{"id":31031,"date":"2022-06-22T06:40:29","date_gmt":"2022-06-22T09:40:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?p=31031"},"modified":"2026-04-23T07:32:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T10:32:45","slug":"macaus-gaming-law-amendment-bill-approved","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/macaus-gaming-law-amendment-bill-approved","title":{"rendered":"Macau\u2019s gaming law amendment bill approved"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The new legislation will replace the legislation that’s been in force since 2001, introducing several changes to increase the oversight of gaming concessionaires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Macau.- Despite fears of a possible delay due to a new outbreak of Covid-19 cases in the city<\/a>, Macau’s final draft gaming law amendment bill has been approved by the Legislative Assembly. It received 32 votes in favour and only one against.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new law introduces\u00a0several changes on the duration of casino licences<\/strong>, new taxes and increased oversight of gaming concessionaires. The bill allows\u00a0up to six gaming concessions<\/a>\u00a0with a length of 10 years with the possibility of a 3-year extension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It requires operators to pay a direct gaming tax of 35 per cent and a flat tax of 5 per cent for social welfare and urban development in Macau \u2013 an increase of 1 per cent. The 5 per cent indirect tax can be reduced if\u00a0operators manage to attract more foreign players<\/a>\u00a0to their casinos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Major changes require casinos to be run on assets\u00a0owned by the gaming operators<\/strong>. However, authorities have extended the original\u00a0three-year grace period\u00a0<\/strong>to allow satellite casinos to resolve ownership issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Casino operators are also required to have\u00a0a registered capital of at least MOP5bn<\/a>\u00a0during the validity of their licences. The concessionaire and anyone holding more than 5 per cent of the operator’s shares must not own, directly or indirectly, the capital of any other concessionaire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government will take into account the franchisee’s business activities, their investments in non-gaming elements and the overall economy of Macau when determining the number of gaming tables and slot machines allowed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Casino operators could face fines of up to MOP5m (US$620,400)<\/strong> or even the revocation of licences if they fail to report major financial decisions that carry a value higher than the total investment input pledged in their concession contracts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See also: <\/strong>Feature: what\u2019s in store for the future of the gaming industry in Macau?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Macau casino operators welcome the new gaming bill<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

All six of Macau casino concessionaires have issued statements welcoming the approval of the bill by the Legislative Assembly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd<\/strong> said it will continue to fully support Macau\u2019s sustainable development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MGM China <\/strong>stated: “We wish to express our sincere gratitude to the Legislative Assembly and the Macau SAR government for their efforts in accomplishing the passage of the gaming law smoothly and successfully.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SJM Holdings Ltd<\/strong>\u00a0said it was confident in “the company\u2019s continued future presence in Macau, in contribution to reinforcing Macau\u2019s positioning as a world centre of tourism and leisure.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wilfred Wong Ying Wai<\/strong>, Sands China president, said: “The company is once again very grateful to the SAR government for carrying out extensive consultations throughout the entire legislative process, which led to a consensus among the general public.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wynn Macau Ltd\u00a0<\/strong>issued a statement praising the government and the Legislative Assembly for making efficient process and for collaborative engagement with all of the stakeholders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd<\/strong>, the company said that “it will continue to promote economic diversification to further strengthen Macau\u2019s position as a world centre of tourism and leisure.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The new legislation will replace the legislation that’s been in force since 2001, introducing several changes to increase the oversight of gaming concessionaires.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":176,"featured_media":16477,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"Macau's Legislative Assembly has approved the final draft gaming law amendment bill, introducing significant changes to the regulatory framework for gaming concessionaires. Key provisions include a 10-year concession term with a possible 3-year extension, increased direct and indirect gaming taxes, stringent ownership requirements, and enhanced government oversight tied to non-gaming investments and foreign player attraction.","focusai_entities":"Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd, MGM China, SJM Holdings Ltd, Wilfred Wong Ying Wai, Sands China, Wynn Macau Ltd, Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd, Legislative Assembly, Macau SAR government","focusai_location":"Macau","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (1.0), regulator (1.0), compliance_legal (1.0), operator_casino (1.0), investor_analyst (1.0), journalist_researcher (0.9)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"License Extension Criteria?","query":"What are the specific quantitative and qualitative criteria the Macau SAR government will employ to assess non-gaming investments and overall economic contribution for the 3-year concession extension?"},{"label":"Cross-Ownership Impact?","query":"How will the new cross-ownership restrictions, particularly for shareholders holding over 5% in multiple concessionaires, necessitate divestitures or restructuring within existing corporate and capital structures?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[16338,154,158],"tags":[23911,23906],"class_list":["post-31031","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-east-asia-news","category-legislation-news","category-slider-home","tag-gambling-regulation","tag-macau-casinos"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31031","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/176"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31031"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31031\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31050,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31031\/revisions\/31050"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16477"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31031"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31031"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31031"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}