The Macau Legislative Assembly Second Standing Committee today discussed the amendment of Law 16/2001, widely known as the “Macau Gaming Law,” with various government representatives, including the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lei Wai Nong, and the Director of the Macau Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ), Adriano Ho. During the meeting, government officials explained to Legislative Council members the revised text of the Macau Gaming Law and mentioned that the government intends to introduce tax concessions designed to encourage the recruitment of “foreign” customers to bet in Macau’s casinos. IAG understands that in this context “foreign” means customers from outside greater China – that is outside the mainland, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
At a media briefing after the meeting between The Second Standing Committee and the government representatives, Committee Chairman Andrew Chan Chak Mo relayed that “initially, the government hopes the concessionaires will start recruiting foreign customers. If they bring in foreign customers who contribute to the gaming tax collected by the Macau government, the government can, based on its data and the advice of the Gaming Commission (CESJFA), decide how much to reduce the tax by.”
The CESJFA is a body comprised of the Chief Executive; the Secretaries for Economy and Finance, Administration and Justice, Security and Transport and Public Works; the Director of DICJ and other senior government officials. It conducts research on the future development and management of the gaming industry and formulates policies regarding gaming in Macau.
Chan explained that the main reason for the amendment is the tightening of offshore gaming laws in mainland China, making it “difficult” for mainland visitors to come to Macau to gamble. The government also wishes to position Macau as a world center of tourism and leisure.
The government is not proposing to reduce the special gaming tax of 35% levied on gross gaming revenue, but one or both of two other compulsory charges levied under Article 22 of the Macau Gaming Law.
The first is an amount not exceeding 2% of GGR (currently levied at 1.6%) to a public foundation whose purpose is to promote, develop or study cultural, social, economic, educational, scientific, academic and charitable activities — currently the Macao Foundation.
The second compulsory charge is an annual amount not exceeding 3% of GGR for the development of the city, the promotion of tourism and the provision of social security. This amount is currently levied at 2.4% for five of Macau’s six concessionaires, the exception being SJM, which pays 1.4% in recognition of various community initiatives such as annually dredging the waterway between Macau peninsular and Taipa.
For more information on the taxation of gaming in Macau, see this article.
