September 24, 2025
Japan Fair Trade Commission
Launch of the Fact-Finding Survey on the Measures Taken by Procuring Agencies to Prevent Bid Rigging Involving Procurement Officials
Today, I would like to announce the launch of the Fact-Finding Survey on the Measures Taken by Procuring Agencies to Prevent Bid Rigging Involving Procurement Officials.
Bid rigging is a typical example of unreasonable restraint of trade prohibited under the Antimonopoly Act and is regarded as one of the most serious violations of the Act. So-called “bid rigging involving procuring officials,” in which officials of national or local procuring agencies take part, harms the interests of the agencies and, ultimately, the taxpayers. Such conduct must never be tolerated.
Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) has actively pursued the detection of bid rigging and has taken firm action under the Involvement Prevention Act when cases involving procuring officials have been found. Furthermore, the JFTC has organized training sessions across the country for officials of national or local agencies on the Antimonopoly Act and the Involvement Prevention Act, as part of its efforts to prevent bid rigging, including cases involving procuring officials. The JFTC has also sent its staff as lecturers to training programs conducted by these agencies.
In the previous fiscal year, the JFTC held 42 training sessions across the country and dispatched lecturers to 256 programs organized by national and local agencies, with a total of more than 40,000 participants. As of the end of August this fiscal year, the JFTC has held 13 training sessions and dispatched lecturers to 101 programs, with approximately 17,000 participants in total.
On the other hand, while bid riggings among businesses remains a concern, there have also been cases where the response of procuring agencies was deemed inadequate to ensure fair and open competition in bidding. In addition, incidents such as the leakage of confidential information by officials, which fall under Article 8 of the Involvement Prevention Act, continue to occur.
In light of these circumstances, the JFTC has decided to conduct a fact-finding survey on the measures taken by procuring agencies to prevent bid rigging involving them. This will be the first such survey in eight years, since the last one conducted in FY2017. The JFTC sent out questionnaires to procuring agencies covered by the Involvement Prevention Act on the 19th of this month. The survey will be conducted through late October. We would like to ask procuring agencies for their understanding of the purpose of this survey and for their cooperation in responding. The results will be published once they have been compiled.
The JFTC will continue, through these efforts, to prevent bid rigging — particularly cases involving procuring officials — and to actively support their initiatives.
For inquiries regarding this matter, please contact the General Affairs Division, Economic Affairs Bureau.
（Tentative translation）
