Identifying the importer in your transaction
Japan ACP | Aplash G.K.

Working notes for your team. This is not a Customs application form.

Describe the transaction before completing the form

Start with the proposed importer company's full legal name and registered country. Then explain what that company does in this shipment. Does it purchase the goods, send its own stock to Japan or sell them to another company before import? Identify the agreement that supports your explanation and the person who can answer questions about it.
Japan Customs explains that simply being named as consignee on an invoice does not always make a party the importer. The actual import transaction matters. If the documents point to different parties, bring the mismatch into the review rather than assuming an appointment form can fix it.

Your notes:


Give each party a specific role

Party | Question to answer
Proposed importer | What is its role in the import transaction?
Supplier or seller | Who sells or dispatches these goods?
Receiving location | Who operates it and what will it receive?
Customs broker | Who is handling the import declaration?
Proposed ACP | What appointment and communication scope is agreed?

Your notes:


Keep names consistent without rewriting history

Compare the company register, agreement, invoice and seller account. Note any trading name, abbreviated name or previous name. A reviewer needs to understand why the records differ. Do not edit an issued document yourself to make the names match; ask its issuer to clarify or correct it where appropriate.
The contact filling in the enquiry may work for a group company, consultant or logistics provider. Record that relationship and identify who can authorise the importing company's appointment. A shared email domain can help with communication, but it does not by itself document the authority to act for a different legal entity.

Your notes:


Put unresolved roles into the first enquiry

State whether the company has an address or business presence in Japan, and describe that presence accurately. Add the sales channel and expected customs office if known. If a broker has raised an importer question, include the question in its original context, with unnecessary personal information removed.
Use ACP suitability review (/hs-code-review) to work through the arrangement before requesting appointment documents. A useful outcome may be a request for a particular agreement or a question for the broker or Customs. Treat that as a task to resolve, rather than replacing an uncertain importer name with the agent's name.

Your notes:


A name needs an explanation
Identify the proposed importer, show its place in the actual transaction and explain differences between records. Complete the appointment only after those roles are understood.

Sources
Japan Customs: the person liable to pay customs duty: https://www.customs.go.jp/english/c-answer_e/imtsukan/1103_e.htm
Japan Customs: non-resident customs procedures: https://www.customs.go.jp/english/c-answer_e/sonota/9601_e.htm