Japan’s FIT/FIP Certification and the Mandatory Briefing Session Requirement: A Complete Practical Guide for Renewable Energy Developers

2026-03-14

✅ At a Glance

🌍 Following the amendment to Japan’s Act on Special Measures Concerning the Procurement of Renewable Electric Energy by Operators of Electric Utilities (the “Renewable Energy Special Measures Act” or “RE Act”) that came into force on April 1, 2024, holding a briefing session or implementing a prior notification measure has become a mandatory requirement for FIT (Feed-in Tariff) and FIP (Feed-in Premium) certification. The Guidelines on Implementation of Briefing Sessions and Prior Notification Measures issued by the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy (ANRE) were further revised in April 2025, making it essential to always refer to the latest version.

⚠️ As a general rule, the briefing session must be completed at least three months before the certification application date. Mismanaging this schedule can be fatal — you risk missing the applicable FIT/FIP purchase price for the target fiscal year.

📝 The definition of “residents of the surrounding area” who must be invited differs by power source category: within 100 meters for low-voltage sources (below 50 kW) and within 300 meters for high-voltage and extra-high-voltage sources (50 kW and above). Additionally, even low-voltage projects require a full briefing session if located in areas subject to mandatory development permits or in landslide warning zones — making the eligibility assessment genuinely complex. A prior consultation with the relevant municipality is an absolute prerequisite, and early-stage negotiations with local government often determine the success or failure of the entire project.

🤝 The briefing session obligation applies not only to new development but also to change-of-certification applications triggered by M&A transactions or repowering — making it a critical due diligence (DD) item in renewable energy asset transactions.

Table of Contents

Introduction

In this article, I will explain in detail the practical requirements for holding briefing sessions and implementing prior notification measures under Japan’s FIT (Feed-in Tariff) and FIP (Feed-in Premium) systems.

As many of you may already be aware, the amended Renewable Energy Special Measures Act came into force on April 1, 2024. Under this amendment, explanation to local residents based on the Guidelines on Implementation of Briefing Sessions and Prior Notification Measures issued by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and ANRE has been incorporated as a formal requirement for FIT/FIP certification. The Guidelines were further revised in April 2025, clarifying in particular the conditions under which a briefing session may be omitted when no residents are present in the target area, and streamlining the rules on the waiting period when no participants attend. Please always refer to the current version of the Guidelines when addressing practical compliance issues.

In the context of large-scale solar and hydropower development in emerging markets across the ASEAN region, it has long been standard practice for the IFC (International Finance Corporation) Performance Standards to strictly require Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) from local communities. It is my view that Japan’s domestic renewable energy regulatory framework has finally caught up to that standard.

This article aims to move beyond a superficial understanding of “just holding a meeting” and instead provide practical guidance on eliminating the risk of project suspension or certification revocation.

Determining Whether a Briefing Session Is Required

In practice, the first stumbling block is determining whether your project requires a briefing session (a two-way interactive dialogue conducted in person, online, or otherwise) or whether a prior notification measure (a one-way notification via flyer distribution, etc.) is sufficient.

Projects That Are Exempt from the Requirement

The first thing to check is whether the project is entirely exempt from the requirement. Based on Chapter 2, Section 1 of the Guidelines, the following projects are not subject to either briefing sessions or prior notification measures:

(i) Solar power generation projects with an output of less than 10 kW (residential solar).
(ii) Rooftop-mounted solar power generation projects — regardless of output capacity.
(iii) Projects subject to the Act on Promotion of Use of Sea Areas for Development of Marine Renewable Energy Power Generation Facilities.

One important point that causes widespread misunderstanding: rooftop-mounted solar installations are exempt regardless of output size. Many people assume that large rooftop solar projects require prior notification, but the Guidelines explicitly exclude them. That said, even rooftop solar operators are encouraged (as a best-efforts obligation) to hold briefing sessions regarding the impacts of the project and preventive measures.

