Japan's Electronic Books Preservation Act (電子帳簿保存法) was enacted in 1998 and amended several times. The January 2022 amendment **mandates electronic storage of electronic transaction data**.
Covered documents
- Account books (sales, purchases) - Financial statements - Invoices, receipts - Contracts - Quotes, purchase orders
2022 amendment core
**Electronic transaction data** (PDF invoices via email, EDI data, store receipts) **cannot be stored as paper printouts** — must retain the electronic original.
Grace period through December 2023, full enforcement from January 2024.
Storage requirements
- **Integrity**: timestamps, tamper-proof systems, documented rules - **Visibility**: display/printer available, search by date/amount/counterparty - **Retention**: generally 7 years (10 years when carrying forward losses)
Compliant SaaS
- **freee**: compliance checklist + JIIMA certified - **Money Forward Cloud**: auto-storage + timestamps - **invox**: expense settlement-specific - **Bill One (Sansan)**: invoice receipt + management
Practical tips
- Printing email PDF invoices and discarding the file: violation - Accounting SaaS integration is the safe path (auto-storage) - During tax audits, search functionality is crucial (keyword/date/amount)