Is Gambling Legal in Japan? Online Casinos, Crypto and the 2025 Promotion Ban Explained

Is gambling legal in Japan? The Penal Code starting point

Gambling is a crime by default

Japan approaches gambling from the opposite direction to many countries. Instead of licensing private operators, the Penal Code makes gambling itself an offence, and lawful betting exists only where a separate statute carves out an exception. The National Police Agency summarises the two core offences:

Running a gambling venue for profit, and helping others to gamble, are separate offences. The NPA's published case examples include a person who signed an affiliate contract with an overseas online casino and promoted it on video sites, who was arrested for aiding habitual gambling.

Where the exceptions are

Legal betting in Japan is limited to activities run under their own laws, such as horse racing, the public bicycle, motorboat and motorcycle races, public lotteries and the sports promotion lottery. These are state or local government schemes with dedicated legislation. Pachinko operates under a separate amusement business framework and is often described as a legal grey area, but it is a land-based activity and offers no model for online casinos.

Japan's integrated resort legislation allows a small number of land-based casinos inside licensed resorts in the future. It does not authorise online casinos, and no Japanese law licenses an online casino for players in Japan.

Japan gambling laws and foreigners

The Penal Code applies to acts committed in Japan, so visitors and foreign residents are covered in the same way as Japanese nationals when they gamble from inside the country. A website's terms that accept "Japan" as a country do not change this.

Online casino Japan: why a foreign licence does not help

The location of the player is what counts

Many online casino sites aimed at Japanese users are run from overseas and display a licence from another jurisdiction. The NPA addresses this directly. Its message is that even if an online casino is lawfully operated by an overseas business, connecting from inside Japan to gamble is a crime. The government's public information service, Gov Online, repeats the point and describes claims that it is "not a crime" as false.

The NPA also warns against free versions and free bonus points. Promotions such as "no deposit first bonus" are a common entry point, and the boundary with ordinary in-game purchases can feel blurred. That is exactly why so many people end up gambling without realising they are breaking the law.

The scale of the problem

In fiscal 2024 the NPA commissioned a survey of people aged 15 to 79 living in Japan. According to the Police White Paper 2025, it estimated that about 3.37 million people had used online casino sites and that annual domestic wagering totalled about 1.2423 trillion yen. Around 44 percent of respondents did not know that online casinos are illegal in Japan, and around 60 percent of users and former users said they were aware of having a gambling addiction.

Enforcement is rising

The NPA reports that it arrested 59 people for online gambling offences in 2022, 107 in 2023 and 279 in 2024. Cases include players gambling from home, people who ran deposit collection on behalf of overseas operators, and affiliates who promoted sites online. A foreign licence did not protect any of them.

Japan online casino ban: the 2025 promotion law

What the amendment prohibits

In June 2025 the Diet passed an amendment to the Basic Act on Countermeasures Against Gambling Addiction. It took effect on 25 September 2025. The amended text adds a new article that bans anyone who sends information to unspecified people over the internet from:

1. presenting a website or program that provides a place for illegal online gambling to unspecified people in Japan, and
2. sending information over the internet that induces unspecified people in Japan to engage in illegal online gambling.

The government's own examples include opening or operating an online casino site, listing an online casino app in an app store, posting online casino links or promotions on social media, and creating comparison or "top 10" sites that link to online casinos. Phrases like "sign up here" or "Japanese support available" are given as examples of prohibited solicitation.

The law also requires national and local governments to raise awareness that online gambling is prohibited, through education and public information in homes, schools, workplaces and communities.

How it is being enforced

At a press conference on the day the law took effect, the chair of the National Public Safety Commission said the police had asked the Internet Hotline Center to treat this kind of content as subject to removal requests. He reported that, even before the law took effect, 8 of 40 major online casino sites had become unavailable from Japan, two had stopped new registrations from Japan, and five apps had stopped distribution in Japan. He also referred to the first arrest of an introduction site operator by Gifu Prefectural Police for aiding habitual gambling.

Why this page has no casino links

Because promotional links aimed at people in Japan are now unlawful, this article does not link to, rank or recommend any online casino. That is also a useful test for readers: a Japanese language page that lists "recommended online casinos" with sign up links is doing something the government has specifically banned.

Crypto gambling in Japan: does Bitcoin change anything?

Crypto stakes are still stakes

Gov Online defines an online casino as a service where people play online and bet cash, crypto assets or electronic money on the result. Paying with Bitcoin, Ether or a stablecoin therefore does not move an online casino outside Japanese gambling law. The stake has value, so the act is still gambling.

Payment routes are under scrutiny

The NPA's case examples include a person who pretended to provide a payment collection service for an overseas online casino and received stakes into a bank account he controlled. He was arrested under the organised crime proceeds law. Legal commentary from DLA Piper notes that payment service providers and other intermediaries can also be affected by the recent changes. Routing money through crypto does not remove those risks; it can add exchange account reviews and anti money laundering checks on top.

What wallet data can and cannot tell you

DappScope's wallet tracker shows observed public blockchain transfers, and our guide to checking casino wallet reserves explains how to read them. That kind of evidence can help researchers and journalists understand how money moves. It cannot make an online casino lawful in Japan, and nothing in our data should be read as an invitation to play from Japan.

If you have crypto stuck on a site you no longer want to use, focus on recovering it safely rather than playing it through. Our withdrawal times guide explains the typical stages, and the red flags checklist shows warning signs such as surprise fees or new verification demands at withdrawal time.

Common myths about Japan gambling laws

Myth 1: "It is legal if the casino is licensed abroad"

False. The NPA says the location of the player decides the matter. Gambling at an online casino from inside Japan is a crime, regardless of where the operator is licensed.

Myth 2: "Using a VPN means Japanese law does not apply"

False. Hiding your connection does not change where you are physically located, and it can also breach a site's own terms. DappScope never recommends bypassing location restrictions.

Myth 3: "Free bonuses are not gambling"

Be careful. The NPA warns against free versions and free bonus points used to draw people in. Once anything of value can be won or cashed out, you are in gambling territory.

Myth 4: "Only operators get arrested"

False. The NPA's case list includes players who gambled from their own homes, people who processed payments and affiliates who promoted sites.

Myth 5: "The integrated resort law legalised online casinos"

False. The integrated resort framework concerns a limited number of future land-based casinos inside licensed resorts. It has nothing to do with online casinos.

Myth 6: "Crypto is anonymous, so it does not count"

False. Crypto is a stake like any other under the government's own definition, and public blockchains are often far less anonymous than people assume. Exchanges also carry out identity checks.

Getting help with gambling problems in Japan

Start with your local public services

The government's information highlights gambling addiction as a central reason for the 2025 changes. Prefectural and designated city mental health and welfare centres (精神保健福祉センター) offer consultations about gambling problems, and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare publishes information about treatment and support. Family members can usually consult too, even if the person who gambles is not ready to seek help.

Practical first steps

• Stop depositing and remove saved payment methods and wallet connections from any gambling site.
• Write down what you owe and what is held on sites, including crypto balances, so you can see the full picture.
• Talk to someone you trust and contact a local consultation service. Debt consultations are also available through public legal support services.
• Do not borrow to recover losses. Chasing losses is one of the clearest signs that gambling has become harmful.

Reporting illegal promotion

The NPA and the National Public Safety Commission encourage people who find online casino referral sites or social media posts promoting online casinos to report them through the Internet Hotline Center. That route exists specifically for the content the 2025 law made unlawful.