Japan's integrated-resort market structure remains anchored by a single approved licence, MGM Resorts' Osaka IR at Yumeshima, with two of the three statutory licences contemplated under the IR framework still unallocated. The standing legal foundation for gambling-dependency policy is the Gambling Dependency Countermeasures Basic Act (Act No. 74 of 2018), durable primary legislation that defines "gambling etc." as public sporting competitions, pachinko-parlour-related games, and other games of chance conducted pursuant to law. The dominant development this cycle is not on the land-based IR side but on the online-gambling side: an amendment to that Basic Act, effective 25 September 2025, independently criminalises the presentation and inducement of illegal online-gambling websites, materially tightening the enforcement environment even as the underlying IR licensing structure remains stable.
Jurisdictions › Japan › Overview
Japan · Question 01 of 11
Overview: What kind of market is this?
Unfavourable · Confirmed · AI-generated · Back to full Japan report →
Key section parameters
| Jurisdiction | Japan (JP) |
|---|---|
| Regulator | Recorded in register |
| Favourability | Unfavourable |
| Confidence | Confirmed |
| Review status | AI-generated |
| Last collected | 18 Oct 2026 |
Summary answer
Japan's integrated-resort market structure remains anchored by a single approved licence, MGM Resorts' Osaka IR at Yumeshima, with two of the three statutory licences contemplated under the IR framework still unallocated. The standing legal foundation for gambling-dependency policy is the Gambling D…
Key headwinds & conditions
- Online gambling comprehensively prohibited and actively prosecuted
- IR licences capped at three nationally, only one approved
- Criminal exposure for offshore operators and their personnel