Bill to legalise casinos in Japan could get nod by July

Japan is hoping to implement the Integrated Resorts Implementation Bill (IRIB) by the end of July at the latest.

The bill, which was put forward last April, is to allow the establishment of several casinos in the country. After the signing of the bill, it went to the Japanese Diet for review and voting and has since undergone some changes. However, things have slowed down more than expected.

To ensure the bill is passed within this session, the Diet is considering extending the end of its session from the scheduled June 20.

According to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), there are plans to extend the session to late June or early July. This is to allow further deliberations on the future of gambling in the country.

The major concern for some parties has been gambling addiction, with these discussions hindering the progress of the bill, but last Friday the House of Representatives signed off on a bill to protect problem gamblers.

In April, the LPD and its coalition partner, Komeito agreed on some pertinent issues in the bill. Issues that have delayed the new bill include entry fees, tax rates and the size of gaming areas.

The Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe said: “The bill will enable us to achieve our policy aim to promote long stays by tourists from all over the world and implement measures to surely address various concerns including those about addiction.”