Trips to see your favorite perform, merchandise, doujinshi, Super Chats (tips) — oshi-katsu (fan activities supporting your favorite idol or creator) is a hobby where real money moves. And questions like "Can oshi-katsu spending be a business expense?", "Do I owe tax on tips I receive?", or "Does gift tax apply if I give too much?" have completely different answers depending on which of three positions you are in: the one paying, the one receiving, or the one creating content. This article sorts out the taxes for fans, streamers and VTubers, and influencers who monetize event reports and commentary — all in one place.
The paying side: oshi-katsu spending is, in principle, just hobby spending
- Tickets, travel to events, and merchandise are not deductible expenses: they are personal living costs (household expenses) that play no role in calculating your taxes. No matter how much you spend, there is no deduction
- The same goes for Super Chats and tips: tipping through a platform is a payment for using the streaming service, and it has no tax consequences for the person paying
- Large direct support to an individual enters gift-tax territory: if you keep sending money or gifts directly to a specific individual (a streamer, host, underground idol, etc.) without going through a platform, and the total exceeds 1.1 million yen a year, a gift tax issue can arise for the recipient. A "transfer of money with nothing given in return" is more likely to be treated as a gift the larger the amount. For how the exemption works, see the gift tax exemption
The receiving side: Super Chats earned by streamers and VTubers are fully taxable income
Revenue from Super Chats, memberships, and tipping apps is miscellaneous income (or business income if you do it on a serious, ongoing basis). "It's just a hobby stream" or "I haven't cashed it out" is no defense.
| Point | Details |
|---|---|
| Recording revenue | Do not just record what lands after platform fees are taken out — record the amount received and the fees separately (the standard approach is to book the gross amount as revenue and the fees as expenses) |
| What can qualify as expenses | Equipment, streaming software, costumes (things directly necessary for the activity, such as VTuber model production costs and voice training) |
| Filing thresholds | For a salaried employee with a side gig, a tax return is required once income exceeds 200,000 yen (residence tax must be reported even at 200,000 yen or less). Students and those without other work must file once income exceeds 480,000 yen. It also affects dependent-status thresholds (see students and their parents' dependent status) |
| Invoice system | Depending on the nature of the revenue and who you deal with, it can matter. For the basics, see our guide to the invoice system |
For a salaried employee filing for side-gig streaming income, the procedure is the same as in our side-job tax filing guide.
The content-creator side: only those who made oshi-katsu their work get access to expenses
If you earn revenue (ad income, sponsorships, memberships) from event reports, commentary, or merchandise reviews, spending directly necessary for that activity can be deducted as expenses.
- More likely to be accepted: merchandise bought in order to review it, tickets and transportation for events attended as material (where you actually published the report), editing software and equipment
- Risky: deducting everything on the theory of "I'll make a video someday" when there is no real monetization, or claiming the full amount of spending that cannot be separated from personal enjoyment. What gets scrutinized is the link between the spending and the revenue, and the apportionment between business and personal use
- We go deeper into the reasoning in expenses for influencer side jobs
The dividing line is: "Would the revenue exist without this spending?" If you went to your favorite's concert purely for fun, it is a household expense; if you earn ad revenue from a report video about it, there is room to argue it has an expense character. Keeping the URL of the published content, its view counts, and revenue statements linked together is what makes your apportionment persuasive.
If you do doujin activities or make fan merchandise
If you turn a profit distributing doujinshi or fan goods, we explain the details in taxes on summer Comiket. The structure — profit after deducting printing costs, participation fees, and materials becomes miscellaneous income (or business income if ongoing) — is the same as for oshi-katsu content creation and streaming.
What to do today
What to do today
- Determine which you are: "only paying," "receiving," or "earning from content" (you may fall into more than one)
- If you receive money or create content, gather this year's per-platform revenue records and expense receipts into a single folder
- If you give or receive large direct support to or from an individual, check the cumulative annual total (1.1 million yen is the benchmark line)
FAQ
Q. If I keep Super Chat money as points without cashing out, do I still have to report it?
A. Yes, you do. It becomes income the moment the revenue is confirmed. Even if you have not withdrawn it, treat any amount confirmed as received on the platform as taxable.
Q. I give away my favorite's merchandise to "spread the word." Does gift tax apply?
A. Ordinary small gifts are socially customary presents and do not cause a problem. Gift tax becomes an issue at the scale where support to a specific individual exceeds 1.1 million yen a year.
Q. Does a VTuber's costume (3D model) cost count as an expense?
A. It can qualify as an expense as something directly necessary for streaming activities. If the amount is large, it may need to be depreciated over several years, so keep the breakdown of production costs and payment records.
Q. My revenue is still only a few thousand yen a month. Do I really need records?
A. You should keep records. If you go viral mid-year and revenue jumps, you will have to reconstruct your income and expenses retroactively. Keeping a monthly spreadsheet means you can respond immediately in a year when you cross the filing threshold.
Reference links (sources)
* This article is general information. Whether something qualifies as an expense or a gift depends on the individual facts. For large amounts, consult a tax office or a licensed tax accountant.