Toyoake Proposes Two Hours of Daily Smartphone Leisure Use for All 69,000 Residents

A Citywide Guideline Brings Private Screen Habits Into Public Debate

Toyoake, a city of 69,000 people in central Japan's Aichi Prefecture, is proposing that every resident limit recreational smartphone use to two hours a day. The recommendation would cover all ages, exclude time needed for work and study, and carry no penalties.

As of August 29, 2025, the draft ordinance is under debate in the city assembly. A vote is scheduled for late September, and the measure would take effect in October if approved. It is believed to be the first proposal of its kind in Japan to address the smartphone habits of an entire population rather than children alone.

Mayor Masafumi Koki says the aim is to encourage residents to reconsider how phones fit around sleep, family relationships and daily responsibilities. The proposal also covers tablets and similar electronic devices, with recommendations about when people should put them away in the evening.

The response has been sharply divided. During a public consultation period, city officials received more than 120 phone calls and emails, about 80% of them expressing negative views. Critics regard the recommendation as unrealistic or intrusive, while supporters see a chance to address excessive device use and its effects on family life.

Toyoake's proposal has drawn national debate and international attention because it puts a precise number on a familiar problem: how much leisure time should people spend looking at a screen? The city's answer is advisory. Residents would remain free to decide how long they use their devices, and officials have no plans to monitor individual use.

What Would Count Toward the Two Hours?

The draft ordinance recommends a daily limit of two hours for smartphone, tablet and similar device use during free time. Time spent working, studying, doing housework or completing essential tasks would fall outside that recommendation.

A person watching a cooking tutorial while preparing dinner, for example, would not count that time toward the limit. Neither would someone attending an online class. The proposal also excludes certain activities such as online learning and practice for e-sports tournaments.

The distinction rests on what someone is doing with a device. A smartphone can be a workplace, a classroom, a household tool or a source of entertainment. Toyoake is seeking to reduce recreational use, particularly in the evening, when scrolling through social media or streaming content can take time away from sleep and family interaction.

The two hours would therefore be a recommendation for leisure use, not a maximum for every task performed on a screen. There would be no fines or other sanctions for going beyond it.

Why the Mayor Wants Families to Talk

Koki has repeatedly described the ordinance as a starting point for discussion rather than a mandate. Addressing the city assembly, the mayor said residents would not be required to follow the proposed limit.

This does not mean the city will limit its residents' rights or impose duties," Koki stated. "Rather, I hope this serves as an opportunity for each family to think about and discuss the time spent on smartphones as well as the time of day the devices are used.

The mayor has also acknowledged that smartphones have become necessary tools. In a public statement addressing the controversy, Koki explained why the city had chosen a numerical guideline.

Smartphones are convenient and essential to our daily lives," Koki said. "People have mistakenly received the impression that the ordinance will bind residents to the two-hour cap. But the two-hour cap is a guideline to encourage people to reconsider their sleeping hours and other matters such as their relationship with family members.

For households, the practical request is to discuss both duration and timing. Two hours spread across a day and two hours spent using a phone late at night can fit very differently around school, work, meals and sleep.

Evening Recommendations Put Sleep at the Centre

Elementary school children and younger children would be advised to stop using devices by 9 p.m. Junior high school students and older people, including adults, would be encouraged to put them away by 10 p.m.

The city wants these evening recommendations to help children and teenagers get enough sleep and maintain healthy routines. By including adults, Toyoake is also presenting excessive device use as a concern for the whole household rather than a problem limited to young people.

Koki has pointed to cases of students missing school because they cannot part with their phones. He has also described adults giving up sleep or family time to continue watching content or using social media late into the night.

The draft ordinance warns that prolonged use of smartphones and other electronic devices can contribute to insufficient sleep and other health problems. It also raises concerns about reduced communication between family members and effects on children's healthy development.

Toyoake officials argue that adults are vulnerable to digital addiction too. Their proposal asks parents and other adults to examine their own habits alongside those of children, with the same broader aim of protecting rest and time together.

More Than 120 Responses, Most of Them Negative

About four in five of the more than 120 phone calls and emails received during the public consultation expressed negative views. Residents and social media users have challenged both the practicality of a two hour recommendation and the role of local government in setting expectations for private leisure time.

One resident, writing on social media, objected that ordinary entertainment could take longer than the proposed allowance.

Two hours isn't even enough to read a book or watch a movie on my smartphone.

Another social media commenter accepted the intention behind the proposal while rejecting its suggested duration.

I understand their intention, but the two-hour limit is impossible.

Other critics have questioned whether the city has the authority or practical means to monitor or influence personal device use. The city's stated approach is voluntary, with no monitoring or punishment planned.

