The Disposal (Haisha) Procedure

The Disposal (Haisha) Procedure ends a car's legal life in Japan through licensed dismantling plus a deregistration filing at the Land Transport Bureau.¹² Miss the order (dismantle first, then file) or stop after handing over the keys, and the registration, tax bills, and liability trail survive after the car is gone.

Confirm current details with official sources

Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism bureau pages and the Japan Automobile Recycling Promotion Center site.

Overview

廃車 (haisha, "deregistered or scrapped vehicle") is the colloquial cover term for two linked acts: physical dismantling under the ELV Recycling Act and legal deregistration (抹消登録, masshō tōroku, "deregistration") at the bureau.¹² The ELV Recycling Act (自動車リサイクル法, jidōsha risaikuru-hō, "ELV Recycling Act") has run in its full form since January 2005, with owners delivering end-of-life cars to registered collectors and recycling fees paid in principle at purchase.²³

This article covers ordinary passenger cars and light vehicles kept for private use. Commercial vehicles, motorcycles, inheritance cases, and export follow adjacent rules noted only where they change the standard path.

Permanent vs Temporary Deregistration

Choose by the car's future, not by its current condition. Dismantle and never return, or suspend and keep the door open.

Permanent deregistration after dismantling

Permanent deregistration (永久抹消登録, eikyū masshō tōroku, "permanent deregistration") applies once the car is dismantled, and re-registration is impossible afterward.¹ The registration-side filing itself is free (as of 2026-07; confirm current figures with the Land Transport Bureau).⁴

The owner must file within 15 days of learning that the dismantling report was recorded, under Road Transport Vehicle Act Article 15(1).¹ Only this dismantling path opens the weight-tax refund described below.⁵

Temporary deregistration without dismantling

Temporary deregistration (一時抹消登録, ichiji masshō tōroku, "temporary deregistration") suspends use without dismantling, for a car parked through an overseas posting or a long break from driving.¹ The car cannot use public roads in this state, but it can return through a used-car new registration (中古新規登録, chūko shinki tōroku, "re-registration of a suspended vehicle").¹

The bureau issues a registration identification notice (登録識別情報等通知書, tōroku shikibetsu jōhō tō tsūchisho, "registration identification notice") at filing; keep it for any later re-registration or dismantling report.¹ The filing costs JPY 500 at the counter or JPY 450 through OSS electronic filing (as of 2026-07; confirm current figures with the Land Transport Bureau).¹⁴

Dismantling report after temporary deregistration

A suspended car that is later scrapped does not go through permanent deregistration a second time. It follows the dismantling-report path (解体届出, kaitai todokede, "dismantling report").¹⁴

The filing is free (as of 2026-07).⁴ The weight-tax refund, if the shaken remainder qualifies, is applied for at this filing under the same simultaneous-application rule as permanent deregistration.¹⁵

Required Documents

Assemble papers before booking the bureau visit. The most common rejection is a name or address gap between the inspection certificate and the seal certificate.

Ordinary vehicles

For a personally owned private car, prepare the original inspection certificate (自動車検査証, jidōsha kensashō, "vehicle inspection certificate"), a seal certificate issued within the last 3 months, the registered seal for an in-person filing, and the front and rear number plates.¹⁴ Permanent cases add the transfer report number (移動報告番号, idō hōkoku bangō, "transfer report number") and dismantling report record date (解体報告記録日, kaitai hōkoku kirokubi, "dismantling report record date") received from the dismantler.¹

An agent files with a power of attorney bearing the owner's registered seal.¹ Address or name changes since issuance need linking public documents such as a residence certificate or family-register extract.¹⁴

Check the owner box before booking dismantling

When the certificate names a loan company or dealer, or shows an old address, ownership release and linking papers come first. A holder who is only the user cannot authorize dismantling alone.⁴

Light vehicles

Light vehicles file at the Light Motor Vehicle Inspection Organization (軽自動車検査協会, kei-jidōsha kensa kyōkai, "Light Motor Vehicle Inspection Organization"), not the Land Transport Bureau branch.¹⁴ No seal certificate is needed; a personal seal or signature suffices.¹⁴

Bring the original inspection certificate, both plates, and the procedure-specific application form; dismantlement return adds the transfer report number, and an agent adds a request form rather than a power of attorney.⁴

Process

The sequence is fixed: licensed handoff first, bureau filing second, tax and insurance cleanup third.

