Minimum betting age set at 20 after civil code change

Japan's Horse Racing Act was amended in line with the revised civil code that took effect on April 1, 2022 and lowered the age of majority from 20 to 18, with Article 28 changed to bar anyone under 20 from buying or taking transfer of winning horse betting tickets¹.

The previous wording of Article 28 referred to minors, and the amended text now reads that persons under 20 must not purchase or accept transfer of winning horse betting tickets¹. The change took effect on the same date as the revised civil code, April 1, 2022¹.

The operator, the Japan Racing Association (JRA), had used an awareness slogan before the amendment took effect: "馬券は20歳になってから ほどよく楽しむ大人の遊び"¹. The article does not report any change to that slogan or to how the age rule is enforced at racecourses and betting points.

The same article states that persons under 20 (Article 28) and racing participants such as jockeys and trainers (Article 29) cannot buy or take transfer of winning horse betting tickets¹. It also records that until 2004, adults who were students or pupils were barred from buying or accepting such tickets, and that a January 2005 amendment allowed all adults to buy them¹. Comparable changes for boat racing, keirin and auto racing came in 2007, according to the same article¹.

The Horse Racing Act dates to 1948, promulgated on July 13, 1948 as Law No. 158 of Showa 23 and brought into force on July 19, 1948¹. It covers the holding of racing, racecourses, the number of race meetings, admission fees, winning horse betting tickets, betting methods and payouts¹. Under the Act, only the JRA, prefectures or designated municipalities may hold racing and sell winning horse betting tickets or similar instruments¹. Payout ratios are set by the organizer within a range of 70 percent or more and no higher than a rate set by the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries¹.

What it means for players

The rule applies to horse racing betting tickets sold in Japan, including through the JRA and local racing operators. Anyone who is 18 or 19 is treated as an adult under the civil code but still cannot buy or take transfer of a betting ticket under the Horse Racing Act¹. That covers locals, foreign residents and visitors who are in that age bracket, since the restriction is written into the betting law rather than tied to nationality or residence.

The article does not report whether the same 20-year threshold applies to other forms of gambling in Japan, or how age is checked at the point of sale. It also does not report penalties for buying or accepting a ticket while under 20, beyond the Act's penalty chapter running from Articles 30 to 38¹.

What happens next

No further steps are reported. The amendment is recorded as taking effect on April 1, 2022, and the article does not describe any later change to Article 28 or to the age threshold¹.