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World desk4 min

How to Verify Whether a Japanese Company Is Still Operating Before You Order

Use Japan’s official registries to match a supplier’s legal identity and invoice registration, then independently verify contract and payment details. A current record is not proof of active trading or creditworthiness.

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Start with the supplier’s Japanese legal name and 13-digit Corporate Number, then match the registered name and head-office address in Japan’s National Tax Agency (NTA) Corporate Number Publication Site. For fuller registration particulars, use the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) search or request a registered-matters certificate. If the supplier gives you a qualified invoice registration number, check it separately in the NTA invoice issuer publication site. These checks confirm registration records and identity—not that the company is actively trading, can fulfil your order, or is creditworthy.

What to ask the supplier for

Before paying, request the supplier’s Japanese legal name as registered, its 13-digit Corporate Number (法人番号), and its registered Japanese address. If the transaction involves a qualified invoice, also ask for the invoice registration number exactly as printed. For a corporation, this number commonly consists of a leading “T” followed by the Corporate Number, but verify the supplied number rather than assuming the supplier is registered.

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A number is more useful than a translated or romanized name: similar names, spelling differences, and partial name matches can make a name-only search ambiguous.

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Check the company’s registered identity

Search the NTA Corporate Number Publication Site

  1. Open the NTA Corporate Number Publication Site.
  2. Search by the 13-digit Corporate Number when the supplier has provided it. If you do not have the number, search by name and address, then verify the result against the supplier’s number and registered address.
  3. If an English search returns no result, try the Japanese registered name or use the number on the Japanese-language site. The English site publishes English name and address information for entities that have registered those English details; a missing English result alone does not establish that the Japanese entity does not exist.

The NTA site supports partial and prefix name matching, so a name-only result is a lead to confirm, not a unique identification. Compare the head-office address as well as the name. The site is an identity lookup, not a live trading or credit database.

Use the MOJ search for registered identity fields

The Ministry of Justice online registration information search can be used to look up a company or corporation by name, location, and Corporate Number. MOJ guidance says this search provides those identifying fields, not other registration information.

Request a certificate for fuller registered particulars

If you need formal documentary confirmation of registered particulars, request a registered-matters certificate (登記事項証明書) through the Legal Affairs Bureau certificate service. The Bureau describes online requests with delivery by post or collection at a selected office. A certificate records registered particulars; it does not show by itself that the company is presently accepting orders or will perform this one.

Check an invoice registration number separately

When the supplier provides a qualified invoice registration number, search by that number—not by the company name—in the NTA Qualified Invoice Issuer Publication Site. The NTA explains why the lookup uses the registration number in its search guidance; its FAQ on published information describes details available for a corporation, including corporate name, head-office address, registration number, registration date, and cancellation or expiration date.

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Compare the published details with the supplier and check whether the registration is valid for the proposed transaction date. Invoice registration is a tax-status check. No invoice registration does not, on its own, prove that a business is fake; a valid registration does not establish solvency, product quality, or order fulfilment.

Match the order and payment details

Compare the verified legal name, Corporate Number, and registered address with the order confirmation, contract, invoice, and named bank beneficiary. If payment instructions change, confirm the change through contact details obtained independently from a known official company channel. Do not rely only on the message announcing new bank details.

Pause before paying if the supplier’s identifiers do not match, it will not provide a requested certificate, or the payment beneficiary appears unrelated. Resolve the discrepancy with the company through independently sourced contact information. For a substantial order, consider professional legal or credit diligence rather than treating a registry result as a credit assessment.

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What a registry result can—and cannot—tell you

Japan’s commercial and corporation registration system provides public notice of core corporate particulars. The Ministry of Justice explains that legal personality follows registration of establishment and that registered information is expected to be kept accurate; its overview describes registration as a system for public notice of matters such as names, addresses, and officers (MOJ registration overview). A current record is evidence of a registered legal entity and its recorded details, not proof of current trading activity or ability to fulfil a specific order.

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Nor should a registry record be treated as a real-time insolvency alert or a credit check. The secondary provider Corpus cautions that registry and invoice information do not constitute a credit check and may not reflect a business failure immediately; its description of when insolvency-related information may appear concerns its own registry data, not a government real-time bankruptcy service (Corpus company verification guidance).

Which check should you use?

Check Best for What it provides Main limitation
NTA Corporate Number Publication Site Initial identity check Corporate Number, registered name, and address; English name and address appear only where English details have been registered. NTA Basic identity data do not establish active trading or ability to perform.
MOJ online registration search Matching registered identity fields Name, location, and Corporate Number. MOJ MOJ says other registration information is not searchable through this tool.
Registered-matters certificate Formal confirmation of registered particulars Official certificate requested through the Legal Affairs Bureau. Legal Affairs Bureau Registered particulars are not a performance guarantee.
NTA invoice issuer publication site Checking a qualified invoice registration number Published registration details, including cancellation or expiration information. NTA FAQ It verifies invoice registration status, not general operating status or creditworthiness.

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