No, it doesn't occur here. Whether it would be able to cope with our climate is also questionable, it occurs naturally in climates with far hotter, more humid summers than here.

Resin

Resin: Japanese Beetles occur in the Eastern U.S. from Maine to Georgia, and West to Minnesota and Louisiana. Isolated infestations now occur in many states West of the Mississippi, as far west as Colorado.

I have a Rose-grower friend in Ontario, Canada, who tells me they are also present there, and are death on Roses.

I don't know whether ALL of these locations have hotter and more humid Summers than the warmest regions of the U.K.--possibly they do. I would still keep a vigil for JBs--they're horrific, and eat any and all plant material, and nothing seems to bother them. For example, the Oxalates in Rhubarb leaves are a deterrent to other insects, but JBs readily eat them without incident.

Two insect parasites of JBs and two pathogens have been introduced at different locations in the U.S., as an attempt at natural control.

Although the Japanese Beetle certainly thrives in hot conditions, I'm not sure this is the major factor behind its absence in the UK. It is also missing in areas of Europe with continental climates similar to the eastern US. The main reason it isn't a pest here is probably that it has never gained a foothold (other than in the Azores, where it probably arrived with US military personnel or supplies) and is now high on the various quarantine lists.

Incidentally, everywhere in the 48 contiguous states, with the exception of a few mountain tops and possibly the coolest PNW coasts, is far warmer than any British summer. Relative humidity is generally lower than Britain except in the most sweaty parts of the south, although warmer temperatures mean the total atmospheric moisture load is higher, at least in the east. The reason everyone rattles on about the humidity in the south and east USA is partly that everyone likes to rattle on about something, but also because 70% humidity is fairly comfortable on a 70F English afternoon every now and then, but completely unbearable in Atlanta with a sub-tropical sun at 90F for week after week.

Japanese beetles in my garden!!

Nottingham area

noticed these buggers last year shortly after moving to new house when they appeared and devoured my rose just when it started flowering, at first i assumed they were native to the nearby woods, however a little internet research led me to suspect these were my problem.
I put it to the back of my mind as they werent known in uk (and it seems i am still the only person here with them)they destroyed anything that grew,

a few weeks back i ran into a grub whilst potting up another plant which in retrospect is identical to the one pictured on Jap beetle Wikipedia page, though mine dont 100% ressemble any pic of adult i am now convinced

they really are retarded fliers last year i found loads just flew into puddles/ buckets of water

anyways this morning i looked out and my whole lawns shimmering with them flying into each other and humping like mad!!

sorry for the unstructured rant but please be warned these things are a real pain and i dont know what to do

hi i live in northampton and have found these jap.bugs in my garden i have never seen these before i spent a long time browsing uk bugs only for someone to sugest these, and i must say after a lot of checking they do seem very similar.they do fly into glass windows and when you try to move them off bushes they just drop to the ground.they just appear midday and stay around for about 2/4 hours then there gone till the next day they cover the grass completly.anyone know how to get rid please.

Sure they aren't Cockchafers? These (especially the larvae) look fairly similar, and are native to Britain.

Resin

I had never heard of these until I posted to veg garden forum!!! on moving to the US, my garden is swamped with the buggers, I moved from the SE coastal tip of Kent, UK to the northern coast of CT,USA and it gets sooo cold here but they hide under rock presumably for warmth and have been climbing higher in the soil since it warmed up!!, I kill them and the veg plot is free as fair as I can guess! no plant fatalilties for 3 weeks but I bet my grass is hootching with them to set up the next sorry cycle!!!

I found a Japanese beetle at work in Stafford Uk i have pictures on my phone, the bluish green head and brown body, plus the exposed wings at the edges of its shell looking like feathers. can anyone tell me if this is a notifiable pest