Originally Posted by seadan

Actually, that is not the case. As long as you have the International warranty, any Nikon service center should service it. I purchased my 18-200 VR lens in Taiwan (because, well, they actually had them in stock and it was slightly cheaper than in the US), and I've had no issues getting it serviced by Nikon USA.

I believe it is the grey market lenses imported by someone else that Nikon USA will not service. But if you import it yourself with the International warranty, you should be fine.

To address the OP's question--I've found myself in the same boat. I've really wanted to buy a new lens in Japan, but it turned out to be significantly more expensive than in the US. Same with pretty much everywhere else in Asia I've been. It doesn't help that the dollar is tanking right now, either