What document formally ended Japan’s war with the Allied powers in 1945?

The Japanese Instrument of Surrender formally ended Japan’s war with the Allied powers in 1945.

This printed agreement was signed on 2 September 1945 during a ceremony in Tokyo Bay. It recorded Japan’s acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration and required Japanese forces to cease hostilities and surrender to designated Allied commanders. The document took effect at 9:25 a.m. Japan Standard Time.

The instrument was signed by Japanese representatives Mamoru Shigemitsu and Yoshijirō Umezu. General Douglas MacArthur signed for the Allied powers, followed by representatives of the United States, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.

The document is distinct from both the Potsdam Declaration and the Treaty of San Francisco. The Potsdam Declaration was the Allied demand issued before Japan surrendered. The later Treaty of San Francisco, which entered into force in 1952, formally restored Japan’s sovereignty after the occupation.