The Japan Fair Trade Commission announced a web survey of logistics transactions on November 9, 2026, saying it is sending cooperation requests to 40,000 shippers on that date. Replies are due by December 11, 2026. The survey comes before a revised rule takes effect on April 1, 2027, and the commission says it will follow the results with on-site inspections.
What the revised rule adds
The survey is tied to the commission's special designation on unfair trading practices when specified shippers consign the transport or storage of goods, known in Japanese as the logistics special designation (Fair Trade Commission Notice No. 1 of 2004). The commission issued it under the Antimonopoly Act to curb abuse of a superior bargaining position by shippers over logistics operators.
From April 1, 2027, the revised designation newly regulates conduct by a consignee, the party receiving goods. A consignee that has a logistics operator make the originating shipper wait, beyond what the contract provides, will fall within the rule. In plain terms, the rule covers a receiving party that uses the carrier to impose unplanned waiting on the sender.
The commission says the survey aims to raise awareness of the revised designation before it takes effect and to grasp actual trading conditions.
Two mailings, then inspections
The survey runs in two stages. The first mailing, to 40,000 shippers, is set for November 9, with a response deadline of December 11. A second mailing to 40,000 logistics operators is planned for around February 2027. Businesses that receive a request are asked to cooperate.
The 40,000 figures are the number of recipients the commission says it will write to. The release gives no response rate or completed-response target.
What the commission plans next
The commission plans to use the results to carry out on-site inspections of relevant businesses, publish the findings, and send cautionary letters to businesses where it finds conduct that could lead to Antimonopoly Act problems. The release describes these as planned steps, not decisions.
A sector survey does not establish a violation by any named company, and the release names none. From April 1, 2027, a consignee that has carriers make the originating shipper wait beyond what the contract provides falls under the revised rule. The release does not say which sectors or company sizes were selected for the survey.