Getting a new Japanese set on release day is harder than it sounds, even for collectors who live in Japan. Demand for popular new sets is high enough that Pokémon and Japanese retailers ration them, so a box that looks easy to buy online from Australia often went through a lottery to get there.
Lotteries and purchase limits in Japan
Pokémon Center Online, Pokémon's own store in Japan, sells new expansion boxes by lottery. You apply during a set window, winners are drawn and even then it's one box per person. Recent sets sold this way include Storm Emeralda and The Glory of Team Rocket, sold here as Team Rocket. The 30th Celebration boxes drew enough applications that Pokémon Center Online ran extra lottery rounds to meet demand.
Convenience stores and other shops in Japan set their own limits too. Lawson, one of the big convenience store chains, caps how many of a new Pokémon release each customer can buy.
What importing a box yourself involves
Buying straight from a Japanese shop means paying its price plus international postage, then waiting for the parcel. Since 1 July 2018 overseas sellers registered for Australian GST charge 10% GST at checkout on goods worth up to $1,000. Orders worth more than $1,000 are taxed at the border instead, where GST and possibly duty are collected before the parcel is released.
A sealed box also has to survive the trip. If it arrives crushed or opened, sorting it out means dealing with a seller overseas and possibly posting it back to Japan.
Why buy from an Australian shop
An Australian shop takes the lottery, the wait and the import paperwork off your hands. At WOOPR the stock is already on the shelf in Sydney and prices are in Australian dollars with GST included. Orders are dispatched within 1 to 3 business days, then take 2 to 5 business days with Australia Post. If anything arrives damaged or not as described, the Australian Consumer Law and our returns policy cover you.
Ready to open one?
Every box here is sealed Japanese stock on the shelf in Sydney, dispatched in 1 to 3 business days with flat $14 tracked shipping.
Storm Emeralda
Abyss Eye
Mega SymphoniaKai Chai is a Pokémon card collector in Sydney and the founder of WOOPR, a shop that sells only sealed Japanese product. More about WOOPR.
Sources
- Pokémon Center Online, Storm Emeralda BOX lottery sale (Japanese)
- Pokémon Center Online, The Glory of Team Rocket BOX lottery sale (Japanese)
- Pokémon Center Online, extra lottery for the 30th anniversary products (Japanese)
- Lawson, purchase limits on Pokémon Card Game products (Japanese)
- ATO, GST on low value imported goods
- ATO, GST and imported goods
More guides
- How much does a Japanese booster box cost in Australia?Live price ranges by kind of box, why prices differ and the cheapest way to open a set.
- How to spot a resealed Japanese Pokémon booster boxThe perforated top, the shrink wrap, the packs and what Australian law says when a box is not what it claims.
- How to spot fake Japanese Pokémon cardsPrint, fonts, texture, the light test, edges and the seller red flags.
- How to check what a Japanese Pokémon card is worthWhere to look up Japanese card prices and how to read them from Australia.
- Pokémon Center Japan exclusives explainedHow Pokémon Center Online sells exclusives and what is in the Tohoku, Hiroshima and Fukuoka Special Boxes.
- When do new Japanese Pokémon sets come out?How often new sets land, on which day and how far ahead of English.