Macau: government income from junkets drops 24%

Junkets accounted for only 46 per cent of last year’s GGR and paid US$37 million in taxes on commissions. 

Macau.- The tax revenue that the Macau government obtains from junkets dropped 24 per cent year-on-year in 2019, the authorities informed this Monday.  

Junkets paid a total of MOP299 million (US$37.4 million) in taxes on commissions in 2019, below the government’s forecast of MOP360 million (US$45 million).

The information was provided in a budget execution report presented to the Legislative Assembly on Monday, MNA reported.  

The Macau government collected MOP112.7 billion (US$14.11 billion) overall in gaming taxes in 2019, which was 0.7 per cent less than in 2018.

Junkets represented only 46.2 per cent of overall gross gaming revenues (GGR) in Macau last year, down from 54.8 per cent in 2018. 

Junkets pay a 5 per cent tax on commissions or other fees, and receive a share of revenue from casinos for bringing in VIPs. The standard commission is usually no higher than 1.25 per cent on rolling chip turnover. 

The number of VIP promoters in Macau has been falling for about six years, and junket licences in 20219 fell by 8.3 per cent year-on-year, according to Gaming Inspection and Co-ordination Bureau (DICJ) 

China’s recent crackdown on money transfers to the gambling sector could contribute to a deeper fall in Macau’s junket business.