December 16, 2025
Three opposition parties and some independent House of Representatives members on December 15 submitted to the House a bill aimed at providing relief to victims of non-payment for their work constructing foreign pavilions for the Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.
The three opposition parties are the Japanese Communist Party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and the “Reiwa Shinsengumi” party.
Construction costs for the pavilions of 11 countries, including the United States, China, and Germany, have not been paid to dozens of construction subcontracting firms.
Under the bill, the Act on Special Measures Necessary for Preparing for and Managing the International Exposition in 2025 will be revised to allow the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition to purchase receivables for construction contracts for the overseas pavilions in question, and make advance payments to unpaid subcontractors.
After the submission of the bill, CDPJ lawmaker Yoneyama Ryuichi explained that the bill, if enacted, will enable the Expo 2025 Association to respond flexibly to affected subcontractors depending on the actual unpaid amount.
JCP lawmaker Tatsumi Kotaro pointed out that subcontractors who are suffering from unpaid fees worked hard to make up for delays in the construction of the overseas pavilions in response to calls from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry as well as from the Osaka governor. He stressed, “The Expo Association, in which the Osaka governor serves as deputy chair, and the national government should be held responsible in resolving the issue because they went ahead with the Osaka-Kansai Expo without postponing or cancelling it, even though they were aware of construction delays.”
The JCP lawmaker said, “This is not a ‘private-sector matter’. The national and Osaka prefectural governments and the Expo Association should be made to take action to meet the unpaid subcontractors’ demand for an early payment.”
Past related issue:
> Subcontractors rally to demand early payment of unpaid Expo construction costs [August 25, 2025]
> Zenshoren urges gov’t to instruct prime contractors to pay subcontractors for their work on Expo pavilions [August 29, 2025]
The three opposition parties are the Japanese Communist Party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and the “Reiwa Shinsengumi” party.
Construction costs for the pavilions of 11 countries, including the United States, China, and Germany, have not been paid to dozens of construction subcontracting firms.
Under the bill, the Act on Special Measures Necessary for Preparing for and Managing the International Exposition in 2025 will be revised to allow the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition to purchase receivables for construction contracts for the overseas pavilions in question, and make advance payments to unpaid subcontractors.
After the submission of the bill, CDPJ lawmaker Yoneyama Ryuichi explained that the bill, if enacted, will enable the Expo 2025 Association to respond flexibly to affected subcontractors depending on the actual unpaid amount.
JCP lawmaker Tatsumi Kotaro pointed out that subcontractors who are suffering from unpaid fees worked hard to make up for delays in the construction of the overseas pavilions in response to calls from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry as well as from the Osaka governor. He stressed, “The Expo Association, in which the Osaka governor serves as deputy chair, and the national government should be held responsible in resolving the issue because they went ahead with the Osaka-Kansai Expo without postponing or cancelling it, even though they were aware of construction delays.”
The JCP lawmaker said, “This is not a ‘private-sector matter’. The national and Osaka prefectural governments and the Expo Association should be made to take action to meet the unpaid subcontractors’ demand for an early payment.”
Past related issue:
> Subcontractors rally to demand early payment of unpaid Expo construction costs [August 25, 2025]
> Zenshoren urges gov’t to instruct prime contractors to pay subcontractors for their work on Expo pavilions [August 29, 2025]
