For a domestic letter, Tokutei Kiroku (特定記録) records acceptance and lets you check delivery status online, but it does not collect a recipient’s signature or seal at delivery and provides no compensation. Simplified registration, Kan’i Kakitome (簡易書留), records acceptance and delivery and generally compensates actual loss up to ¥50,000. Choose according to the record and protection you need, before comparing prices. Japan Post: Tokutei Kiroku, registered mail
This guide covers ordinary domestic letters with these optional services. It is based on official desk research, not a test mailing.
First distinguish tracking from the delivery record
| Question | Tokutei Kiroku | Simplified registration |
|---|---|---|
| Is acceptance recorded? | Yes; an acceptance receipt is issued | Yes |
| Can you check delivery status? | Yes | Yes |
| What delivery record does the service describe? | Mailbox delivery without a recipient signature or seal | Acceptance and delivery are recorded |
| Is compensation included? | No | Generally actual loss, up to ¥50,000 |
| Additional charge for a letter | ¥210 | ¥350 |
The practical distinction is that an online delivery status does not make the two services equivalent. Japan Post explicitly says Tokutei Kiroku goes into the recipient’s mailbox without the signature-or-seal record. Its tracking is useful for following an item, but should not be described as signed delivery. Tokutei Kiroku: features, fees and limitations
For simplified registration, ¥50,000 is a ceiling on compensation for actual loss under the applicable conditions, not an automatic payment whenever an item is delayed or missing. This article does not assess a claim or assign a monetary value to an irreplaceable document. Simplified registration: recorded stages and compensation
Add the optional fee to the correct base postage
The displayed ¥210 and ¥350 are additional charges. They are not the total cost of sending the letter.
Here is a hypothetical mailing that qualifies as a standard-size domestic letter within 50 g, with no other optional service. Its base postage is ¥110 according to the official letter rate table.
| Choice | Calculation | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Add Tokutei Kiroku | ¥110 + ¥210 | ¥320 |
| Add simplified registration | ¥110 + ¥350 | ¥460 |
The difference is ¥460 − ¥320 = ¥140. What matters is whether that difference buys the type of record and protection your task requires.
If the item is larger, thicker or heavier and falls into another category, replace ¥110 with its actual base postage. Do not keep this example’s total simply because you are sending “one envelope.” The final contents and packaging determine the mailing category.
Use the recipient’s requirement as a decision rule
Consider these invented situations.
A routine copy with no prescribed service. You want a record that you handed it to Japan Post and a way to follow delivery. Tokutei Kiroku may meet that purpose if mailbox delivery and no compensation are acceptable.
An application that specifically requests Kan’i Kakitome. The recipient’s named requirement determines the service. Saving ¥140 in the example is not a reason to substitute another tracked option.
A document you cannot readily replace. Ask what the receiving organisation accepts and what Japan Post’s compensation actually covers. A compensation ceiling alone cannot tell you the practical consequences of losing that document.
These examples are editorial decision aids, not evidence of any particular institution’s requirements. Keep the actual instruction sheet beside your envelope when preparing the mailing.
Request the service at the counter and keep the receipt
Japan Post instructs customers to complete the counter’s form for registered or specified-record mail and hand it in at the counter. Both Japanese service pages describe this route. Registered-mail counter procedure
Bring the prepared item and identify the service explicitly. These are example phrases written for this guide:
- 特定記録でお願いします。 — Tokutei kiroku de onegaishimasu. “Specified-record service, please.”
- 簡易書留でお願いします。 — Kan’i kakitome de onegaishimasu. “Simplified registration, please.”
Check that the receipt corresponds to the item you sent, and keep its inquiry number. If sending several envelopes, make a private note matching each number to its recipient; do not rely on their order in your bag.
Adding extra stamps and putting an ordinary envelope into a street postbox does not follow the counter acceptance procedure described above. The required result is an accepted item with the requested service, not merely an envelope carrying the same monetary amount.
Delivery schedules, international registration, cash registration and formal content-certification services are outside this comparison. Recheck the official fees and the recipient’s instructions when you are ready to send.