Turning farmland into residential land: the flow of conversion permission under Articles 4 and 5 of the Agricultural Land Act

In short: turning farmland into residential land, a car park, a storage yard or the like ("farmland conversion") requires permission or notification under the Agricultural Land Act. If you convert your own farmland yourself, it is Article 4; if the conversion involves a transfer of rights such as sale, gift or lease, it is Article 5. For farmland within an urbanisation promotion area, a prior notification to the agricultural committee suffices and the permission of the prefectural governor and others is not required (Article 4, paragraph 1, item 7; Article 5, paragraph 1, item 6). Outside such areas, such as in an urbanisation control area, the permission of the prefectural governor and others (the mayor for a designated municipality) is required. This article organises the difference between Article 4 and Article 5 permission, the permission-or-notification split by area, the documents to the agricultural committee, a rough timeline, and who to refer registration, sale and tax to. Whether permission is granted is judged by the agricultural committee and the prefecture.

What is the difference between Article 4 permission and Article 5 permission?

Farmland conversion means turning farmland into something other than farmland (residential land, a car park, a storage yard, land for solar power generation, and so on). The Agricultural Land Act divides the provisions by who converts.

Provision	When it applies	Who applies
Agricultural Land Act Article 4 (restriction on conversion)	The owner converts their own farmland to non-farmland themselves; no transfer of rights	The converting owner
Agricultural Land Act Article 5 (restriction on transfer of rights for conversion)	A transfer of rights such as sale, gift or lease is involved for the purpose of conversion	The transferor (owner) and the transferee (the one converting), jointly

For example, building your own home on your own field is Article 4, while a person who bought (or leased) farmland turning it into residential land is Article 5. Selling inherited farmland by converting it to residential land involves a transfer of rights to the buyer, so it becomes Article 5.

Whether it is farmland is judged by the actual condition, not by the registered land category (the definition of farmland in Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Agricultural Land Act). Even if the category is "field", the treatment changes if the actual condition is not farmland, and conversely, even if the category is "residential land", it may be subject to conversion procedures if the actual condition is farmland. The judgement is made by the agricultural committee.

How do the procedures differ between urbanisation promotion and control areas?

Even for the same conversion, whether it is "notification" or "permission" divides by the area in which the farmland is located.

Area	Procedure	Basis
Within an urbanisation promotion area	Notification to the agricultural committee (a receipt notice suffices; the governor's permission is not required)	Article 4, paragraph 1, item 7 (self-conversion) / Article 5, paragraph 1, item 6 (conversion involving a transfer of rights)
Outside such areas, such as an urbanisation control area or a non-designated area	Permission of the prefectural governor and others (the mayor for a designated municipality)	Article 4, paragraph 1 / Article 5, paragraph 1

An urbanisation promotion area is an "area to promote urbanisation in a planned way", so turning farmland into residential land and the like is anticipated as policy, and notification suffices. By contrast, an urbanisation control area is an "area to restrain urbanisation", so the bar for permission is high, and there are also city-planning restrictions on constructing buildings in the first place.

Farmland outside such areas is also classified into farmland within an agricultural promotion area, first-class farmland, superior farmland, second-class farmland and third-class farmland, and the prospect of permission changes by classification. There is a location standard whereby farmland within an agricultural promotion area and first-class farmland are in principle not permitted, while third-class farmland close to a built-up area is more readily permitted. Please confirm with the agricultural committee which classification applies.

What documents does the application to the agricultural committee require?

The documents differ between a permission application and a notification, and forms are prepared by each municipality's agricultural committee. Representative ones are as follows.

Category	Main documents
Common	The application (Article 4) or the jointly signed application of the parties (Article 5), the certificate of registered matters of the land, a location map, cadastral map and parcel map, and a conversion plan (facility layout and funding plan)
Added for permission (outside such areas)	A damage-prevention plan, an explanation of the effect on surrounding farmland, a certificate of registered matters and articles of incorporation for a corporation, a draft lease for a lease, and the like
Added for notification (urbanisation promotion area)	The notification, documents confirming the rights holder, and the like (simpler than permission)

The names, number of copies and attachments of documents differ by agricultural committee. Within the scope of administrative-scrivener work, Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener Office supports the preparation of the permission application and the notification, the organisation of attachments and confirmation with the agricultural committee counter. Acceptance of the permission or notification, and the judgement of applicability as farmland and of the location standard, are made by the agricultural committee and the prefecture.

How long does it take for permission to come through?

The period varies greatly by the type of procedure and by municipality. These are only rough guides.

Procedure	Rough guide
Notification (urbanisation promotion area)	Roughly one to two weeks until the receipt notice is issued
Permission (outside such areas)	The agricultural committee deliberates at a plenary meeting held about once a month and forwards to the prefecture, so roughly a few weeks to two months from application to permission is a guide

The plenary meeting dates, deadlines and standard processing period are set by each municipality. Before setting a schedule for sale or construction, please confirm the acceptance schedule and standard processing period directly on the official page of the relevant agricultural committee and prefecture.

