Mihoko Shintani
TMI Associates, Tokyo
mihoko_shintani@tmi.gr.jp

Introduction

As of May 2026, draft amendments to Japan's Space Activities Act and related laws (the ‘Amendment Bill’) are under consideration in the National Diet of Japan. This article provides an overview of the Amendment Bill and introduces discussions concerning the licence system applicable to spaceports that took place in the course of this amendment process.

On 24 April 2026, the draft amendments to the Act on Launching of Spacecraft etc and Control of Spacecraft (the ‘Space Activities Act’), which establishes the licence system governing the launching of spacecraft etc and the control of spacecraft in Japan, together with the amendments to its related laws, were approved by the House of Councillors. If the Amendment Bill is subsequently approved by the House of Representatives, the Space Activities Act and the related laws will be amended accordingly.

Overview of the amendments

Through the present amendments to the Space Activities Act, the regulatory framework will be reorganised so as:

‘to ensure public safety while responding to the diverse needs concerning rocket launches by establishing a regulatory framework for rocket-only launches, thereby shifting the framework from one centered on the placement of spacecraft in orbit to one focused on the launching of rockets’.

More specifically, the principal changes are as follows:

• change of the title of the Act;
• expansion of the scope of the licence system and the liability-for-damages regime applicable to rocket launches; and
• establishment of a certification system for the structure of objects carried on board rockets, and expansion of the scope of the liability-for-damages regime.

Change of the title of the Act

The title of the Space Activities Act will be changed from the ‘Act on Launching of Spacecraft, etc. and Control of Spacecraft’ to the ‘Act on Launching of Space Rockets and Control of Specified Spacecraft’. Under the existing Space Activities Act, the subject of the licence system is limited to the launching of spacecraft together with their launch vehicles, and the launching of rockets alone has fallen outside its scope. Because the Amendment Bill brings the launching of space rockets within the scope of the licence system, the title of the Act has been revised accordingly.

Expansion of the scope of the licence system and the liability-for-damages regime applicable to rocket launches

As a result of the present amendments, the ‘launching of space rockets’ becomes subject to the licence system, with the consequence that the launching of rockets that do not carry any spacecraft also falls within the scope of the licence requirement. In line with this change to the licence system, the liability-for-damages regime, which previously has only applied to the launching of spacecraft and their launch vehicles, will likewise be extended to the launching of space rockets.

Establishment of a certification system for the structure of objects carried on board rockets, and expansion of the scope of the liability-for-damages regime

Under the Amendment Bill, additional requirements will be added to the licence applicable to rocket launches, and the structure of spacecraft and other objects carried on board a rocket will also be subject to review against certain standards. In connection therewith, a system will be established for certifying in advance that such objects conform to those standards. Furthermore, persons who have entrusted the loading of such objects, and other relevant parties will be added to the category of persons subject to the regime governing liability for damages arising from the fall of such objects and similar incidents.

Discussions concerning spaceports in the course of the present amendments

Neither the existing Space Activities Act nor any other current Japanese law or regulation provides for a licence system applicable to spaceports. As noted above, the present round of amendments likewise stops short of introducing such a system. That said, given that the spaceport licence system was discussed by the members of the ‘Subcommittee on the Review of the Space Activities Act of the Committee on National Space Policy’, of which the author is a member, an overview of those deliberations is provided below.

Launch sites, including spaceports, were taken up at the seventh meeting of the Subcommittee. At that meeting, the secretariat proposed a certification system for launch sites in the following terms:

‘With respect to launch sites that are established and operated by local public bodies or private operators and that are intended to accommodate launches by any launch operator, would it not be possible – by establishing a system under which compliance with certain standards is reviewed and conforming launch sites and their operators are certified, and under which, in the launch licence review for a launch conducted from such a certified launch site, the matters reviewed at the time of certification are utilised so as to secure predictability with respect to the satisfaction of the corresponding licence criteria – to reduce the burden on operators and thereby encourage new entry into the space transportation sector?’

Several members of the Subcommittee, however, expressed reservations as to the necessity of establishing such a system at the present time. In light of those discussions, the Chair of the Subcommittee made the following remarks:

‘I would ask the secretariat to give some further thought to what, in a true sense, the establishment of this system would mean for Japan's space policy. I do not necessarily recall hearing the view that establishing such a system would be undesirable; on the other hand, I do not think I heard the view that, without it, matters cannot move forward either. On that basis, I would be grateful if the secretariat could revisit the issue and reorganise the analysis accordingly.’

Reflecting the discussions at the seventh meeting and elsewhere, the ‘Basic Direction for the Review of the Space Activities Act – Final Report’, in which the Subcommittee and related bodies have set out the direction of the amendments to the Space Activities Act, addresses launch sites as follows:

‘As various countries have proceeded with the development of launch sites for rockets, and international competition in respect of launch sites has intensified, Japan, too, has seen local public bodies and private companies undertaking the development of launch sites. As regards the legal framework for such launch sites, the United States and certain other countries have established a licensing system for the operation of launch sites that is independent from the licensing system applicable to the launching of spacecraft and similar activities; under the current Space Activities Act, by contrast, there is no independent system addressing launch sites.’

In this respect, the establishment of an independent licence system for launch sites, on a model similar to that adopted in other jurisdictions, merits consideration. However, in Japan, the standardisation of launch site facilities is still at the stage of study and development; under such circumstances, it is difficult to formulate safety standards for assessing launch site facilities independently of the rockets to be launched, and there is, in practical terms, no basis upon which launch sites can be independently evaluated. Accordingly, the need to establish a system governing launch sites at the present time is considered to be low.

The introduction of a licence system for launch sites into the Space Activities Act should therefore not be pursued immediately. Rather, while recognising the utility of standardised launch site facilities, the question of whether such a system is required and, if so, what its contents should be, should continue to be discussed in coordination with local public bodies, operators and other stakeholders, until such time as the relevant facts warrant evaluation independently of the launching of spacecraft and the like. Furthermore, if and when a system governing launch sites is introduced, it is considered that conducting the relevant authorisations on an integrated basis – for instance, by establishing special provisions to modify the application of regulations under other laws and regulations –  would contribute to the development of the space industry.

Accordingly, in the present round of amendments, the establishment of a licence system for launch sites, including spaceports, has been deferred on the ground that ‘the need to establish a system governing launch sites at the present time is considered to be low’, with the issues of whether such a system is required and, if so, what its contents should be, remains for continued discussion.

Conclusion

In conclusion, if the Amendment Bill is approved by the House of Representatives, Japan's Space Activities Act will be amended, with the following three principal changes:

• change of the title of the Act;
• expansion of the scope of the licence system and the liability-for-damages regime applicable to rocket launches; and
• establishment of a certification system for the structure of objects carried on board rockets, and expansion of the scope of the liability-for-damages regime.

Accordingly, the present amendments will not introduce a licence system for spaceports in Japan. Nevertheless, considering the foregoing discussions within the Subcommittee, it is anticipated that deliberations will continue going forward as to whether a licence system for launch sites, including spaceports, is required and, if so, what its contents should be.