Japan
Mandatory Requirement for Electronic Archiving From 2024
As part of Japan's Electronic Record Retention Law (ERRL), records of electronic transactions must be archived electronically from 2024. "Electronic transactions" include transactions carried out through Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), transactions carried out online, and transactions exchanged via email.
Electronic transactions involve the sending and receiving of order forms, contracts, invoices, receipts, and other related documents.
As part of the e-archiving rules, businesses can use timestamps on documents sent and received, have a proper system in place, or create an internal process to prevent documents from being edited or deleted.
In addition, documents archived electronically must have human readability, and the archiving system must also enable search functions based on transaction data, such as transaction date, amount, and counterparties, for documents archived electronically.