Hokkaido sent a concrete signal on August 19, 2026 that it is returning to Japan’s integrated resort (IR) race, after the prefectural government confirmed that three international casino operators and 12 Japanese companies linked to the sector responded to questionnaires designed to assess interest, investment appetite and project feasibility ahead of the country’s second licensing round scheduled for 2027.
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The results were presented during the sixth meeting of Hokkaido’s Integrated Resort Expert Panel, held on August 18 in Sapporo, under the administration of Governor Naomichi Suzuki. The prefecture will now move toward evaluating a candidate location, with Tomakomai and Hakodate emerging as the two cities that expressed interest in a survey sent to all 179 municipalities in Hokkaido. By August 17, 172 municipalities, or roughly 96%, had responded.
Takafumi Sato
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The identities of the three international operators and 12 domestic companies remain confidential, meaning Hokkaido has not officially named any potential private-sector partner. One foreign operator ranked the prefecture among its main target markets in Japan and highlighted its natural environment, connectivity, tourism potential and cultural assets as competitive advantages.
The companies also warned that a Hokkaido IR could require an investment of several hundred billion yen, while rising construction costs and weaker regional demand compared with Tokyo or Osaka could force adjustments to project scale and development strategy. Some respondents are pushing for phased construction and longer authorization periods, replacing the current 10-year approval framework followed by five-year renewals with periods of 15 or 20 years to reduce financing risk.
Tomakomai
Hakodate
The proposed model combines a casino with hotels, MICE facilities, premium restaurants, shopping, concerts and entertainment, with New Chitose Airport viewed as a strategic asset for attracting Asian tourists and premium travelers.
At national level, the process falls under Japan’s 2018 IR Development Act and the supervision of the Japan Casino Regulatory Commission, chaired by Takafumi Sato, with Toshiyuki Shimada serving as secretary-general. The next application window will run from May 6 to November 5, 2027.
