Car Shipping to Tokyo
from the United Kingdom
Tokyo, served by the Port of Yokohama and Tokyo's own port facilities, is an achievable but specialised destination for UK vehicle exports — most commonly used by expatriates relocating to Japan, motorsport enthusiasts, and collectors of British marques. Because Japan drives on the left with right-hand-drive vehicles as standard, UK cars require no side-of-drive conversion. View our shipping services or request a quote.
Methods
Container
Transit Time
28–38 days /Tilbury to Yokohama/Tokyo
Ports
Yokohama, Tokyo
Starting From
£2,200
Overview
Tokyo, served by the Port of Yokohama and Tokyo's own port facilities, is an achievable but specialised destination for UK vehicle exports — most commonly used by expatriates relocating to Japan, motorsport enthusiasts, and collectors of British marques. Because Japan drives on the left with right-hand-drive vehicles as standard, UK cars require no side-of-drive conversion.
Shipping Methods
Container shipping is the standard, secure method for vehicles heading to Japan, given the detailed compliance inspection required on arrival.
Shared Container Shipping to Tokyo
For enclosed protection at a fraction of the cost of a dedicated container, our shared container shipping service consolidates two to four UK vehicles bound for Tokyo into a single sealed 40ft high-cube container. Typically 25–35% cheaper than a dedicated container, with marine all-risks insurance, professional racking and personal-effects allowance included. See the full shared container shipping page for routes, prices and sailing schedules to Tokyo.
Explore shared container shippingTransit Time
28–38 days from Southampton/Tilbury to Yokohama/Tokyo.
Import Regulations
Under the UK–Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, passenger cars generally attract 0% Japanese customs duty, though 10% consumption tax applies to the landed value. All imported vehicles must pass Japan's Shaken (vehicle inspection) process and comply with Japanese Technical Standards, which can require modifications such as speedometer recalibration and specific lighting adjustments. A registered import agent or 'daikou' service is commonly used to handle the technical certification.
Documents Required
- V5C registration document
- Passport
- Commercial invoice
- Bill of Lading
- Preliminary Inspection Certificate application
- Shaken compliance documentation
Costs & Fees
Container shipping from £2,200–£3,300. Customs duty is generally 0% for passenger cars under the UK–Japan trade agreement; 10% consumption tax applies to landed value, plus Shaken inspection and compliance costs of roughly £500–£1,200 depending on modifications needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to convert my UK car to left-hand drive for Japan?
Is there import duty shipping a car from the UK to Japan?
What is the Shaken inspection?
How long does shipping to Tokyo take?
Can I ship a classic British car to Japan?
How long does it take to ship a car from the UK to Tokyo?
Which UK ports do you ship from to Tokyo?
What documents do I need to ship a car to Tokyo?
What shipping methods are available from the UK to Tokyo?
How much does it cost to ship a car from the UK to Tokyo?
Shared Container Shipping to Tokyo — FAQs
Common questions about shared container shipping to Tokyo from the United Kingdom.
Do you offer shared container shipping to Tokyo?
How much cheaper is shared container shipping to Tokyo than a dedicated container?
Can I put personal effects in the car when shipping to Tokyo by shared container?
Available Ports
Why ship a car to Tokyo from the UK
The Ship Cars is a specialist UK vehicle export company moving cars, SUVs, classics, motorbikes and light commercials to Tokyo every month. Routing into Asia typically tranships through Singapore or Port Klang, with sealed 40ft containers used for everything except a handful of RORO-served deepwater ports. Carnet de Passage, Euro 4–6 emission proofs and chassis verification are the recurring compliance themes. Typical clients on this lane include Carnet-holding overlanders, alongside private owners relocating to Tokyo and returning residents importing a personal vehicle. Our UK-to-Tokyo corridor is engineered around predictable transit, transparent pricing and full compliance with Tokyo customs.
Vehicles depart from Bristol (Portbury), Felixstowe, Southampton and arrive at Yokohama, Tokyo via direct Far East rotation via Colombo and Singapore. Typical door-to-port turnaround is 28–38 days from southampton/tilbury to yokohama/tokyo, supported by marine all-risks insurance, GPS-tracked UK collection and bonded warehousing where required. For an instant indication of cost, use our car shipping cost calculator or request a tailored quote on our quote page.