The chart shows the full chain from ownership check through refund settlement.¹⁴

Hand the car to a designated recycler

Deliver the car to a municipally registered collector (引取業者, hikitori gyōsha, "registered collector"), such as a dealer or repair shop in the recycling chain.²⁶ The chain runs from collector to fluorocarbon recovery to dismantler to shredder operator, with each handoff tracked through the electronic manifest system.⁶

Unpaid recycling fees are settled at handoff, since dismantling and the bureau filing cannot proceed without the deposit.²³ Manufacturer recycling schedules run about JPY 6,000 to JPY 18,000 per vehicle including information and fund management fees (as of the JARC summary schedule; confirm current figures with the Japan Automobile Recycling Promotion Center).⁶

Take the collection certificate (使用済自動車引取証明書, shiyōzumi jidōsha hikitori shōmeisho, "end-of-life vehicle collection certificate") and wait for the dismantler's completion notice with the transfer report number and report date before visiting the bureau.⁴¹

File at the Land Transport Bureau

File ordinary vehicles at the bureau branch (運輸支局, un'yu shikyoku, "Land Transport Bureau branch") with jurisdiction over the place of use; light vehicles go to the Light Motor Vehicle Inspection Organization branch.¹⁴ Return both plates at the plate window first, then submit the OCR application sheet for the procedure (ordinary temporary, permanent, or dismantling report; light-vehicle Form No. 4 variants), all obtained at the counter.¹⁴

Counters run on weekday daytime hours only, and month-end plus the March year-end clog (as of 2026-04; confirm current hours with the local branch).⁷ Expired shaken never blocks the filing itself; it only means the car cannot be driven to the counter and needs a carrier.¹⁴

Costs and Fees

Registration-side fees are small and fixed; physical-side outlays decide the real total. Filing permanent deregistration yourself costs nothing at the window, but the window fee is only the registration act (as of 2026-07; confirm current figures with the Land Transport Bureau).⁴

Item	Amount	As of	Notes
Ordinary permanent deregistration	Free	2026-074	Registration act only; transport and dismantling separate
Ordinary temporary deregistration	JPY 500 counter, JPY 450 OSS	2026-074	Revised April 2026
Ordinary or light dismantling report	Free	2026-074	Filed after temporary deregistration
Light dismantlement return	Free	2026-074	Light-vehicle permanent equivalent
Light temporary suspension certificate	JPY 450	2026-074	Certificate issuance fee

The table reflects registration handling confirmed in July 2026 (as of 2026-07).⁴ Outside it, practitioner market bands run about JPY 0 to JPY 30,000 for dismantling labor and about JPY 0 to JPY 30,000 for towing when the car cannot move (as of 2026-06), with unpaid recycling settlement around JPY 7,000 to JPY 20,000 where due (as of 2026-06; confirm current figures with the contractor).¹⁷

Residual parts or scrap-metal value can offset or reverse the balance toward free handling or a payment to the owner, but no universal free-towing or minimum-payment promise holds across contractors and sites (as of 2026-07).⁴

Compare quotes on the final amount left in hand

Ask each contractor to separate vehicle value, towing, dismantling and proxy fees, tax and insurance attribution, post-contract charges, and the deregistration completion document with its receipt deadline. The cheapest headline fee is rarely the best final figure.⁴

Tax and Insurance Refunds

Refunds split into two families: taxes that come back through the deregistration record, and insurance that comes back only on a separate request to the insurer (see Compulsory and Voluntary Auto Insurance for the two-tier system).

Automobile tax refund

Ordinary-vehicle automobile tax (自動車税種別割, jidōsha-zei shubetsu-wari, "automobile tax, classification levy") for the months after the deregistration month through March returns on a monthly pro-rata basis; a March deregistration yields no refund (as of filings described in 2022 guidance; confirm current handling with the prefectural tax office).¹⁵ The working formula is annual tax divided by 12 times the months from the month after deregistration through March (as of 2022-11).⁴⁵

Bureau-to-prefecture data linkage normally triggers the payment without a separate application, with the notice arriving about 1 to 2 months later (as of 2022-11).⁵ Light-vehicle tax has no monthly pro-rata refund; the April 1 owner owes the full year.¹⁴

Weight tax and insurance refunds

Weight-tax refund needs three things together: proper dismantling under the Recycling Act, at least one month of shaken remaining, and a refund application filed simultaneously with the permanent deregistration or dismantling report.⁵¹ A later standalone application is refused, and the payment reaches the last registered owner about 2 months after filing (as of 2022-11).⁵