Also, converting farmland without receiving permission or making a notification may be subject to imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of up to 1,000,000 yen under Article 64 of the Agricultural Land Act (a fine of up to 100,000,000 yen for a corporation under Article 67), as well as an order to stop construction or an order to restore to the original state. You cannot "fill in first and notify later".

Who should registration, sale and tax be referred to?

Farmland conversion crosses several fields of expertise. The roles are divided as follows.

• Preparation of the permission and notification documents for farmland conversion (Articles 4 and 5) → Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener Office (administrative scrivener)
• Registration of transfer of ownership after conversion → a judicial scrivener; registration of a change of land category (registration of description) → a land and house investigator
• Finding a counterpart and brokerage for the sale or lease of farmland or residential land → Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd.
• Calculation and filing of capital gains tax, real property acquisition tax and the like → a tax accountant
• Negotiation, mediation and litigation where rights are in dispute → an attorney

Yotsuba Administrative Scrivener Office and Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd. are separate businesses. Our office handles only support for the conversion permission and notification documents as an independent business, and registration, sale, tax and disputes are contracted separately with each qualified professional. Our office receives no referral fee. If the farmland was acquired by inheritance, first fix the rights holder with the notification to the agricultural committee for inherited farmland (Article 3-3 of the Agricultural Land Act); for the whole picture of deadlines see A guide to inheritance procedure deadlines, and for the change of title see How to proceed with inheritance registration. For the whole picture of licensing work see Administrative Scrivener Services, for the flow of engagement see Engagement Flow, for fees see Fee Schedule, and for the whole picture of inherited real estate see Complete Guide to Inherited Real Estate.

FAQ

Q. Do I need permission to turn urbanisation-promotion-area farmland into residential land?
A. Farmland within an urbanisation promotion area does not require the permission of the prefectural governor and others if you notify the agricultural committee in advance. If you convert it yourself it is a notification under Article 4, paragraph 1, item 7; if a transfer of rights such as sale or lease is involved for conversion it is under Article 5, paragraph 1, item 6. Outside such areas, such as an urbanisation control area, permission is required and the treatment differs.

Q. I want to convert inherited farmland to residential land and sell it. Is it Article 4 or Article 5?
A. If you sell it to a buyer who turns it into residential land (a conversion involving a transfer of rights), it is Article 5. The seller and buyer apply jointly. In addition, farmland acquired by inheritance separately requires the notification under Article 3-3 of the Agricultural Land Act. For details see Notification to the agricultural committee for inherited farmland.

Q. I had been using farmland as a car park without permission. What happens?
A. Unauthorised conversion without permission or notification may be subject to imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of up to 1,000,000 yen under Article 64 of the Agricultural Land Act (a fine of up to 100,000,000 yen for a corporation under Article 67), as well as an order to stop construction or an order to restore to the original state. Consult the agricultural committee early and put the necessary procedures in order.

Q. How long does it take for permission to come through?
A. A notification in an urbanisation promotion area takes roughly one to two weeks until the receipt notice, while permission outside such areas takes roughly a few weeks to two months from application, as it goes through the agricultural committee's plenary meeting and forwarding to the prefecture. The plenary dates and standard processing period differ by municipality, so confirm on the official page of the relevant agricultural committee and prefecture.

Sources (Primary Information)

• e-Gov Law Search, "Agricultural Land Act" (Act No. 229 of 1952), Articles 2, 4, 5, 64 and 67 (accessed 2026-08-28)
• e-Gov Law Search, "City Planning Act" (Act No. 100 of 1968), urbanisation promotion area and urbanisation control area (Article 7 and others) (accessed 2026-08-28)
• Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, "Farmland conversion permission system" (explanation of the location standard and general standard) (accessed 2026-08-28)
• Municipal agricultural committees (Sagamihara City and others), guidance and forms for "notification of farmland conversion under Article 4, paragraph 1, item 7 and Article 5, paragraph 1, item 6" (accessed 2026-08-28)

This article is general information and does not guarantee the individual need for permission or notification, applicability as farmland, conformity with the location standard, whether permission is granted, the period or the application of penalties. Acceptance of the permission or notification and the judgement of applicability as farmland are made by the agricultural committee and the prefecture. Confirm the area classification, forms, attachments and acceptance schedule of each municipality on the official page of the relevant agricultural committee and prefecture. The registration of transfer of ownership after conversion is handled by a judicial scrivener, the registration of a change of land category by a land and house investigator, brokerage of the sale or lease of farmland or residential land by Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd., tax such as capital gains tax and real property acquisition tax by a tax accountant, and negotiation, mediation and litigation where rights are in dispute by an attorney, each as an independent business under a separate contract. Our office receives no referral fee. Individual judgements are made by a qualified professional after a meeting. Written by Joji Uramatsu, administrative scrivener and licensed real estate broker.