How UK to Tokyo car shipping works
Every shipment to Tokyo follows the same six-step pipeline: free quotation, UK collection or self-drop at Bristol (Portbury), bonded UK warehousing and pre-shipment photos, HMRC NOVA / C88 export clearance handled by our UK customs clearance team, ocean transit to Yokohama (and onward feeder to Tokyo where required), and destination customs handover. You choose the shipping mode that best matches the vehicle profile and budget — see the full breakdown on our car shipping costs page or compare live RORO sailing dates to Tokyo.
RORO to Tokyo
Roll-on/Roll-off is the lowest-cost method for running, road-legal vehicles bound for Tokyo. Drive-on at the UK port, drive-off at Yokohama. RORO shipping to Tokyo — check the weekly RORO schedule.
Container to Tokyo
20ft sole-use or 40ft dedicated containers give classic, high-value, modified or non-running vehicles fully enclosed protection on the route to Tokyo. Dedicated container shipping to Tokyo.
Shared container to Tokyo
Two to four UK vehicles consolidated into a sealed 40ft container — typically 25–35% cheaper than a sole-use container. Shared container shipping to Tokyo — get a shared container cost estimate.
Tokyo ports, routing and transit
Vehicles bound for Tokyo are typically routed through Yokohama as the lead discharge port, with Tokyo available as alternatives depending on sailing schedule and onward inland transport. We schedule loads to match weekly RORO sailing schedules to Tokyo and consolidated shared container departures from the UK. For sole-use loads we book 20ft and 40ft container slots on the same rotation.
- Port of Yokohama
- Port of Tokyo
- UK departure: Southampton
- UK departure: Tilbury
- UK departure: Bristol (Portbury)
Tokyo import duty, VAT and customs in 2026
Importing a vehicle into Tokyo is regulated and document-driven. The headline framework is summarised below; our team verifies every figure against the latest Tokyo customs schedule before quoting.
- Strict homologation and emission standards (Euro 4–6)
- Carnet de Passage in selected markets
- Right-hand-drive advantage for South and East Asia
- Container shipping via Singapore, Port Klang and Hong Kong
Document checklist for Tokyo
- V5C registration document
- Passport
- Commercial invoice
- Bill of Lading
- Preliminary Inspection Certificate application
- Shaken compliance documentation
For full country-specific customs rules, see our Tokyo import guides and articles, our UK and Tokyo customs clearance service, or use the duty-inclusive cost calculator for a landed estimate to Yokohama.
Who ships to Tokyo
- • Returning Tokyo residents and dual nationals
- • UK expats relocating to Tokyo
- • Asia car dealers and Tokyo re-exporters
- • Private collectors and classic-car enthusiasts
- • Diplomatic missions and corporate fleets
- • Online auction buyers (Copart, BCA, Manheim)
Vehicles we ship to Tokyo
- • Saloons, hatchbacks and family cars
- • SUVs, 4x4s and pickups (Land Rover, Range Rover, Toyota, Nissan)
- • Luxury and executive vehicles (Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi)
- • Performance and supercars (McLaren, Aston Martin, Porsche, Ferrari)
- • Classic and historic vehicles (pre-1990 with HMRC NOVA exemption)
- • Motorbikes, scooters and quad bikes
- • Vans, light commercials and motorhomes
- • Electric and hybrid vehicles (EV battery documentation supported)
Why exporters choose The Ship Cars for Tokyo
• Specialist UK-to-Tokyo corridor with weekly capacity
• Marine all-risks insurance and bonded UK warehousing
• HMRC NOVA, C88, EORI and DVLA V5C export handled in-house
• Transparent UK to Tokyo pricing with no hidden destination fees
• Direct relationships with Yokohama agents
• Dedicated account manager from booking to delivery
Related services and tools for shipping to Tokyo
Shipping methods
Pricing & schedules
Guides & comparisons
Other Asia destinations from the UK
We ship to 8+ other Asia countries from the UK on the same trade lanes as Tokyo. Many customers shipping to Tokyo also enquire about Karachi, Dubai because routing, customs documentation and transit windows overlap.
Get an instant quote for car shipping to Tokyo
Our Tokyo corridor team responds through the online quote form. We confirm port pairing, container slot and indicative duty in a single reply.