In short
Japan has no general criminal offence for a participant recording their own conversation; the secrecy-of-communications offences protect calls in carriers' hands. Courts have often admitted secret recordings. Businesses must still specify and notify or publish the purpose of use under the APPI. Telling people is the respectful default.
On recording calls, Japanese law has no general criminal offence for a person who records a conversation they take part in. The secrecy-of-communications offences protect communications while they are handled by carriers or carried over wires, and are aimed at others who intrude on them. Courts have often admitted secret recordings made by a participant as evidence, excluding them only in unusual cases.
For businesses, the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (APPI) adds a second layer: a recording from which someone can be identified is personal information, and the business must specify the purpose of use and notify or publish it. This guide covers both, and a routine that fits Japanese business practice. For the picture across countries, see is it legal to record a meeting?
Recording calls in Japan: the law at a glance
| Question | What the sources say |
|---|---|
| Can a participant record their own call? | No general criminal offence found |
| Who do secrecy-of-communications offences target? | Intrusion into communications handled or carried by others |
| Can a secret recording be evidence? | Often admitted; rare exclusions (case summaries) |
| What must a business do under the APPI? | Specify the purpose of use; notify or publish it |
| Must a business tell callers it is recording? | Not required, per the PPC's Q&A; purpose notice still is |
Layer 1: recording a conversation you are in
Secrecy of communications
Two statutes protect the secrecy of communications. Article 4(1) of the Telecommunications Business Act says "電気通信事業者の取扱中に係る通信の秘密は、侵してはならない" — the secrecy of communications being handled by a telecommunications carrier shall not be infringed. Article 9 of the Wire Telecommunications Act protects the secrecy of wire telecommunications. Both carry criminal penalties.
Neither text addresses a party recording their own call. They are generally understood as protecting communications against intrusion by carriers and third parties; that reading is taken from secondary commentary and is not stated in the statutes themselves.
How courts have treated secret recordings
According to the summaries in the Japanese Wikipedia article on 秘密録音 (secret recording), which we used because we could not reach the court database:
- A Tokyo High Court decision of 15 July 1977, in a civil case, made admissibility turn on whether the recording was obtained by means that were "著しく反社会的" — markedly antisocial.
- A Supreme Court decision of 12 July 2000, in a criminal case, held that a party's recording of a conversation, even if made without the other party's consent, was not unlawful and its evidential value was not denied.
- A Tokyo High Court decision of 19 May 2016 excluded secretly recorded confidential committee deliberations, an example of the rare exclusion.
These are summaries of evidence rulings. They do not mean every secret recording is proper, and how it is used still matters.
Layer 2: the APPI and the Personal Information Protection Commission
The APPI applies to businesses that handle personal information. The Personal Information Protection Commission (PPC) is the regulator.
Four articles shape a business recording:
- Article 17(1): specify the purpose of use as far as possible.
- Article 18(1): do not use personal information beyond that purpose without prior consent.
- Article 20(1): do not acquire personal information "by deception or other improper means" (偽りその他不正の手段).
- Article 21(1): after acquiring personal information, promptly notify the person of the purpose of use or publish it, unless it was published in advance.
What the PPC's Q&A says about recorded calls
The PPC's Q&A on the APPI guidelines (updated 1 July 2025) addresses call recording directly:
- Q1-10: a recorded call is personal information if an individual can be identified. The business must notify or publish the purpose of use, but "録音していることについて伝える義務までは負いません" — it is not obliged to tell the caller that the call is being recorded.
- Q1-11: a recording from which nobody can be identified is not, in principle, personal information. A voiceprint extracted for speaker authentication is an "individual identification code" and personal information on its own.
- Q1-42: a recording that contains names is not a personal information database unless it is organised so it can easily be searched by name. Searchable transcripts may therefore bring more of the Act's duties into play than raw audio does.
That is a lighter rule than in Europe or California. In practice, many Japanese businesses still announce recording at the start of calls, and a notetaker user in a meeting will usually find that saying so is expected.
Changes coming
An act amending the APPI was promulgated on 17 July 2026. According to the PPC's summary, it includes relaxed consent rules for statistical use (including AI development), guardian consent for children under 16, new duties for processors, an administrative surcharge regime and a new offence of obtaining personal information by fraud. Most of it takes effect within two years of promulgation, in stages. None of it changes the Q1-10 answer as of 25 September 2026.
A routine for recording calls with people in Japan
- Check your company's and your client's rules on recording.
- Say at the start that you would like to record and why. In Japanese, 「議事録のために録音してもよろしいでしょうか」 is a polite way to ask. How to ask for consent to record has English wording.
- If someone hesitates, do not record.
- Use the recording only for the purpose you stated.
- Decide how long you keep it and delete on schedule. How long to keep meeting recordings has a starting point, and writing a meeting recording policy covers the rest.
How Notey fits into this
Notey records your microphone and the sound your Mac plays, on your own Mac. Nothing joins the call.
- Nothing is saved until you press Allow when Notey notices a call, unless you chose a rule in advance, such as arming the next call.
- Transcription happens on the Mac, in the Mac's language. Japanese is among the ten languages Apple's on-device transcriber supports; set the Mac's language to Japanese for a meeting held in Japanese. The improved transcript after a meeting is English only.
- AI notes send transcript text only, when you ask or when write-ups are on, to Notey's service and on to OpenAI as a processor. See the privacy policy.
- Voice recognition is off by default, which matters given the PPC's view of voiceprints.
- The red dot and elapsed timer are visible to you, not to the call.
Frequently asked questions
Is it illegal to secretly record a conversation in Japan?
We found no general criminal offence for a participant. The secrecy-of-communications provisions in the Telecommunications Business Act and the Wire Telecommunications Act protect communications being handled or carried, and are aimed at others. Other laws may apply to how a recording is used.
Can a secret recording be used as evidence in Japan?
Often, according to case summaries. A 1977 Tokyo High Court decision asked whether the means of obtaining it were markedly antisocial, and a 2000 Supreme Court decision in a criminal case held a party's recording made without the other's consent was not unlawful. Courts have excluded recordings in rare cases.
Does a Japanese business have to tell callers it is recording?
According to the Personal Information Protection Commission's Q&A, a business must notify or publish the purpose of use of a recorded call, but is not obliged to tell the caller that the call is being recorded. Many businesses tell callers anyway.
Is a voice recording personal information under the APPI?
A recording is personal information if an individual can be identified from it. A voiceprint extracted for speaker authentication is an individual identification code, which is personal information on its own.
Is the APPI changing?
Yes. An amending act was promulgated on 17 July 2026. Most of it takes effect within two years, and it does not change the call-recording point above today.