Japan, by passing the Act on Promotion of Development of Specified Complex Tourist Facilities Areas, has effectively made casinos legal since July 19, 2021.
The Japanese Government has laid down certain requirements for operational aspects of the casinos and the basic tenets that they would be required to follow. The Act, which is also known as Integrated Resorts (IR) Act, does not make licensing compulsory, as yet.
The law, which was introduced for the first time in 2018, makes no immediate changes for players. However, it envisions granting of licenses to three IRs based on their performances.
According to few reports, few contenders such as Osaka, Yokohama, Wakayama and Nagasaki are aiming to bad the IR license by submitting their licensing bids.
Which operator makes past the challenges is dependent upon the the winner of the Mayoral Election in August.