When Did Smoking Stop at Japanese Pachinko Parlours? (2026 Guide to Smoking Rooms and Heated-Tobacco Areas)
Table of contents
About this guide and disclaimer
This is a third-party summary of the rules as of August 2026, drawing on the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the Japan Amusement Industry Association hall guidance, and the statute text on e-Gov. It does not state whether any particular venue or chain allows smoking; equipment and policies vary and change. Always confirm with the venue and the posted signs. It is written to explain smoking rules, not to promote gaming or smoking.
What the 2020 change actually did
The act divides facilities into two groups. Schools, hospitals, child welfare facilities and administrative agencies are smoke-free across the whole premises and cannot have indoor smoking rooms. Everything else used by many people, plus restaurants, is non-smoking indoors in principle, with smoking allowed only inside a compliant smoking room (source: https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/10900000/000469083.pdf). Pachinko parlours sit in the second group. That is why ashtrays disappeared from the machines: the law also bars the person with authority over a facility from placing ashtrays or other smoking equipment where smoking is prohibited.
Industry guidance for hall operators
The Japan Amusement Industry Association published a Q&A for hall operators alongside the rollout (published 27 March 2020, updated 14 June 2020; source: https://www.nichiyukyo.or.jp/other/9629/). Its practical points were as follows. Note that this reflects the position at the time the law came into force; what any individual venue has installed since then varies.
- A heated-tobacco area or a heated-tobacco floor may be set up in part of a venue, but the whole venue cannot be made a smoking venue
- Dedicated smoking rooms and smoking booths are permitted, subject to technical standards such as 0.2 m/s airflow at the opening
- Entrances, toilets and prize counters are best placed within non-smoking areas
- Signage is mandatory at the main entrance of the smoking room and in a clearly visible place at the venue entrance
Cigarettes and heated tobacco are not interchangeable
A dedicated smoking room permits cigarettes and heated tobacco but no food or drink; a heated-tobacco-only room permits heated tobacco with food and drink, as a transitional measure (source: https://jyudokitsuen.mhlw.go.jp/smoking_room/). So an advertised "heated tobacco floor" does not cover cigarettes. The sign at the entrance tells you which type you are looking at — see the smoking area signage guide and the heated tobacco guide. Nearby designated outdoor spots are on the MottoSuitai map.
Two separate age rules
Pachinko parlours are regulated as an entertainment business under the Act on Control and Improvement of Amusement Business (Act No. 122 of 1948). Article 2(1)(iv) covers mahjong parlours, pachinko parlours and similar businesses, and Article 22(1)(v) prohibits admitting anyone under 18 to the premises as a customer (source: e-Gov, https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/323AC0000000122). Separately, the revised Health Promotion Act bars anyone under 20 from entering a room where smoking is permitted, even if they are not smoking and even if they are staff (source: https://jyudokitsuen.mhlw.go.jp/). Smoking under 20 is itself prohibited by law in Japan.
Checking a specific venue, and stepping outside
Whether a venue installs smoking rooms at all, and whether they are cigarette or heated-tobacco only, is the operator’s decision. Venue pages and FAQs sometimes say; if not, calling and asking is the reliable route, and the posted signs settle it on arrival. Outdoors, the act requires attention to your surroundings so as not to cause unwanted second-hand smoke, and many municipalities prohibit street smoking in designated zones with fines that differ by municipality — check the local official information before you go.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q.When did pachinko parlours become non-smoking?
A.On 1 April 2020, when the revised Health Promotion Act took full effect and interiors of facilities used by many people became non-smoking in principle (source: https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/10900000/000469083.pdf). Smoking is now limited to compliant smoking rooms.
Q.Do pachinko parlours have smoking booths?
A.Some do; it is the operator’s choice. Industry guidance confirms that dedicated smoking rooms and booths are permitted subject to technical standards such as 0.2 m/s airflow (source: https://www.nichiyukyo.or.jp/other/9629/). Check the venue’s official information and the signs on site.
Q.Can I use heated tobacco while playing?
A.Only inside an area where smoking is permitted — a heated-tobacco-only smoking room, or a heated-tobacco area or floor if the venue has set one up. Industry guidance says such an area may occupy part of a venue but the whole venue cannot be made smoking.
Q.What are the age rules?
A.Pachinko parlours may not admit anyone under 18 as a customer under Article 22(1)(v) of the entertainment business law (source: https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/323AC0000000122), and no one under 20 may enter a room where smoking is permitted under the revised Health Promotion Act.