The Japanese Diet may restrict the number of times Japanese nationals and guests of the country can play at casinos, local media has reported. The government is currently working on the second phase of the country’s casino legalization process by crafting a bill that would set the principles under which its nascent casino industry will be regulated.
Japanese citizens will be required to present their My Number identification cards upon entering gambling facilities. As for foreigners, they will have to identify themselves via their passports and other identity documents.
According to media reports, the Japanese government is planning to implement a weekly and monthly cap on the maximum number of casino visits allowed to players. The actual number of visits allowed is yet to be determined.
Under the planned rules, casinos will have to limit access to their gaming floors to all self-declared customers with problem gambling behavior, to those whose families have declared them as problem gambling customers, to underaged people, and to organized crime members.
The measure is to be taken as part of the government’s plan to curb gambling-related issues at a time when the country’s gambling industry is being developed. Casino gambling was legalized in Japan late last year, following several years of prolonged discussions over whether that step would be the best one for the country.
After the Integrated Resorts Promotion Bill was approved, the government now needs to craft and pass a separate legislative piece, one that would regulate the already legalized industry. The Integrated Resorts Implementation Bill is currently in the works and more details about it are expected to be revealed in August. It is believed that there will also be more information on the number of allowed weekly and monthly casino visits.
Pachinko, known to be slots-like machines that offer players monetary prizes, betting on bicycle, boat, and horse races, football pools, and lotteries are the only allowed gambling options in the country. The addition of casino gambling will expand the gambling industry significantly and as a result concerns have been voiced over a potential increase in the number of gambling addicts and of gambling-related crime rates.
The Implementation Bill will probably be voted on in late 2017. It is believed that first casino resorts would open doors in the country sometime around 2022. The plan originally aimed to see Japan’s casino industry established by the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. However, multiple delays in the legislative process pulled the casinos’ opening.
Being opened after the Olympic Games, it will be the resorts’ task to keep and even increase tourism rates after the major sports event.
