---
title: "Carrying Japanese ceramics home in your luggage"
description: "Cabin bag or checked bag, how large a cabin bag may be, how to wrap a bowl so that nothing moves, and what Japan's tax-free refund asks of a traveler at the airport."
url: https://kama-meshi.com/en/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
language: en
published: 2026-11-11
category: "Travel basics › Shopping and souvenirs"
tags: ["Souvenirs", "Crafts"]
author: "Oginoya Editorial Team"
publisher: "Oginoya Co., Ltd."
translations:
  zh-TW: https://kama-meshi.com/zh-tw/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
  ko: https://kama-meshi.com/ko/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
  zh-CN: https://kama-meshi.com/zh-cn/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
  zh-HK: https://kama-meshi.com/zh-hk/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
  th: https://kama-meshi.com/th/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
  de: https://kama-meshi.com/de/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
  fr: https://kama-meshi.com/fr/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
  es: https://kama-meshi.com/es/articles/ceramics-in-luggage
---

# Carrying Japanese ceramics home in your luggage

![An open cardboard box lined with crumpled bubble wrap](https://kama-meshi.com/_astro/stock-389491357.BMO6A1QL_15nQHL.webp)

A bowl or a cup bought in Japan goes home in the bag carried into the cabin, wrapped by itself and packed so that nothing in the bag can move. All Nippon Airways (ANA) asks passengers not to check breakable things, and it accepts no liability when ceramics or glass in a checked bag are damaged because of their own nature.

## Cabin or hold

ANA asks passengers to keep four kinds of things out of checked baggage: breakable items, electronics such as computers and cameras, valuables, and daily necessities such as medicine. Its examples of breakable items are watches, cameras, computers, bottles and glass products. For ceramics, glass products and liquor, ANA takes no responsibility for damage that arises from an inherent defect or from the nature of the item.

A passenger on an ANA international flight who finds a checked bag damaged on arrival tells the airport staff at once. Damage noticed after leaving the airport is reported within 7 days, counted from the day after the bag was received. Damage that ANA covers is in principle repaired. Damage that arises from the nature of a fragile item, such as a glass product or a bottle of liquor, is outside that cover.

When an itinerary includes a codeshare flight or a flight operated by another airline, that airline's baggage rules may apply.

## What fits in the cabin

On ANA's international flights each passenger may bring one carry-on bag and one personal item into the cabin, and the two together may weigh up to 10 kg.

| | Carry-on bag | Personal item |
|---|---|---|
| Examples | Suitcase, carry case | Handbag, shoulder bag |
| Size | Length, width and height add up to 115 cm or less, and each fits within 55 × 40 × 25 cm | Within 40 × 30 × 20 cm |
| Stowed | In the overhead bin or under the seat in front | Under the seat in front |

The measurements include wheels and handles. A carry-on bag has to be one that the passenger can stow without help, and a bag placed in the overhead bin is set so that it does not slide out when the bin is opened. A bag within the size limit may still be loaded in the hold as checked baggage when the cabin has no room for it.

A bag that ANA checks free of charge on its international flights may measure up to 158 cm in length, width and height combined, wheels and handles included, and may weigh up to 23 kg in economy and premium economy.

## Wrapping each piece

Yamato Transport sets out the packing of dishes for its Takkyūbin parcel service in four steps.

1. Gather a cardboard box, cushioning material such as newspaper or bubble wrap, scissors, cellophane tape and packing tape.
2. Set a dish in the middle of a sheet of cushioning, fold the four sides over it and fasten them with cellophane tape. For a piece with a lid, wrap the body and the lid separately.
3. Spread cushioning over the bottom of the box, and stand the dishes upright in it. Dishes laid flat and stacked press on the dishes beneath them, which leads to breakage.
4. Shake the box lightly to see whether any dish moves, and pack cushioning around the dishes until none of them moves.

A towel also works as cushioning when no newspaper or bubble wrap is at hand. When dishes share a box with other things, the dishes are kept out from under anything heavy. Gaps inside a box let the contents knock against each other in transit, and heavy things go in first, with light things on top.

## Pottery and porcelain

[Pottery is softer than porcelain](https://kama-meshi.com/en/articles/pottery-and-porcelain), and porcelain has greater mechanical strength. Ceramic tableware varies widely in quality, and the softer pieces chip or crack when struck. [Mashiko ware](https://kama-meshi.com/en/articles/mashiko-ware), the ware of [the pot that holds Tōge no Kamameshi](https://kama-meshi.com/en/articles/the-kama-pot), is pottery. Arita ware and Hasami ware, from two of [Japan's pottery towns](https://kama-meshi.com/en/articles/japanese-pottery-regions), are porcelain. The everyday pieces, from the rice bowl to the sake cup, are described in [Japanese ceramics as souvenirs](https://kama-meshi.com/en/articles/ceramics-as-souvenirs).

