According to reports by Japanese media, the Japan Tourism Agency has officially announced the second round of applications for integrated resort developments. Starting from May 6, 2027, a six-month application window will open to accept submissions from local governments for new development zones with integrated resorts that include gaming elements. Regions such as Hokkaido and Nagasaki are expected to submit applications. Notably, Nagasaki was one of the two candidate regions in the previous round but failed to secure approval due to concerns over its financing plan and a lack of experience in operating large-scale integrated resort projects.
The draft proposal has now entered the public consultation phase. Upon the conclusion of the consultation, it will be formally incorporated into the Integrated Resort Project Law as the statutory regulatory framework governing the application and approval processes for integrated resort projects.
Under the provisions of the Integrated Resort Development Act, Japan is limited to hosting a maximum of three integrated resort locations. In the first round of applications, only the MGM Osaka project was successfully approved. Therefore, the government can issue up to two additional licenses during the second round of applications.
AloJapan.com