Glossary
What is Electronic Bookkeeping Act (電子帳簿保存法)?
The Electronic Bookkeeping Act (電子帳簿保存法) is the Japanese law governing how tax-related books and documents may be kept electronically. It sets conditions for scanned documents and, since a phased tightening completed in January 2024, requires that data received electronically be retained in electronic form.
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- Japanese
- 電子帳簿保存法(でんしちょうぼほぞんほう / Denshi Chōbo Hozon Hō)
- In English
- Electronic Bookkeeping Act(also rendered: Electronic Books Maintenance Act, Act on Special Provisions for Preservation of National Tax Records in Electronic Form)
- Governed by
- Japan's National Tax Agency (国税庁); JIIMA runs the conformity certification.
For anyone selecting expense or accounting software for a Japanese entity, this law is why the domestic and international shortlists rarely overlap.
The act covers three broad categories: electronic books kept from the outset, scanned paper documents, and electronic transaction data. The last is the one that changed most recently — invoices and receipts received by email or download must be stored electronically rather than printed and filed, with requirements around searchability and preventing after-the-fact alteration.
In practice, buyers look for JIIMA certification — a conformity assessment run by the Japan Image and Information Management Association — because it is a concrete, checkable signal that a product's storage behaviour meets the statutory conditions. Vendors without it may still be usable, but the compliance burden shifts to you.
This is also why a globally excellent expense tool can be the wrong answer in Japan: a product with no concept of these retention rules leaves your finance team building a parallel archiving process. When evaluating, treat Electronic Bookkeeping Act support and Invoice System support as separate line items, and confirm current certification with the vendor rather than assuming — certification status changes.
Related: how long meeting minutes must be kept in Japan (Kaigi AI)
Frequently asked questions
- Does a US expense tool satisfy the Electronic Bookkeeping Act?
- Generally not out of the box. Tools built for the US and global market typically have no concept of these retention conditions and no JIIMA certification, so a Japanese entity using one usually needs a separate archiving arrangement. Confirm specifics with the vendor.
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