The qualified invoice system: T-numbers and transitional relief

Japan's qualified invoice system (インボイス制度) took effect in autumn 2023: every transaction now requires an invoice showing a company number (法人番号/T-number) with VAT itemized separately; accounting software including freee was updated for the change. Structurally, a T-number is the letter "T" plus the corporate number (法人番号); a "qualified business" (適格業者) is a company or sole proprietor that obtained this number through a separate application (適格請求書発行事業者登録). Registering for a T-number is not mandatory for most sole proprietors, but it becomes important once annual turnover exceeds 10 million yen; without a T-number, a client is formally supposed to cover the 10% consumption tax themselves, though many ignore this in practice, and accountants often advise against registering unless counterparties explicitly require it. During a transition period after first registering a T-number (roughly through the end of the following year), a business can pay the government just 2% of revenue instead of the full 10%, while still invoicing clients at the full 10% rate — the 8% difference stays as business income. Separately, a transitional relief measure (経過措置) gives an 80% discount on consumption tax for transactions with an unqualified business, i.e. a counterparty without a T-number.