Many customers who come to sell their devices at Hoang Hai Mobile often wonder why they have to write a purchase order and photocopy their foreigner ID card. Is this really necessary? Is there a way to sell without providing personal information?
The answer is No. You cannot sell a new phone without proving your identity. This is a mandatory regulation under Japanese law, applicable to companies in the second-hand business (buy and resell). In this article, Hoang Hai will thoroughly explain the related issues so that you have a clearer view of the regulations when selling your phone.
I. Requirements for iPhone purchasing companies
In order to conduct the business of buying and selling products, companies operating legally in the Japanese market are required to have a second-hand goods business license and must comply with the “Second-hand Goods Dealer Law”. This law requires companies to verify the identity of the seller, and if they violate it, they may be subject to penalties, the most serious of which is suspension of business.
To determine whether a company is legally authorized to purchase in Japan, you can request information about the used goods business license. For example, for Hoang Hai Mobile. The license information is as below:
Used goods business license
- Code: 第305492006643号
- Issued by: Tokyo Metropolitan Police
- Date of issue: June 30, 2020
II. Why are sellers required to verify identity when selling iPhones?
As mentioned above, identity verification is required by law if you are dealing with a legitimate company. This is to prevent the purchase of products of unknown origin, confiscated or stolen goods. When inspected, the purchasing company must prove who they purchased the products from, otherwise they may be charged with smuggling and facilitating goods of unknown origin.
To prove that the purchased products have clear origin, the business unit must provide the following 2 types of documents:
- Purchase order: is considered as a contract with full information of the seller as well as the product sold.
- Foreigner card: Proves the seller's identity (matches the information on the purchase receipt)
In the event that a product is reported as being stolen/misappropriated, the police will have specific information provided by the purchasing company to conduct their investigation.
This is the reason why when selling your device you need to provide information and documents to verify your identity to the purchasing company. Hopefully this article has answered your long-standing questions. For a healthy business environment, Hoang Hai Mobile hopes that you will also cooperate to comply with the law when selling your device back to the store.
