Legislation
Dominican Republic – New gaming bill discussed in Dominican Republic’s Senate
By Phil - 22 July 2016
The Standing Committee in the Senate has heard the opinions held by those involved in the gaming industry over a bill which aims to provide stricter control over gambling in the Dominican Republic.
Senators listened to members of Dominica’s betting parlours association (Fenabanca), the Dominican Electronic Lottery (LEIDSA) – the largest electronic lottery licensed by the Dominican Lottery and Dominican Republic lottery operator Loto Real, who all gave their views on the new bill. The bill seeks to regulate gambling, provide strict player protection measures, combat fraud and promote responsible gambling.
The President of Fenabanca, Wilson de los Santos, welcomed the initiative, arguing that the new bill would help eliminate the proliferation of illegal slot parlours, which he explained do not pay taxes, and has led to a spate of bankruptcies amongst licensed operators.
According to data collected by The Directorate General of Internal Taxes (DGII) gaming revenues in the Dominican Republic are dropping year on year amongst fears that illegal gambling is growing. Gaming is an important generator of income for the state. But revenue is dropping due to the rise in illegal gambling, tax evasion and an increasing tax burden on the operator. Operators from December 2012 were forced to impose a 10 per cent tax on prizes which has discouraged payers from gaming and may have led to the surge in illegal gaming establishments.
The committee began discussing a new gaming bill in March 2015 and immediately established that a new gaming board would be created in order to oversee the industry, as according to the President of the Committee Dionis Sánchez, gaming was proliferating “without proper control and supervision.”
There are currently 11 casinos on the island which by law must be located in five star hotels in tourist zones. There are also two large scale slot parlours. However, illegal slot machines have proliferated widely over recent years and there are an estimated 10,000 to 30,000 illegal slot machines located in bars restaurants and small businesses and illegal slot parlours.