![A dark-glazed rice bowl on an unglazed foot, with white glaze running down from the rim](https://kama-meshi.com/_astro/rice-bowl-chawan-2015.CNnlmZlK_66uFD.webp "A rice bowl, 2015.")

## Tax-free purchases at departure

Japan's tax-free shopping moved to a refund system for purchases made on or after November 1, 2026. The visitor pays the price with consumption tax at the tax-free shop, and an amount equal to the tax is refunded after customs confirms at departure that the goods are leaving Japan. The system covers purchases of ¥5,000 or more before tax at one shop in one day.

![The departure lobby of Haneda Airport's international terminal: check-in counters under a sign marked F, self check-in machines, an escalator signed SHOPS & RESTAURANTS and advertising banners hanging from a curved white ceiling](https://kama-meshi.com/_astro/haneda-international-departure-lobby-2017.CzbTfY0p_Z11lp5v.webp "The international departure lobby of Haneda Airport, 2017.")

The confirmation takes place at the airport or seaport of departure, within 90 days of the purchase. The traveler presents a passport at a terminal for tax-free procedures, and the screen shows whether an inspection is needed. A green result ends the procedure. A red result sends the traveler to the customs inspection point to show the goods.

The terminals and the customs inspection point are placed before the point where baggage is checked, in the international departure lobby and similar areas. The traveler must be holding every tax-free purchase when presenting the passport. The procedure cannot be done once the bags are checked, and a checked bag is not brought back for it. Customs confirms one purchase transaction, meaning one receipt, at a time: when a single item on the receipt is missing, nothing on that receipt is refunded.

A traveler who changes from a domestic flight to an international flight completes the procedure at the last airport before leaving Japan. Commercial goods and high-priced items may need the same export procedure as ordinary trade cargo.

## Sending pieces by post

The arrangement under which a visitor exported tax-free purchases personally as mail, called separate shipping, ended on March 31, 2025.

International mail from Japan has no "fragile" handling and no "this side up" handling. Japan Post asks senders to pack the contents well enough that they do not break, and a sender may write "fragile" on a parcel at the sender's own judgment. For breakable things sent abroad Japan Post advises double packaging. Gaps between the contents make them break more easily, so the gaps are filled with cushioning, and a thick box such as a double-walled carton is the safer choice.

## References

- [ANA, "Valuables, fragile items and daily necessities"](https://www.ana.co.jp/ja/jp/guide/boarding-procedures/baggage/fragile/)
- [ANA, "Carry-on baggage size and rules (international flights)"](https://www.ana.co.jp/ja/jp/guide/boarding-procedures/baggage/international/carry-rule/)
- [ANA, "Free checked baggage allowance (international flights)"](https://www.ana.co.jp/ja/jp/guide/boarding-procedures/baggage/international/baggage-free/)
- [ANA, "Damaged baggage (international flights)"](https://www.ana.co.jp/ja/jp/guide/boarding-procedures/baggage/international/damage/)
- [Yamato Transport, "How to pack tableware and plates"](https://www.kuronekoyamato.co.jp/ytc/customer/send/preparations/packing/takkyubin/tableware/)
- [Yamato Transport, "Basics of packing a parcel"](https://www.kuronekoyamato.co.jp/ytc/customer/send/preparations/packing/)
- [Japan Post, "How should fragile items and liquids be packed?"](https://www.post.japanpost.jp/question/oversea/174.html)
- [Japan Post, "Does international mail have a 'fragile' handling?"](https://www.post.japanpost.jp/question/oversea/33.html)
- [Japan Post, "Safe packing for international mail"](https://www.post.japanpost.jp/service/send/oversea/use/howto/students/know/anzen.html)
- [Japan Tourism Agency, Japan Tax-free Shop site, "Information for travelers (refund system)"](https://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/tax-free/page01_000001_00021.html)
- [Japan Tourism Agency, Japan Tax-free Shop site, "Frequently asked questions for travelers (refund system)"](https://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/tax-free/page01_000001_00023.html)
- [Japan Customs, Customs Answer 7201, "Customs procedures when leaving Japan"](https://www.customs.go.jp/tetsuzuki/c-answer/keitaibetsuso/7201_jr.htm)

Image credits (resized for display):

- [Adobe Stock #389491357](https://stock.adobe.com/389491357)
- [サフィル / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Japanese_rice_bowl_chawan.JPG), [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0), 2015
- [Daniel L. Lu (user:dllu) / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Departure_Lobby_of_Haneda_Airport_International_Terminal_dllu.jpg), [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0), 2017