Projects That Require a Full Briefing Session

Among projects not exempt under 1-1 above, a full briefing session is mandatory for any project falling into one of the following categories, based on Chapter 2, Section 1(2) of the Guidelines and ANRE’s amendment information page:

① Projects sited in areas subject to mandatory development permits for certification (“Certification-Required Permit Areas”). This refers to areas where permits under the following laws are required for the installation of renewable energy generation facilities:

Private forests subject to forest development permits under Article 10-2(1) of the Forests Act
Areas designated under the Act on Regulation of Residential Land Development and Countermeasures against Specific Hazardous Fill Work (Fill Work Regulation Act) requiring development permits
Erosion control designated areas under the Erosion Control Act (Sabo Act)
Landslide prevention areas and spoil bank collapse prevention areas under the Act on Prevention of Disasters Caused by Landslides
Steep slope collapse hazard zones under the Act on Prevention of Disasters Caused by Steep Slope Collapse

② Projects sited in landslide warning zones (including special warning zones) or debris flow danger streams. This is a separate, independent category from ①. Regardless of output size (except residential solar below 10 kW and rooftop installations), a briefing session is required for any installation in these zones.

③ Projects sited in areas designated by municipal ordinance for the protection of the natural environment or scenic landscapes.

④ High-voltage (50 kW to less than 2,000 kW) or extra-high-voltage (2,000 kW and above) projects not falling under ①–③ above. For solar power, this applies to ground-mounted installations only.

⑤ Low-voltage projects (below 50 kW) where another renewable energy project operated by the same operator (or a closely related party) exists within 100 meters of the site boundary, and the combined output of those projects reaches 50 kW or more.

[Key Practical Point] Category ⑤ directly targets the practice of splitting projects into sub-50 kW lots to circumvent high-voltage regulations — a tactic that was widespread in past years. The Guidelines explicitly state that “the same operator etc.” includes the operator’s closely related parties (密接関係者). Accordingly, projects developed through affiliated SPCs (Special Purpose Companies) or through staged development using separate entities with the same parent company in adjacent areas cannot avoid the full briefing session obligation by relying on the lighter procedures applicable to low-voltage projects.

Projects Where Prior Notification Measures Are Sufficient

If a project does not fall into any of categories ①–⑤ in 1-2 above (i.e., it is a low-voltage project outside any designated area, landslide zone, or ordinance-protected area, and is not a split project), a full briefing session is not required. Implementing a prior notification measure — such as flyer distribution — is sufficient.

The Hidden Trap: Change-of-Certification Applications (M&A and Project Modifications)

Even for projects that have already obtained FIT/FIP certification and are operational or under development, the same briefing session obligations apply under Chapter 5 of the Guidelines when making a “material change” to the business plan — including a change of certified operator, change of closely related parties, change of installation site, or an increase of 20% or more (or 50 kW or more) in certified output or panel capacity. The timing requirement is the same as for new applications: the briefing session must be completed at least three months before the change-of-certification application date.

However, the scope of matters to be explained differs depending on whether a qualifying briefing session was previously held:

If no qualifying briefing session has been held in the past, all explanation items specified in the Guidelines must be covered, as if this were a new application.
If a qualifying briefing session was previously held, only the items that have changed since the last session need to be explained.

(Note: Where the change involves a change of the certified operator — e.g., through a business transfer — both the outgoing and incoming certified operators are generally required to be present at the briefing session.)

The specific changes triggering this obligation are as follows (Enforcement Rules, Article 8-2):

① A change of certified operator due to business transfer, merger, or corporate split. Note that inheritance is not included.

② A change of closely related parties (密接関係者) of the certified operator. Under Chapter 5 of the Guidelines, “closely related parties” means: (i) members of a partnership (持分会社); (ii) shareholders holding a majority of voting rights in a joint-stock company; (iii) silent partnership (匿名組合) investors holding a majority of the investment interest; and (iv) the parent companies of the above.

③ A change in the installation location of the renewable energy generation facility.

④ An increase in certified output of 20% or more, or 50 kW or more. This applies not only to a single change but also on a cumulative basis from the later of the original certification date or the date of the most recent qualifying briefing session (Enforcement Rules, Article 8-2(4)). Incremental expansions cannot be used to avoid this obligation.

⑤ For solar power installations, the same threshold applies separately to the aggregate panel output (Enforcement Rules, Article 8-2(5)). An increase of 20% or more or 50 kW or more in panel capacity — independently from certified output — also triggers the requirement.

These rules have had a profound impact on M&A practice in the secondary market (the market for buying and selling operating power plants). Even a share deal that acquires an SPC in its entirety, resulting in a change of the parent company (closely related party), triggers the briefing session obligation. Furthermore, as noted above, both the outgoing and incoming certified operators are generally required to attend the briefing session where a change of certified operator is involved.

