---
title: "TMK (特定目的会社) special-purpose-company mechanics"
aliases:
  - "tmk-special-purpose-company-mechanics"
  - "TMK"
  - "Tokutei Mokuteki Kaisha"
  - "特定目的会社"
  - "Japan SPC Act"
  - "Asset Securitization Act TMK"
  - "TMK listed CMBS Japan"
  - "TMK tax treatment Japan"
  - "TMK vs GK-TK"
domain: structured-finance
created: 2026-05-25
last_updated: 2026-07-29
last_tended: 2026-07-29
review_by: 2027-01-29
confidence: likely
tags: [structured-finance, tmk, spv, asset-securitization-law, japan]
status: active
sources:
  - "https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105"
  - "https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/332AC0000000026"
  - "https://www.nta.go.jp/about/organization/ntc/kenkyu/ronsou/40/kageyama/ronsou.pdf"
  - "https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/326AC1000000198"
---

# TMK (特定目的会社) special-purpose-company mechanics

## TL;DR

A TMK is a specified-purpose company under Japan's Asset Securitization Act. It follows the Act's notification and asset-liquidation-plan requirements and may use the instruments authorized by the statute and plan. TMK status alone does not establish public offering, exchange listing, tax pass-through, bankruptcy remoteness, accounting derecognition, a CMBS use case, investor base, rating or governance practice. The commonly cited “over 90%” distribution test is only one of multiple tax conditions.

## Wiki route

Use this page with [[structured-finance/spv-tk-gk-vehicle-japan-tax]], [[structured-finance/japan-trust-beneficial-interest-vs-spv]], and [[structured-finance/japan-securitization-product-matrix]]. Named CMBS or J-REIT claims require their own transaction documents.

## 1. Statutory identity

[The Asset Securitization Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105) supports the following table.

| Field | Verified statutory boundary |
|---|---|
| Entity | Tokutei Mokuteki Kaisha (特定目的会社) |
| Governing statute | Asset Securitization Act |
| Regulatory procedure | Required notification and asset-liquidation-plan filing; avoid the shorthand “formation registration” |
| Activities | Those permitted under the Act and the filed plan |
| Specified assets / financing | Described in the plan and transaction documents |
| Offer / listing | Determined separately under FIEA, offer terms and exchange rules |

Statutory purpose limitations are one input to an insolvency analysis, not proof of bankruptcy remoteness.

## 2. Instruments

[The Asset Securitization Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105) supports the instrument categories in the following table.

| Instrument / financing | Evidence required |
|---|---|
| Specified bonds | Act, asset-liquidation plan and named offer terms |
| Specified short-term bonds | Act, plan and named issue terms |
| Preferred contributions | Act, plan and contribution terms |
| Common contributions | Formation and plan documents |
| Borrowing | Plan and loan documents |

The existence of these categories does not prove a public placement, listing, retained equity, multi-tranche structure or a particular holder.

## 3. Conditional tax treatment

[The Tax Special Measures Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/332AC0000000026) and [National Tax College review](https://www.nta.go.jp/about/organization/ntc/kenkyu/ronsou/40/kageyama/ronsou.pdf) support the following tax checklist.

| Element | Evidence-bound treatment |
|---|---|
| Entity tax | TMK is a corporation and is taxable in principle |
| Distribution deduction | Available only when the entity and distribution satisfy all current statutory requirements |
| Distribution-ratio condition | The cited threshold is a distribution exceeding 90% of distributable profit; it is not the only condition |
| Other conditions | Offering / investor, ownership, asset-management and other requirements must also be tested |
| Bond interest | Analyze as debt interest under applicable rules; do not conflate with preferred-contribution distributions |
| Withholding | Depends on payment and investor facts |

No “cleanest pass-through” or automatic single-layer-taxation claim is retained.

## 4. Comparison with GK plus TK

[The Asset Securitization Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105), [Companies Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/417AC0000000086), and [Commercial Code](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/132AC0000000048) support the legal-form comparison below.

| Question | TMK | GK plus TK |
|---|---|---|
| Entity law | Asset Securitization Act | Companies Act for GK |
| Investor / financing layer | Instruments authorized by the Act and plan | TK contract and other GK financing |
| Regulatory procedure | Notification and asset-liquidation plan | GK formation plus instrument / offer requirements |
| Tax | Conditional TMK rules | GK and TK consequences require separate analysis |
| Offer / listing | Transaction-specific | Transaction-specific |
| Insolvency / accounting | Transaction-specific | Transaction-specific |

Speed, disclosure burden and product preference are not asserted without a defined transaction population.

## 5. TMK and investment corporations

[The Asset Securitization Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105) and [Investment Trust and Investment Corporation Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/326AC1000000198) support only the following entity distinction.

| Entity | Statute | What follows |
|---|---|---|
| TMK | Asset Securitization Act | Specified-purpose-company regime |
| Investment corporation / J-REIT vehicle | Investment Trust and Investment Corporation Act | Separate investment-corporation regime |

Warehouse, subvehicle, foreign-investor and tax-efficient use cases require a named public transaction and are not generalized here.

## 6. Named CMBS or other transaction

[The Asset Securitization Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105) supplies the entity law; the following fields still require the named deal.

| Claim | Required public evidence |
|---|---|
| TMK is issuer | Offering / issuer document |
| Collateral | Asset-liquidation plan and transaction disclosure |
| Public or listed status | Offer filing and exchange record |
| Tranches / priority | Named terms and waterfall |
| Rating | Dated class-specific agency action |
| Investor / distributor | Public allocation or transaction disclosure |
| Market dominance | Defined population, period and calculation |

## 7. Governance and ongoing obligations

[The Asset Securitization Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105) and the named entity filings support the following review checklist.

| Field | Evidence required |
|---|---|
| Directors / officers | Statute, articles and current filing |
| Auditor | Statutory threshold / requirement and current filing |
| Plan compliance | Filed asset-liquidation plan and amendments |
| Investor reporting | Named instrument and contractual / disclosure obligations |
| Regulatory reporting | Exact statutory provision and filing |
| Wind-down | Plan, articles and transaction documents |

Do not assume independent professionals, an audit corporation, periodic FSA reporting or tax-condition compliance from the TMK label.

## Wiki route

Read this entry within [[structured-finance/INDEX|structured finance]] and use [[finance/INDEX|finance]] for cross-domain capital-markets context.

## Related

- [[structured-finance/INDEX]]
- [[structured-finance/spv-tk-gk-vehicle-japan-tax]]
- [[structured-finance/japan-trust-beneficial-interest-vs-spv]]
- [[structured-finance/japan-securitization-product-matrix]]
- [[structured-finance/japan-cmbs-issuance-structure]]
- [[real-estate-finance/j-reit-market-overview]]

## Sources

- [Asset Securitization Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/410AC0000000105).
- [Tax Special Measures Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/332AC0000000026).
- [National Tax College, review of distribution-deduction conditions](https://www.nta.go.jp/about/organization/ntc/kenkyu/ronsou/40/kageyama/ronsou.pdf).
- [Investment Trust and Investment Corporation Act](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/326AC1000000198).