Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your use of Gluten-Free Japan (“the Service”), operated by Focus LLC (合同会社Focus) (“we”, “us”). By browsing the site, creating an account, submitting a review, or purchasing the Dietary Check or Travel Kit service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.

2. What the Service Is

Gluten-Free Japan is a directory of gluten-free and celiac-friendly restaurants across Japan, curated with human review (see how we verify restaurants), plus two optional paid services: a per-restaurant Dietary Check (a research and evidence report for one restaurant, without reservations) and a downloadable Travel Kit for Pro members.

3. Accounts

• You can create an account with Google sign-in or with an email and password
• You are responsible for keeping your login credentials confidential
• We are not responsible for losses caused by unauthorized use of your account arising from your failure to keep your credentials secure
• Some parts of the Service (My Page, saving favorites, reviews) require an account

4. Medical & Safety Disclaimer

Read this before relying on the Service for a food-safety decision:

Restaurant information, safety tiers, and community reviews on the Service are provided for general informational purposes only. They are not medical advice and are not a substitute for consulting a qualified medical professional about celiac disease, gluten intolerance, or a wheat allergy. You are solely responsible for confirming with restaurant staff, directly and in person, before ordering or eating.

Dietary Check reports. A Dietary Check report is decision support, not a guarantee of safety. It is a snapshot of the sources we consulted and the statements a restaurant made at the time of checking. Restaurants may change ingredients, suppliers, or kitchen processes at any time, and cross-contact can never be ruled out completely. The report is not medical advice. You must confirm with staff on the day, before ordering or eating.

5. User Reviews

• Reviews must reflect your own genuine experience and be accurate to the best of your knowledge
• We review submitted content before it is published, and may edit, reject, or remove any review, at any time and for any reason, including reviews that are false, abusive, or unrelated to celiac/gluten-free safety
• By submitting a review, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to publish, display, and reproduce it on the Service
• Reviews are the opinion of the reviewer, not a guarantee by us that a restaurant is safe

6. Paid Services

Full pricing and payment details for our paid services are set out in the Legal Notice. In summary:

• Dietary Check (US$9.90 per restaurant): for one restaurant you choose, we research the official website and menu and recent posts and reviews, contact the restaurant in Japanese where needed, and email you an evidence report (what we confirmed, the evidence, and how it reads for your dietary profile). We do not make reservations or bookings, and we do not guarantee how a restaurant actually prepares your food.
• Dietary Check payment & refunds: the fee is charged when you submit your request, and we email the report within 72 hours of payment. If we do not deliver the report within 72 hours, you get a full refund. A report based on public information counts as delivered even if the restaurant does not reply to our inquiry. Because the report is a digital service, no refund is available once it has been delivered, except as stated above.
• Travel Kit (US$9.90, 90-day access): unlocks Pro features (custom allergy card PDF, chain safe-menu guide, area routes) on your account for 90 days from purchase.

All payments are processed by Stripe. Refunds are issued to your original payment method through Stripe. Full pricing, delivery timing, and cancellation terms are also set out in the Legal Notice.

7. Prohibited Uses

• Submitting false or misleading restaurant or review information
• Attempting to access, scrape, or reverse-engineer the Service beyond normal browsing
• Harassing other users or restaurants
• Using the Service for any unlawful purpose

8. Intellectual Property

The Service's design, text, and compiled restaurant data are owned by us or our licensors. You may not copy or republish this content without our permission, other than for personal, non-commercial use (for example, printing a listing for your own trip).

9. Limitation of Liability

The restaurant directory, guides, Dietary Check reports, and Travel Kit content are information only, not medical advice or a guarantee of safety. Restaurant practices can change, so always confirm your needs with staff before ordering.

Except where caused by our willful misconduct or gross negligence, our total liability to you for any claim arising from the Service, including the Dietary Check, is limited to the amount you paid us for the service giving rise to the claim. This limit does not apply to damage caused by our willful misconduct or gross negligence.

10. Governing Law & Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by the laws of Japan. Any dispute arising from these Terms or the Service that is not otherwise resolved may be brought before the Tokyo District Court as a court of first instance. This does not override any mandatory consumer-protection law of your country of residence, or your right as a consumer to bring a claim before a court of your place of residence.

11. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be announced on this page with an updated effective date. Continued use of the Service after a change means you accept the updated Terms.

12. Contact Us

Questions about these Terms can be sent through our contact form.