Reselling From Various Perspectives
Reselling From Police Perspective (Rina and Kaho)
※In this post, I researched about the Secondhand Dealer License and how the police had restricted the resellers.
Does everyone know that there is such a thing called the "Secondhand Dealer License"?
I did not know until I looked it up but this is a business license required for companies or individuals engaged in buying, selling, exchanging, or renting used goods, including antiques. The Secondhand Dealer License is mandated by the Secondhand Goods Business Act. Operating such a business without a license can result in penalties, including up to three years of imprisonment or a fine of up to one million yen (古物営業法の目的と違反した場合の罰則・行政処分 | 古物商免許を取って古物営業はじめよう！. Com, n.d.) .
However, there are exceptions. For instance, individuals using Mercari—a popular Japanese flea market app—are not required to obtain a secondhand dealer license. This is because the law does not apply when a private individual purchases an item for personal use, no longer needs it, and then resells it.
The enforcement of laws related to resale activities generally falls under the jurisdiction of the Community Safety Division of the local police station. This division often handles cases involving ticket scalping and violations of the Secondhand Goods Business Act, especially when goods are being traded without proper authorization. In addition, the Cyber Police Agency may be involved when such resale activities take place online.
Reselling From Consumer Perspective
A huge number of consumers dislike resellers. They wish for a lawsuit against resellers who repeat expensive resell without permission. However, when it goes overreacting, we can be the ones being sued.
In March, 2021, a woman living in Yamanashi Pref. found a pair of earrings being sold on Mercari. She sold the same earring a few days ago with a much lower price. She suspected reselling and started to attack the seller. The woman left comments accusing the seller of reselling, not only on the seller’s page but also on the pages of customers who had bought from the seller.
She eventually ended up revealing the seller's private information on the internet and was sued by the seller. She still claimed what she did was right at the court, but the court ordered her to pay damages of about ¥660,000 (about $4200). Both the seller and the woman suffered from mental health disorders during the conflict. There were some opinions found on SNS about this example, about half of them said that the woman did too much against the seller. However, there were post that said what the woman did was correct.
Then what can we do to stop resellers? It's easy, don't buy from them. If you want to take action, try reporting about high-priced resale to the platform company. There is always a route to stop resellers before you fight alone.
Reselling From Platform Providers Perspective
On June 5 Nintendo's new game, "Nintendo Switch 2" came out for sale. The product immediately became a remarkable, hit selling 3.5 million game console in just 4 days. On the other hand, there were many Nintendo Switch 2 were resold on Mercari and eBay on the day of its release. However, there were no Switch 2 on the listings of Yahoo Auction or Yahoo Flea Market. In fact, both platforms have introduced new guidelines to prevent resale of Switch 2. If a user resells a Switch 2, they will no longer be able to use the platform, even to make purchases.
Particular to Japan, Mercari, LINE Yahoo and Rakten announced that they will ban selling rice on Mercari, Yahoo Auction, Yahoo Flea Market and Rakuten Rakuma. Due to last year's poor rice harvest, the Japanse government decided to sell government stockpile rice, after the announcement, people started to buy rice from the fear of rice disappearing from shops. Resellers took advantage of this and started reselling rice.
To prevent furthur resale, starting June 23, general users will no longer be allowed to list any type of rice, including un-polished rice. AI tools will be used to detect and remove listings, and accounts will be restricted.
However, business sellers on platforms like Mercari and Yahoo! Shopping can still sell rice as long as they comply with the law. Processed rice products, like packaged meals, are not affected. When I looked up Mercari, packed rice was sold by a company that makes packed rice. Similar things have happen during the covid period. At that time, platform providers banned listing masks and PCR-testing kits.
References:
古物営業法 - 日本語/英語 - 日本法令外国語訳DBシステム. (n.d.). https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/ja/laws/view/4227
E-Gov 法令検索. (n.d.). https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/324AC0000000108
古物営業法の目的と違反した場合の罰則・行政処分 | 古物商免許を取って古物営業はじめよう！. com. (n.d.-b). 古物商免許を取って古物営業はじめよう！古物営業法の目的と違反した場合の罰則・行政処分 | 古物商免許を取って古物営業はじめよう！. com
古物商許可とは?取り方や必要な対象と許可申請の流れを解説. (2025, May 30). Nにおまかせ！｜株式会社NTT東日本サービス. 古物商許可とは？取り方や必要な対象と許可申請の流れを解説｜Nにおまかせ！
サイバー警察局|警察庁Webサイト. (n.d.). 警察庁. https://www.npa.go.jp/bureau/cyber/index.htm
警察庁生活安全局 生活経済対策管理官 (2021, March) 令和2年における生活経済事犯の
検挙状況等についてR02_seikatsukeizaijihan.pdf
Ayumi. K. (2025, May 17). メルカリの「転売ヤー」は許せない！暴走した正義感、コメント欄で戦った女性に賠償命令. Sankei Shimbun : Sankei News. https://www.sankei.com/article/20250517-UJGHG4ULIRNO5L2QD6JRRK57UA/
ITkagyo. (2025b, May 20). メルカリ訴訟ショック!転売ヤーと正義感のバトルが賠償命令に発展した理由. ITkagyo. https://itkagyo.com/mercari-shock/
任天堂株式会社 ニュースリリース :2025年6月11日 - Nintendo Switch 2 の発売後4日間の世界販売台数が350万台を突破|任天堂. (n.d.). 任天堂ホームページ. https://www.nintendo.co.jp/corporate/release/2025/250611.html
日本放送協会. (n.d.). 「ニンテンドースイッチ2」発売 転売対策 その効果は|NHK 首都圏のニュース. NHK NEWS WEB. https://www3.nhk.or.jp/shutoken-news/20250605/1000118230.html
日本経済新聞社. (2025, June 13). メルカリ・ヤフオク、コメ類の出品禁止 備蓄米から対象拡大. 日本経済新聞. https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXZQOUC137OC0T10C25A6000000/
Thank you for the informative post. I didn’t know about the Secondhand Dealer License either, and I was surprised to learn how strict the law is regarding reselling activities in Japan. The fact that individuals can face imprisonment or high fines for unauthorized sales shows how seriously this issue is treated. I found the example of the woman who exposed a seller’s private information particularly thought-provoking. It shows how easily consumer frustration can escalate into harassment, which is a serious problem in itself. For further research, I suggest exploring how other countries handle reselling laws and compare their effectiveness. Also, looking into how AI and platform policies can fairly balance user freedom and market fairness could lead to important insights.
返信削除I am commenting because I have a very strong interest in the subject you and your colleagues are researching, "Resellers vs Needers”.As a reason for this, This is because I myself am a heavy user of mail order sites involving many resellers like “
返信削除I was a little concerned that my purchase might have been resold and that I might be one of the people involved in the reseller's activities.
In addition, at one time many Japanese were suffering from a lack of rice, and I was very surprised to see rice being resold at such high prices. If it were me, I would not want to buy rice on Mercari.(Chiharu)
I learned something new from this article. I did not know about the Secondhand Dealer License before. It is surprising that you need a license in Japan to sell or buy used things as a business, and you can get in trouble if you don’t have it. But I was glad to see that people selling their own things on Mercari do not need the license. The story about the woman who got in trouble for accusing a seller shows that it is easy to make mistakes if you don’t know the law. It’s good to see companies making rules to stop bad reselling too.
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