From the perspective of legal counsel, the key challenge in M&A transaction documentation is how to incorporate “completion of the briefing session and obtaining change of certification” as a condition precedent (CP) to closing, and how to allocate the associated risks between seller and buyer. This is where transactional drafting expertise genuinely matters.

The Briefing Session Timeline and the Reality of Municipal Consultation

This chapter covers the procedural requirements for actually holding a briefing session. Missing a schedule deadline by even a single day can delay the certification process by several months, making rigorous project management essential.

Overview of the Timeline

There is a clear and hard deadline for the timing of the briefing session.

As a general rule, the briefing session must be completed at least three months before the FIT/FIP certification application date (Guidelines, Chapter 3, Section 2①; Enforcement Rules, Article 4-2-3(2)(7)(e)). The rationale for this three-month buffer is that it serves as a deliberation period, allowing the developer to sincerely respond to any concerns or objections raised by residents at the session and to revise the business plan if necessary.

However, for projects requiring Certification-Required Permit Area permits, briefing sessions must be held at two separate stages: (i) before the permit application, and (ii) after the permit is obtained and up to three months before the certification application date (Enforcement Rules, Article 4-2-3(2)(7)(a)). Projects subject to environmental impact assessments or ordinance-based permits have their own specific timing requirements; I strongly recommend reading Chapter 3, Section 2 of the Guidelines carefully.

In addition, the notice of the briefing session must be distributed to residents of the surrounding area and submitted to ANRE through its online system at least two weeks before the scheduled session date (Enforcement Rules, Article 4-2-3(2)(2)).

In other words, counting back from the planned application date, the invitation flyer must be delivered to residents’ mailboxes at least three and a half months in advance. Given the time needed for venue arrangements, document preparation, and the municipal consultation process described below, it is advisable to begin practical preparations at least six months before the start of operations.

Exceptions: Zero Attendance and Waiver of the Briefing Session Requirement

There are two important exceptions that practitioners should be aware of.

(1) Waiver of the three-month waiting period when no residents attend. According to the commentary in Chapter 3, Section 2 of the Guidelines, if the briefing session is held but not a single resident of the surrounding area attends, the “three months before the application date” rule is replaced with “the application date itself” — meaning the developer may submit the certification application immediately without waiting three months.

(2) Waiver of the briefing session itself (added in the April 2025 revision). Under the commentary to Chapter 3, Section 1 of the Guidelines, if it is confirmed that no one resides within the distance threshold, and the prior consultation with the municipality yields an opinion that there are no persons to be added to the “residents of the surrounding area” category, then: if notice of the session is issued through the ANRE system and no request to attend is received from land/building owners by the day before the scheduled session date, it can be objectively confirmed that there are no “residents of the surrounding area” — and therefore the briefing session itself is not required. This is an important provision first clarified in the April 2025 revision.

However, if it later comes to light that the developer deliberately scheduled the session at a time or location designed to discourage residents from attending, or distributed invitation notices improperly in order to take advantage of exception (1) above, the Guidelines explicitly state that preventing or discouraging “residents of the surrounding area” from participating constitutes a violation of the “good-faith engagement” requirement, and the ANRE may refuse to issue or may revoke certification.

Defining “Residents of the Surrounding Area” and Prior Municipal Consultation

The Guidelines, Chapter 3, Section 1, establish the following distance-based criteria for determining who qualifies as a “resident of the surrounding area” to be invited:

Low-voltage sources (below 50 kW): within 100 meters of the site boundary
High-voltage (50 kW to less than 2,000 kW) or extra-high-voltage (2,000 kW and above) sources: within 300 meters (except as noted below)
Projects subject to a Class 1 Environmental Impact Assessment under the Environmental Impact Assessment Act: within 1 kilometer
In addition: owners of land or buildings adjacent to the installation site
Furthermore: any persons designated by the mayor of the relevant municipality through the prior consultation process

Developers are required to conduct a prior consultation with the municipality in which the installation site is located, using the designated form in Appendix 1 of the Guidelines, attaching a project overview, a map showing the anticipated scope of residents, and the draft materials to be distributed.

In practice, it is common for municipalities to raise locally specific concerns, such as: “This site is near a landslide warning zone — please expand the scope to include the entire downstream community” or “Construction vehicles will pass near a school route — please also notify residents in that block.” Proceeding without heeding the municipality’s views is, in practice, virtually impossible. Obtaining the municipality’s written response (using the Appendix 2 form) can take several weeks, making this the critical path (bottleneck) of the entire process.

