Japan amends the Basic Act on Countermeasures Against Gambling Addiction

The law prohibits presenting websites or programs, including apps, that provide a place for illegal online gambling, and prohibits disseminating information that leads people to illegal online gambling¹.

The NPA lists the banned acts as opening or operating an online casino site, listing an online casino app on an app store, posting links to online casino sites or advertising them on social media, and building comparison or roundup sites that introduce online casino sites¹. It gives examples of solicitation wording that falls under the ban, such as "XX Casino, register here" and "XX Casino, Japanese language supported"¹. The amended law also states that the national and local governments are obliged to take measures, through education and public relations at home, school, work and in the community, to make the prohibition on online casinos widely known¹.

The NPA restates that gambling from inside Japan is a crime even when the online casino is legally operated overseas, and that baccarat, slots, sports betting and any other online gambling are crimes regardless of name or content¹. It warns against using free versions and free bonuses or points as well as paid versions¹.

The NPA publishes examples of prosecutions:

• a player who connected from a home computer in Japan to an overseas-operated online casino site and gambled against the site's dealer, charged with gambling¹
• a person who had players in Japan access an overseas server and wager money, charged with habitual gambling, with the players charged with gambling¹
• a person operating an overseas-server gambling site in Japan, charged with the crime of opening a gambling place for profit¹
• a person who pretended to act as a collection agent for an overseas casino operator and had wagers deposited into an account he controlled, charged under the organized crime punishment law¹
• a person with an affiliate contract with an overseas casino operator who solicited use of the site on video streaming services, charged with aiding habitual gambling¹

A separate report says the amended act prohibits providing access to online gambling via websites or apps and bans the dissemination of gambling-related information, and cites about JPY6.4 trillion (USD41 billion) in bets by Japanese citizens on overseas sports gambling websites in 2024, attributing the figure to the Tokyo-based non-profit Council for Sports Ecosystem Promotion³. The same report quotes a Nishimura & Asahi partner saying there is no statutory framework allowing regulators to block or technically restrict access to online gambling websites at the internet infrastructure level, and that enforcement has focused on domestic users³.

What it means for players

The change targets the supply side: sites, apps, social media posts, affiliate promotions and roundup pages that point people to illegal online gambling¹. Players in Japan can read more on whether online casinos can be played in Japan, legal online betting accounts for racing, boat race and keirin, and how winnings are taxed. Support and self-exclusion information is set out in gambling help in Japan.

What happens next

The NPA says police will continue enforcement against online gambling offenses¹. The NPA has not published figures for prosecutions after that date, and no further legislative steps are set out in the sources.