Public Consultation on Proposed Amendments to the Casino Control Act

Ministry of Home Affairs - Corporate Relations Division MHA

Consultation Period: 09 Jul 2012 - 06 Aug 2012

Status: Closed

Summary

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), Ministry of Finance (MOF), and the Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA) are seeking feedback from the public on the proposed amendments to the Casino Control Act.

Detailed Description

PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE CASINO CONTROL ACT
 
Aim

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), Ministry of Finance (MOF), and the Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA) are seeking feedback from the public on the proposed amendments to the Casino Control Act.

Background

2.       Singapore’s Integrated Resorts (IRs) – Marina Bay Sands (MBS) and Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) – were opened in 2010. Both IRs have gaming facilities as well as non-gaming offerings, such as MICE facilities, celebrity chef restaurants and first-of-its-kind attractions like the Skypark and Universal Studios Singapore. The concept of an IR with its variety of leisure offerings is meant to provide visitors with a quality and distinctive destination experience. Within the larger IR developments, the casinos are a small but essential component and these help to make the entire developments financially sustainable.

3.       Right from the start, the Government has put in place a stringent regulatory regime, tough enforcement measures, and strict social safeguards to address upstream, potential negative spillover effects of the casinos.

Casino Control Act

4.       The Casino Control Act (CCA) came into effect in 2006 before the casinos opened. It provides the main legislative basis for managing the casinos in Singapore. The CCA ensures that: 

a.    Criminal activities associated with casino operations do not take root in Singapore; 
b.    Gaming is conducted honestly; and
c.    Vulnerable persons and society at large are protected from the potential harm of casino gambling.

5.       The IRs have brought about economic benefits and the negative impact of the casinos on the law and order and social aspects are under control. Nonetheless, with the benefit of two years of practical experience, a review of the regulatory regime and the CCA is timely. 

6.        There are five key aspects: Crime, Gaming, Social, Economic and Tax. The amendments aim to:

a.    Better align the legislative framework with the original policy intent of introducing the IRs in Singapore;
b.    Enhance law enforcement levers;
c.  Streamline regulatory requirements and operational processes so that they keep pace with international best practices and industry developments;
d.    Strengthen social safeguards; and
e.    Improve tax administration. 

Proposed Amendments
 
(A) Crime

7.       We will enhance our law enforcement levers to address crime associated with the casinos.

a.  Casino Operators must take appropriate steps to ensure persons within the casino premises do not conduct illegal betting or gaming.

b.  Casino Crimes. The following will be considered casino crimes: (i) past posting (the act of making a bet after the results of the game are known), cheating at table games; (ii) carrying chips worth $10,000 or more outside the boundaries of the designated site; (iii) the possession of counterfeit chips and the materials to make counterfeit chips, and the unlawful interference with gaming equipment within the casino premises and in any part of Singapore. 

(B) Gaming

8.       Amendments will be made to streamline and clarify operational and regulatory processes related to gaming. These will span technical areas such as licensing requirements, operations, and regulation of games and gaming equipment.

a.  Regulatory definitions of an ‘associate’ and ‘indirect controller’ will be updated. Operational empowerments will be clarified. For example, CRA will be empowered to collect security deposits and issue guidelines. CRA officers will also be empowered to record signed statements in the course of carrying out their duties under the Casino Control Act.

b.  The licensing regime of casinos and special employees will be enhanced. The upper limit of the financial penalty which may be imposed in the event of Disciplinary Action being taken against a casino operator will be raised to 10% of total Gross Gaming Revenue from the existing limit of $1 million. CRA will also be empowered to temporarily suspend a special employee in certain situations.

c.  Casino operations and internal controls, as well as the regulation of games and gaming equipment will be streamlined for greater flexibility. For example, certain casino contracts will be allowed to be reported after being entered into within a certain period. Additional time for further investigations into casino contracts may be allowed. The approval processes for new games and game rules will be tweaked to better cater to new gaming technologies.  

d.  In relation to casino patrons, casino operators will be required to give CRA immediate notification of unresolved patron disputes. CRA officers will also be granted search and seizure powers in cases of forfeiture of winnings.

e.  International Market Agent (IMA) Regime. Our IMA regime is designed to ensure a high level of compliance and governance, with a focus on the foreign high rollers. IMAs will not be allowed to target Singaporean Citizens or Permanent Residents (SCPRs). The penalties for illegal IMA activity will be raised. CRA will be empowered to set a cap on commission payable by the casino operators to IMAs. CRA will be empowered to suspend or cancel an IMA licence if it is in the public interest to do so. Onus will also be placed on the casino operators to detect and block unlicensed IMA activity.
f.  Premium Players and Credit Extension. To enhance the robustness of the Premium Players and credit extension regime, SCPR Premium Players will be subject to additional procedural requirements before they may receive credit. Such measures may include a new requirement for Premium Players to draw down the $100,000 qualifying deposit for gaming before the casino operators can extend credit to them.

g.  Data Disclosure. We will be widening existing data provisions such that Government agencies will be able to obtain data, for the purpose of policymaking, from the casino operators. 

