Gambling as a form of entertainment is a really difficult topic to address. Many countries around the world struggle with the decision on whether it should be legal or not. The problem is irresponsible gambling or gambling addiction which plays a huge role in the consensus among the citizens of a particular state. If the majority feels it’s really bad for society the political party in power will most likely respect those decisions.

On the other hand, it can be a fun and popular hobby that is really good for the economy. It’s so much more than just casino games as it is often also connected to sports betting. This means more jobs, more sponsorships to sports teams for advertising, game data value increases, and there are more taxable companies. Here we are going to compare two different legislative frameworks. More precisely, we will compare gambling laws in Japan and Canada, to see how their governments decided to handle the issue.

Gambling Laws in Japan

Japan has a somewhat divided opinion on this issue. They do allow some forms of sports betting, and they even have a licensed operator called Toto. Online gambling parlors usually need a license in order to exist in a particular jurisdiction, which means they are regulated by the state. The same goes for land-based institutions and when it comes to Japan only sports betting is legal.

This means that there are no land-based casinos in Japan. If you were to open up a gambling joint and allow users to wager money on casino games you would get in trouble. Sure anyone can organize a poker night in a private setting, but it’s illegal to gamble in any public place. That being said, you can clearly go to a country where it’s legal and play as a Japanese tourist, you will not have to forfeit your winnings when you are going back home.

Online Gambling in Japan

As far as online gambling goes the laws are a bit different or let’s say not defined yet. You can not have an online gambling parlor that is based in Japan clearly, but you can gamble online. Meaning, you can use the operators from Malta, or Curcaso, or any other country that offers services to Japanese citizens. Furthermore, it tends to be a lot cheaper for you to gamble if you are from Japan, as the minimum entry fee is around 5 cents. This is pretty interesting and to get more info about online casinos in Japan click here, and find out all of the available trusted casino sites in Japan. However, bear in mind that this doesn’t mean that it is entirely legal to gamble online in Japan.

Even though you can access a foreign operator site and play the games there, it can still be punishable by the law. If you are just doing this via phone, in your home then it’s okay. But if a cafe or a restaurant wants to set up computers and allow you to access these sites then they would get in trouble.

Gambling Laws in Canada

When it comes to Canada the situation is slightly different. It is divided into provinces and each of those provinces regulates gambling in its own way. In the provinces where gambling is legal, the laws are more or less similar. Much like Japan sports betting is legal, but up until recently only parlay bets were allowed. This changed when Canada passed C-218 Bill, which allows for operators to offer single event wagers. What needs to happen now is for new regulatory bodies to be formed for each province. This way the new betting activity can be regulated and become available for the players.

As far as land-based casinos go, this is different in Canada compared to Japan. Here people can play in land-based casinos and they are regulated by the state. They are quite a tourist attraction and they seem to be offering sports sponsorships. Now the regulators seem to be more lenient towards promoting this activity through sports events, it could mean Canadian teams will have more funds for expansion.

Online Gambling in Canada

When it comes to online Gambling the situation across all provinces is pretty identical to the one in Japan. Canada does not allow its domestic business to offer this service, and it is regarded as illegal. However, the act of gambling online itself is legal. Meaning you find the best real money online casinos in Canada, so long as they are incorporated in a foreign country. This is actually something a lot of Canadians do. They play on foreign platforms and even bet there online. After all, the available betting options are still inferior to those they can get from foreign operators.

Given how Canada has a state lottery and charitable gambling in multiple provinces, it’s not too far-fetched to think that state-regulated online casinos will become a thing at one point. After all, land-based parlors are legal, so allowing them to maintain a website with all of their games would be the next logical step.

Conclusion

Legalizing online gambling is without a doubt a difficult issue to address. If a lot of people are pressing the government to do so that might happen, although given the connotation that gambling has it is rare to see such rallies. However, the numbers usually speak for themselves, and if there is a large portion of society who engages with online betting chances are they would also try casino games.

Meaning, the countries that are more likely to lift the restrictions are those with more developed sports betting system. In this sense, Canada seems to be ahead of Japan. However, it also means there will be a lot of work in regulating these institutions. Meaning, there needs to be an existing infrastructure that supports this activity