ≥ 0.5 IU/ml drawn after the second shot; a 180-day wait measured from the blood-sampling date before the animal may arrive; and advance notification to AQS at the port of entry not less than 40 days before arrival (MAFF AQS — importing dogs and cats). If every condition is met, inspection at the airport is brief; if not, the animal can be detained up to 180 days at the owner’s cost.

On the Czech export side, the Státní veterinární správa (State Veterinary Service) issues the export health certification and confirms that Japan does not recognise the Czech Republic as rabies-free, so its specific conditions must be satisfied (SVS — cestování se zvířaty do třetích zemí). The Czech Embassy in Tokyo summarises the same chain — microchip, vaccination timing, an accredited-laboratory antibody test, the 180-day wait and the 40-day notification — and notes that the antibody serology must be done at a laboratory approved by Japan (Velvyslanectví ČR v Tokiu).

6. Vehicles, money and things people forget

Vehicles. A personally-owned car can be imported duty-free as a household effect only if it is not resold or transferred within 2 years of import permission; you file three copies of Application form T1280 for the exemption plus proof of prior use (Japan Customs 7301). Beyond customs, a foreign car must still pass Japan’s separate registration and roadworthiness (shaken) checks, which are demanding — many movers sell the car and buy locally.

Money. Keep large cash movements clean on both ends: declare cash and monetary instruments where thresholds require it, and never carry undeclared bulk currency through either customs.

Commonly forgotten: de-register from Czech health insurance and utilities; keep the stamped C5360-B safe (losing it delays clearance); check medication rules — Japan restricts certain over-the-counter and prescription drugs and stimulants regardless of your home prescription; and build the pet timeline backwards from the 180-day rule, which is the single most common reason moves slip.

How Flyto handles your Czech Republic to Japan move

Flyto runs strong in-house European operations — our own offices, warehouses, teams and vehicles across Northern, Central and Southern Europe — so the collection, packing and export-clearance leg out of the Czech Republic is handled directly by people we manage. For the long-haul sea or air leg and the Japanese arrival, we combine a carefully chosen partner and subcontractor network with trusted local partners in Japan who know the C5360-B process and port clearance. We coordinate the whole corridor end to end without pretending we do every mile ourselves.

Frequently asked questions

Do I pay import duty on my used household goods in Japan?
No — provided you are moving to stay more than a year, the goods were owned and used before entry, they are reasonable in quantity and not for sale, and they arrive within 6 months of your entry (Japan Customs 7301).

What is the single most important form?
Customs Form C No.5360-B, filed in two copies on arrival. The stamped copy returned to you is required to clear your shipment (Form C5360-B PDF).

How long does the whole move take?
Plan several months. Sea door-to-door is roughly 8–12 weeks and air 1–3 weeks (industry estimates), but the binding constraint is usually the 7-month pet timeline and the 6-month Japanese import window from your entry date.

Must I deregister my permanent residence in the Czech Republic?
It is not mandatory, but a citizen leaving for good should notify the ohlašovna in writing and return the ID card within 15 working days; it cleanly ends Czech administrative obligations (Ministerstvo vnitra).

Can I bring my dog or cat easily?
Only with long lead time. The microchip → two vaccinations → antibody test → 180-day wait → 40-day notification chain means starting about 7 months ahead is essential (MAFF AQS).

What about moving back — Japan → the Czech Republic?
The mirror applies. You export from Japan (Japanese customs and, for pets, AQS export inspection) and import into the Czech Republic, where returning residents’ personal property is relieved of import duty (and therefore VAT) under EU rules if you lived outside the EU continuously for at least 12 months and the goods were owned and used at least 6 months before the move; the declaration is lodged with the Celní správa České republiky within 12 months of establishing residence (Celní správa ČR — Stěhování fyzických osob).

Sources

• Japan Customs 7301 — Household Effects for Home Relocation
• Japan Customs — Procedures of Passenger Clearance
• Japan Customs 7105 — Duty-Free Allowance for Accompanied Personal Effects
• Japan Customs — Form C No.5360-B (PDF)
• Immigration Services Agency of Japan — Certificate of Eligibility validity (PDF)
• MAFF Animal Quarantine Service — Importing dogs and cats (non-designated regions)
• MAFF Animal Quarantine Service — Bringing dogs and cats into Japan (Q&A)
• Celní správa ČR — Stěhování fyzických osob
• Celní správa ČR — Vývoz
• portal.gov.cz — Vývozní celní prohlášení podané ústně
• Ministerstvo vnitra ČR — Ukončení trvalého pobytu
• Finanční správa ČR — Daňová rezidence, metodická informace 2026 (PDF)
• Státní veterinární správa — Cestování se zvířaty v zájmovém chovu z ČR do třetích zemí
• Velvyslanectví ČR v Tokiu — Dovoz psů a koček do Japonska