Compulsory liability insurance (自賠責保険, jibaiseki hoken, "compulsory automobile liability insurance") surrender value needs a separate cancellation request to the insurer after deregistration, with deregistration proof; it never returns automatically.¹⁴ Voluntary insurance handling follows the individual contract, so confirm surrender or interruption-certificate terms with the insurer or agent.⁴

Alternatives to Scrapping

Not every end-of-ownership car needs dismantling. A dealer trade-in when buying a replacement folds deregistration into the transaction (as of 2026-07 commercial practice; confirm handling with the dealer).⁴

A car with market value can sell to a used dealer as an ownership transfer rather than a deregistration (see Buying a Car in Japan: New vs. Used for the value tier); no prefectural tax refund arises on transfer alone, though dealers customarily settle the monthly share inside the price.⁵ Export follows the export-deregistration path rather than domestic dismantling deregistration.⁴

Price the alternatives against the refund calendar

A sale or trade-in late in the fiscal year keeps more of the year's tax inside the price, while a dismantling filing early in the year maximizes the pro-rata refund. Run both numbers before choosing.⁴⁵

Good to know

File before the month turns to protect the refund

Auto-tax refund counts from the month after deregistration, so a filing that slips past month-end loses a full month of refund.¹⁵ When the dismantler's completion notice arrives, book the bureau visit in the same month rather than letting paperwork drift.

Confirm who owns the car on the inspection certificate first

When the certificate owner is a loan company or dealer, or addresses and names have changed since issuance, ownership release and linking documents come before any dismantling date.⁴ Dismantling a car the filer does not own creates a dispute no refund can fix.

Light vehicle owners plan around April 1, not the deregistration month

Because light-vehicle tax has no pro-rata refund, the completion date that matters is whether the return or dismantling finishes by March 31 for the following year.⁴ The handover day to the contractor is not the legal date; the organization's filing date is.

Handing over the car is not deregistration

The registration survives until the bureau filing, with tax and liability trailing it.⁴ Agree in writing who files, by when, under which completion document, and who receives the tax and insurance refunds before releasing the car and plates.

See also

• Annual Auto Tax (Jidosha-zei)
• Shaken: The Mandatory Biennial Inspection
• Compulsory and Voluntary Auto Insurance
• Buying a Car in Japan: New vs. Used

References

Footnotes

1. 行政書士法人Tree (代表行政書士 櫻井勇輝). 「廃車手続きの方法と必要書類｜一時抹消と永久抹消の違いを解説」. Published 2026-03-22, updated 2026-06-05. https://office-tree.jp/blog/vehicle/vehicle-deregistration-guide/ ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²² ↩²³ ↩²⁴ ↩²⁵ ↩²⁶ ↩²⁷

2. 経済産業省 (METI). 「３Ｒ政策: 使用済自動車の再資源化等に関する法律」. Act promulgated 2002-07, in full force 2005-01-01. https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/recycle/main/admin_info/law/08/index.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

3. 環境省 (MOE). 「自動車リサイクル関連: 法律の仕組み」. https://www.env.go.jp/recycle/car/outline2.html ↩ ↩²

4. CARCARI (カーライフアドバイザー 梅原隆也監修). 「廃車の手続き方法と費用｜必要書類・還付金・無料で処分する方法」. Published 2026-07-27, figures confirmed 2026-07-28, with public-source list (MLIT, Light Motor Vehicle Inspection Organization, NTA, JARC). https://carcari.net/haisha/haisha-tetsuduki-hiyou/ ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²² ↩²³ ↩²⁴ ↩²⁵ ↩²⁶ ↩²⁷ ↩²⁸ ↩²⁹ ↩³⁰ ↩³¹ ↩³² ↩³³ ↩³⁴

5. Nagoya International Center, Civic Advisory Service. "Living Q & A: Can you get a refund of vehicle tax if you dispose of your car?" Published 2022-11-30. https://www.nic-nagoya.or.jp/en/living-in-nagoya/living-information/living_information/2022/11301659.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰

6. Japan Automobile Recycling Promotion Center (JARC). "Recycling, Respect for Our Cars" (English summary PDF). Recycling fee range stated. https://www.jarc.or.jp/renewal/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/summary_automobile_recycling.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³

7. 廃車ひきとり110番 (practitioner blog). 「【実用ガイド】損をしないための廃車・解体手続き完全マニュアル」. Published 2026-06-11. https://www.haisya110.com/blog/2026/06/11/3263 ↩ ↩²