Steam updated its Subscriber Agreement on April 21, 2026, adding a new rule for Japanese users: any unspent Steam Wallet funds will expire six months after they were added, as required by Japanese law. Steam also added a note telling Japanese users they can check their wallet balances and expiration dates in their account settings. The revision date in the document was updated from September 18, 2025 to April 20, 2026.
Japanese Steam users now face a 6-month expiration window on any Steam Wallet funds they add — unused funds will be forfeited after that period. This is a direct financial impact: money added to a Steam Wallet that sits unspent for six months will be lost. You can log into your Steam account and check your Steam Wallet to review your current balance and the expiration dates for your funds.
If you are a Steam user in Japan and you add money to your Steam Wallet but don't spend it within 6 months, you will lose that money.
Japanese Steam users can permanently lose unspent Wallet funds after 6 months, representing a direct financial risk for anyone who adds money to their Steam account and forgets to spend it. This is a legally mandated change, so there is no opt-out — users must actively manage their balances.
Unused Steam Wallet funds for Japanese subscribers now expire 6 months after deposit, resulting in forfeiture of unspent balances.
Steam added a disclosure informing Japanese users they can check fund balances and expiration dates directly in their Steam account.
The document's last-updated date was changed from September 18, 2025 to April 20, 2026.
ConductAtlas Policy Archive Entity: Steam | Document: Steam Subscriber Agreement | Record: CA-C-000591 Captured: 2026-04-21 06:13:33 UTC URL: https://conductatlas.com/change/2026-04-21-steam-steam-subscriber-agreement-591/ Accessed: May 2, 2026
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Steam has added a jurisdiction-specific fund expiration policy for Japanese subscribers, requiring that unspent Steam Wallet balances expire six months after deposit, citing compliance with Japanese law (likely the Funds Settlement Act, Act No. 59 of 2009, which governs prepaid payment instruments). This change is scoped to Japan and does not alter obligations for users in other jurisdictions. Organizations operating in Japan that integrate Steam or advise Japanese consumers on digital purchases should note the financial impact. No immediate action is required for non-Japan operations, but Japan-facing compliance teams should confirm alignment.
1. Japan Funds Settlement Act (資金決済に関する法律, Act No. 59 of 2009), Article 20 et seq. — governs prepaid payment instruments (前払式支払手段) issued in Japan, including expiration and refund obligations for prepaid digital wallets. Steam's 6-month expiration clause is directly tied to compliance with this statute.
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ConductAtlas provides verified policy intelligence sourced directly from platform documents. All analysis is intended to support, not replace, legal and compliance review. Record CA-C-000591.
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