(C) Social

9.       We want to protect vulnerable groups from the potential harm of casino gambling. We will continue with our 3 pronged approach which emphasizes:

a.  Self, as individuals must take responsibility for their gambling habits;
b.  Family, as they are best placed to help their own members who have  gambling problems; and
c.  Community. Various stakeholders in the community have a part to play to protect the vulnerable groups. For example, as part of the community, the casino operators should play their part and undertake more responsible gambling initiatives.

10.       To continue to protect vulnerable groups from the potential harm of casino gambling, we will strengthen social safeguards.  

a.  Visit Limit to protect local, financially vulnerable patrons who visit the casinos frequently. As an extension of the existing casino exclusion measures, the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) will be empowered to issue visit limits for local, financially vulnerable patrons who visit the casinos frequently. Families and individuals will also be empowered to apply for a visit limit in addition to the current family and voluntary self-exclusion.  

b.  NCPG Casino Exclusion. We will enhance the powers of the NCPG to issue casino exclusion orders with regard to Family Exclusion Orders where the family member with the gambling problem cannot be located or is uncooperative, or where there is a need to act urgently to protect the family from further severe harm. The NCPG is also to be given powers to require excluded persons to undergo clinical assessment in determining applications for revocation of Family Exclusion Orders and Self Exclusions, where necessary.
c.  Responsible Gambling. Casino Operators will be required to provide MCYS with more details on their Responsible Gambling policies and practices. This would cover areas such as a pre-commitment system, patron education and employee training on problem gambling and responsible gambling. The Casino Operators will be required to benchmark their Responsible Gambling practices against international best practices of other casinos.

d.  Contravention of Social Safeguards.  Deterrence against contravention of social safeguards by casino operators and patrons will be strengthened. We will make it an offence for daily entry levy holders who stay in the casino beyond 24 hours without paying the additional entry levy; and for attempted evasion of entry levy.

(D) Economic

11.        We will be more specific about the IRs’ existing economic obligations in the legislation. The objective is to ensure that the IR operators continue to develop, maintain, and promote the IRs as compelling tourist destinations that meet prevailing market demands and industry standards, so that they can continue to contribute to the tourism industry in Singapore. An Evaluation Panel will be appointed by the Minister for Trade and Industry to give its opinion to CRA on the performance of the IRs, for CRA’s consideration when processing casino licence renewal applications. 

(E) Tax

12.        We will update the Act to facilitate tax administration. The amendments will provide for appointment of Deputy and Assistant Comptrollers of Income Tax and authorise IRAS officers to perform duties under the Act. The time bar period for claim of refund of casino tax, and the data sharing provisions will also be aligned with other Tax Acts. The Minister for Finance is also empowered to prescribe the formula for computing net win and the regulations on the controls needed for tracking of revenue attributed to premium players.

Submission of Comments

13.        We welcome your comments and feedback on the proposed amendments to the Casino Control Act. Please send your comments by 6 Aug  2012, 5pm to the following email address: mha_cca_consultation@mha.gov.sg

14.        To facilitate collation of your feedback, we would like to request that you organize your submissions as follows:

a.  Identify yourself and the organisation you represent (if any), as that would assist in our understanding of the  impact of the proposed changes to different stakeholder groups; 
b.    Component [to indicate whether your comments relate to crime, gaming, social, economic, or tax]; and
c.    Where feasible, parties should identify the specific section of the Bill which they are commenting on.

Summary of responses

15.      We regret that we will not be able to separately address or acknowledge every single comment we receive. However, we will consolidate and publish a summary of the key comments received, together with our responses, on the REACH website after the consultation exercise closes. The summary will maintain confidentiality of the feedback received and we will not disclose the identity of person(s) providing the feedback.

Documents to download

16.       For your convenience, the relevant documents relating to this public consultation exercise can be downloaded below.

a.         Draft CCA (Amendment) Bill
b.         Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

17.       Thank you.

Annex - FAQs [PDF, 47 KB]

Draft CCA (Amendment) Bill [PDF, 453 KB]