Conducting the Briefing Session — Process and Explanation Items

Under Chapter 3, Section 5 of the Guidelines and Enforcement Rules Article 4-2-3(2)(3), the certified operator itself must attend and present the required explanation items. Where the operator is a corporation, an officer or employee with sufficient knowledge and capability to provide an adequate explanation must attend. Even where the project is entrusted to a third-party operator, responsibility for the explanation remains with the certified operator — outsourcing the entire presentation is not permitted.

The explanation items under Chapter 3, Section 4 of the Guidelines are divided into two broad categories: “Overview of the Renewable Energy Business Plan” and “Project Impacts and Preventive Measures.”

[Category 1] Overview of the Renewable Energy Business Plan

① Overview of the renewable energy business plan.

This covers the identity of the applicant, type of power source, installation configuration, output, site location, and potential for use during disasters (including whether the power conditioner has a stand-alone operation function and whether a power supply outlet is available).

② Compliance with relevant laws and regulations.

This covers the Certification-Required Permits, permits and notifications based on laws referenced in the “Report on Status of Relevant Legal Procedures,” and permits and notifications based on municipal ordinances — including whether the procedures are required, their current status, the schedule for obtaining them, and the implementation framework for ensuring compliance.

③ Status of acquisition of land rights.

This covers whether ownership or other rights of use over the installation site have been acquired, and if not, the current status of acquisition efforts.

④ Overview of construction work.

This covers the scheduled construction timeline, including the planned start and completion dates.

⑤ Information on related parties.

Where the operator is a corporation, this covers the names and profiles of its representative and officers, its principal investors, and the planned maintenance and inspection officer.

[Category 2] Project Impacts and Preventive Measures

① Safety impacts and preventive measures.

Explanation must be provided in accordance with the framework set out in the Inter-Agency Agreement on Standards for Development Permits for Solar Power Generation Facilities (agreed by relevant ministries on May 25, 2023). Specific items include: installation on slopes, fill and cut works, ground bearing capacity, drainage measures, slope protection and erosion prevention, installation of disaster prevention facilities in advance, equipment design, continuity of post-construction management, and post-project measures.

② Landscape impacts and preventive measures.

Where the site falls within a protection area designated by ordinance for scenic landscape purposes, the impact on the landscape and the preventive measures to be taken must be explained.

③ Impacts on the natural and living environment and preventive measures.

Depending on the type of power source, the following items must be addressed: noise and vibration, water contamination/turbidity (all sources); light reflection, weed growth (solar); shadow flicker from wind turbines (wind); impacts on hot springs, steam discharge (geothermal); impacts on water flow (small/medium hydro); impacts on the living environment from fuel storage and transport (biomass); atmospheric and water environment impacts, biodiversity and systematic conservation of the natural environment (environmental impact assessment projects only).

④ Impacts related to disposal and removal of waste and preventive measures.

This covers: total estimated disposal costs, calculation method, start and end dates for cost reserve accumulation, monthly reserve unit cost, information on chemical substances contained in solar panels, projected volumes of industrial waste, compliance framework under the Waste Disposal Act and related regulations, and content of post-project land restoration obligations based on development permits.

Additional explanation required for change-of-certification applications (M&A, etc.).

In addition to the above items, the scope of explanation differs based on whether a qualifying briefing session has previously been held: if not, all items must be covered; if yes, only changed items need to be addressed. Where the change involves a change of certified operator, the developer must also explain or notify residents of matters relating to the succession of agreements and other arrangements with local governments, and the continuity of the project.

Q&A, Minutes, and the Importance of Record-Keeping

During the Q&A session, critical or confrontational opinions may emerge from residents. From a legal perspective, however, attempting to silence opposition or deflect questions with vague answers is the worst possible approach. The Guidelines explicitly define “good-faith engagement” during the Q&A as including: explaining accurately based on facts, answering objectively and specifically, and addressing the reasons and background behind answers. Violations of this obligation may result in denial or revocation of certification.

Furthermore, the Guidelines mandate audio and video recording of the entire briefing session proceedings (Enforcement Rules, Article 4-2-3(2)(5)). To protect participants’ privacy, recording must be done from behind the audience so that the presenter — not the audience — is captured. No party other than the certified operator may record the session. These recordings must be properly retained until the end of the procurement period or grant period.

