Fumiya Suzuki 
A demonstration of a bomb sniffing dog that will be on patrol at Expo 2025. (©Sankei by Yasushi Kawamura)
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The Osaka customs office is preparing a host of measures for the upcoming Expo 2025, including boat patrols, bomb-sniffing dogs, and special duties exemptions for exhibitors.
At a special ceremony held on February 6, the office officially opened a temporary bureau on Yumeshima, the artificial island that will host the event. Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai will run from April through October.
The main responsibility of the new customs office will be to monitor exhibition items brought from over 150 countries and regions. But it will also oversee measures against smuggling and terrorism at the event, which is expected to draw around 28.2 million visitors from Japan and overseas.
Taxes and Terrorism
Preventing terrorism will be a focus. Surveillance will be strengthened during the event, and customs has emphasized it will work to stop the inflow of any dangerous materials.
The new office will be housed in the "Grand Ring," the two-kilometer wooden structure surrounding the expo venue. As construction and preparations continued at a fevered pace on site, a new signboard was posted to mark the new customs branch.
"We will carry out our duties with pride and do everything in our power to 'design a future society for our lives'," said Yusaku Shimizu, the director of Osaka Customs, quoting the catchphrase for the expo.
An Expo 2025 Tax Island
The branch office was established in November 2024 and began operations in February 2025. Staff will mainly come from the nearby Kansai International Airport. They will be focused on whether cargo from overseas is transported properly, as well as making sure it doesn't leave the expo venue.
Normally customs duties and consumption tax are levied on goods from overseas. But, to simplify requirements, a "bonded exhibition system" will be introduced, temporarily negating the collection of taxes. The same system was used in the previous Osaka Expo in 1970.
However, if exhibition materials are transported off of the island venue and into Japan, tax payment will be required. This situation "makes the existence and surveillance of the branch office indispensable," according to a customs official.
Bomb Dogs and Boat Patrols
In addition to ensuring the smooth operation of the exhibition, the office will also be responsible for counter-terrorism measures. These include dogs to detect explosives and boats that patrol around the island.
Items such as flags and magazines associated with terror groups will trigger alerts. Also, a real-time system will be implemented for sharing information between agents when smuggling is found or seizures take place. A customs official emphasized that the new office would "cooperate with relevant agencies and strictly enforce regulations on our shores."
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Author: Fumiya Suzuki
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