A minority of residents have supported the ordinance, citing smartphone addiction and concerns about mental health and family life. Supporters argue that an advisory measure can still raise awareness and encourage healthier habits, especially among children. The debate has also attracted coverage from the BBC, The Guardian and The Japan Times, extending attention beyond Toyoake.

Why Officials Are Concerned About Time Online

Toyoake has cited data from Japan's health ministry and the Children and Families Agency in explaining its proposal. A Children and Families Agency survey puts average weekday internet use among young people at just over five hours a day.

That figure helps explain the scale of the city's concern. The survey describes time online, while Toyoake's proposed two hour recommendation concerns recreational device use and leaves out work, study and other necessary activities. Understanding what each measure counts is essential to understanding the proposal.

Japan has experienced a sharp rise in smartphone and internet use over the past decade. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the use of digital services as remote work, online learning and virtual socialising became routine for many households.

Health experts in Japan and abroad have warned about excessive screen time, particularly among children and teenagers. Studies have linked heavy device use with sleep problems, attention difficulties, depression and social isolation. The Japanese health ministry has cited such risks in guidelines recommending limits on recreational screen time and encouraging interaction in person.

The city is focusing on the everyday consequences residents can recognise: a child losing sleep, a student missing school, or family members spending less time talking because their attention remains on a device.

How Toyoake Compares With Earlier Measures

Kagawa Prefecture in western Japan adopted a similar advisory ordinance in 2020 concerning children's gaming time. Toyoake's proposal goes further in the population it addresses, extending its recommendation to residents of every age.

The difference also concerns the activity being discussed. Kagawa's measure focused on gaming among children, while Toyoake is asking residents to consider recreational use of smartphones, tablets and similar devices more broadly.

Governments and health organisations elsewhere have also struggled to address digital addiction while respecting personal freedom. The World Health Organization recognises gaming disorder as a mental health condition, and some countries have introduced rules limiting online gaming or social media use among minors.

Most measures are advisory rather than mandatory, reflecting both the difficulty of enforcement and the importance of individual choice. Toyoake is following that voluntary approach, using an ordinance to encourage residents to set limits themselves.

The relevant milestones span several years:

• 2020: Kagawa Prefecture adopted an advisory ordinance limiting children's gaming time.
• August 29, 2025: Toyoake's proposal remains under debate in the city assembly, following public criticism and expressions of support.
• Late September 2025: The Toyoake assembly is scheduled to vote on the ordinance.
• October 2025: The measure would take effect if approved.

Can a Voluntary Guideline Change Habits?

Behavioural scientists describe guidelines and public awareness campaigns as potentially useful ways to change habits, particularly when accompanied by education and community involvement. Toyoake's proposal relies on residents discussing their routines and deciding whether to adjust them.

A family conversation could address when devices are used, how much time they take up and what activities are being squeezed out. The city's recommendations give that discussion a suggested duration and evening stopping times, while leaving households to make their own decisions.

Experts also caution that a time limit alone may leave the reasons for excessive device use untouched. Stress, loneliness and a shortage of alternative activities can draw people toward their phones. Efforts to change those habits often combine advice with outdoor activities, social events and mental health resources.

Japan's long working hours and academic pressure form part of the challenge. Smartphones can help people complete tasks, but they can also provide a way to escape those pressures. The same device may serve both purposes within a few minutes.

Toyoake is seeking a balance between encouraging healthier routines and preserving personal choice. Whether residents change their behaviour will depend largely on their willingness and ability to act on the recommendations.

A September Vote Will Decide the Next Step

The city assembly is expected to vote in late September. Koki has said he intends to explain the ordinance carefully to residents and consider possible amendments arising from assembly discussions and public feedback.

Approval would allow the measure to take effect in October. Residents would still face no penalties for exceeding two hours of recreational device use or continuing past the recommended evening stopping times.

Officials hope the attention surrounding the proposal will prompt conversations about digital health and voluntary changes in behaviour. Other municipalities in Japan and abroad are watching as communities confront similar tensions between the convenience of connected devices and the time they can consume.

Toyoake's experiment could become a reference point for other cities or remain a local initiative. For its residents, the immediate issue is concrete: an upcoming assembly decision on whether a two hour leisure guideline should become the city's formal advice to every household.

Key Points

• Toyoake, in Aichi Prefecture, proposes that all 69,000 residents limit recreational smartphone and similar device use to two hours daily.
• Work, study, housework and essential tasks would be excluded, along with activities such as online learning and practice for e-sports tournaments.
• The ordinance would be advisory, with no fines, other penalties or monitoring of individual use.
• Elementary school children and younger children would be encouraged to stop by 9 p.m.; older students and adults by 10 p.m.
• About 80% of more than 120 consultation calls and emails expressed negative views.
• Officials cite concerns about sleep, school attendance, health and family communication.
• A city assembly vote is scheduled for late September 2025, with implementation in October if approved.