Following the briefing session, the developer must submit the following documents to the government with the certification application:

Documents confirming the scope of “residents of the surrounding area” (maps, prior consultation forms, municipal opinion letters)
Materials relating to the session notice (distributed documents, map showing the scope of notice distribution)
Materials distributed at the briefing session
Attendance roster
Minutes (covering the entire proceedings from the start of the session through the end of the Q&A)
Questions submitted through the Q&A form and written responses provided to residents
Briefing Session Summary Report (using the format in Appendix 4 of the Guidelines)

Additionally, the developer is required to set up a Q&A submission form for at least two weeks after the session, accept questions from residents who attended, and respond to them in writing in good faith.

Prior Notification Measures — Procedures and Pitfalls

Even in low-voltage cases (below 50 kW) where prior notification measures are sufficient, vigilance is still required.

Methods of Notification and Evidence Preservation

Under Chapter 4 of the Guidelines, prior notification measures must reach residents within 100 meters of the site boundary, covering all explanation items described in Chapter 3, Section 4. The notification must be completed at least three months before the certification application date.

The permitted methods of notification are as follows (Enforcement Rules, Article 4-2-3(3)(1), (2), and (4)):

(i) Delivery of written materials by posting (flyer drop)
(ii) Delivery of written materials by door-to-door visits
(iii) Making information available online while publishing the URL of the primary website on a neighborhood notice board (回覧板)
(iv) Making information available online while publishing the URL of the primary website in the municipality’s official gazette or community newsletter

Online notification alone is not permitted. In cases (iii) and (iv), a secondary method — a neighborhood notice board or an official municipal publication — that gives residents an initial awareness of the notification is mandatory.

A common practical problem is how to handle vacant homes, properties without mailboxes, or disputes over whether a flyer was delivered. To prevent these issues, distributors should keep detailed records on a property map — logging the date and time of each delivery — and maintain thorough evidence of the distribution effort (tracking records).

After completing the prior notification measures, the developer is also required — just as after a briefing session — to operate a Q&A submission form for at least two weeks and to respond in writing to any questions from residents.

What to Do When Residents Request a Briefing Session After Notification

After receiving a flyer, residents may contact the developer to request an in-person briefing session because they have concerns. The note in Chapter 2, Section 2 of the Guidelines states that even where the project is not subject to a mandatory briefing session, developers should “make efforts to engage appropriately with local residents through briefing sessions as necessary, taking into account the needs of residents of the surrounding area.”

While this is framed as a best-efforts obligation, in practice ignoring such requests and proceeding with the application often leads to residents filing complaints with the municipality, ultimately souring the relationship with local government and bringing the project to a standstill. In my view, the most reliable risk mitigation strategy is to first visit residents individually with a sincere explanation, and to voluntarily hold a briefing session — regardless of scale — when multiple residents express strong concerns.

Conclusion: A Paradigm Shift from Compliance to “Community-Integrated Projects”

This article has walked through an extensive set of highly detailed and demanding rules. For many developers, this regulatory change may feel like nothing more than increased cost and administrative burden. From a legal perspective, however, this is an unavoidable process in the healthy maturation of Japan’s renewable energy industry.

Over the years, I have witnessed numerous cases where developers bypassed dialogue with local communities and pushed projects through aggressively — only to face injunction applications, or to find their O&M (Operation and Maintenance) operations undermined by social isolation from the surrounding community.

Briefing sessions and prior notification measures are not a box-ticking exercise to generate documents for submission to the government. They are best understood as a strategic forum for dialogue — an opportunity to identify latent project risks at an early stage and to build long-term trust with local communities, which are critical stakeholders in any renewable energy project.

The April 2025 revision of the Guidelines introduced clearer procedures for waiving the briefing session when no residents are present in the surrounding area, while simultaneously strengthening measures to ensure session quality — including the mandatory audio/video recording requirement and the obligation to maintain a Q&A form. I encourage you to review the current Guidelines once more to confirm whether your own project may be affected.

The practical challenges involved — schedule management, municipal negotiations, creating materials that address residents’ concerns — are certainly becoming more demanding. If you find it difficult to manage these requirements in-house, or if your situation involves complex M&A or project modification scenarios, I strongly recommend consulting with a specialist in renewable energy and environmental law from the earliest stages of your project.

I hope this article serves as a reliable guide for your legally sound and sustainable renewable energy business.