Japan signed up to the World Trade Organisation Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) in 1994, in order to create better opportunities for foreign companies in the signatories’ respective countries. Concretely, this means that countries that joined the GPA take measures to ensure fair and equal treatment of suppliers, irrespective of whether they are a domestically based company or based in one of the other signatories’ countries.
The parties to the agreement agreed to establish a minimum threshold for public procurement tenders, above which these rules apply. As a result, there are two categories of tenders: those that fall within the WTO GPA regime and those that do not. In practice in Japan, this means that WTO tender notices will be accompanied by an English-language summary, whereas others will not; and, in the event of contracting issues, non-WTO tenders offer less protection against unfair treatment and fewer means of redress.
[1] WTO Agreement on Government Procurement 2012
Ever since, there has been persistent criticism of the Japanese government from the US and the EU, as the share of foreign companies in public procurement in Japan has remained low.
Voluntary measures on government procurement
In response to foreign pressure in the 1990s, the Japanese government took additional measures to improve access for foreign companies. These included measures for a number of specific sectors; these measures were subsequently updated in 2014.
- Procurement of Supercomputers
- Procurement of Non-R&D Satellites
- Procurement of Computer Products and Services
- Procurement of Telecommunications Products and Services
- Procurement of Medical Technology Products and Services
Thresholds
To encourage foreign companies to enter the market, the Japanese government has also adopted lower thresholds than those stipulated in the WTO GPA for certain categories. The thresholds and their corresponding yen values are updated every two years.
Japan’s WTO thresholds
(Valid for the period 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2028)
Source: http://www.jetro.go.jp/en/database/procurement/procurement.html
Japan’s reporting to the WTO
As part of the WTO GPA, members are also required to report annually on public procurement and the extent to which foreign tenderers have been successful in winning contracts. Japan has issued these reports since 1997. The statistics issued are limited to tenders falling under the WTO regime. Reports and statistics submitted by Japan are available here.
(Last updated: February 2026)
