You are using an outdated browser and your browsing experience will not be optimal. Please update to the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. Install Microsoft Edge

January 16, 2025

Thailand’s Cabinet Approves Principles of the Draft Entertainment Complex Act

Subscribe to Updates

On January 13, 2025, Thailand’s cabinet approved in principle the draft Entertainment Complex Act, as proposed by the Ministry of Finance. This landmark legislative proposal, which would allow casinos as part of larger “entertainment complexes,” will now proceed through further parliamentary review and approval.

Key provisions of the draft act are described below.

  • Corporate structure: Entertainment complexes must be operated by Thai-registered limited companies or public limited companies with a minimum paid-up capital of THB 10 billion. Directors of the licensed entity must be individuals and have the qualifications and none of the prohibited characteristics specified in the draft act. The draft act does not impose restrictions on foreign-majority ownership structures; however, it is worth monitoring whether any amendments addressing this matter are introduced during the legislative process.
  • Operating conditions: Each entertainment complex must be located in an area designated under a royal decree. It must also include at least four types of entertainment businesses listed in the annex to the draft act (e.g., shopping mall, hotel, sports stadium, amusement park), along with a casino. The allocation of casino space must comply with regulations to be specified at a later date.
  • Licensing conditions: Licenses will be valid for 30 years, renewable in increments of up to 10 years. The license issuance fee is THB 5 billion, the annual fee is THB 1 billion, and the renewal fee is THB 5 billion. The Entertainment Complex Policy Committee, chaired by the prime minister, will review and approve applications.
  • Online gambling restrictions: Licensees are prohibited from offering gambling through internet-connected systems or electronic devices that allow access from outside the casino premises.
  • Labor requirements: Thai and foreign employee ratios must adhere to prescribed regulations.
  • Land privileges: Lease agreements for land use are limited to 50 years. Renewal is permitted for up to 49 additional years, starting from the end of the initial term.
  • Entry fee for Thai nationals: Thai nationals must register and pay a fee of THB 5,000 per visit to access casino facilities.

Legislative Process and Timeline

As this matter continues to be widely reported on in the press, it is worth keeping in mind the stages that the draft Entertainment Complex Act has left to go through:

  • Council of State review: The cabinet will submit the amended draft to the Council of State within the next few weeks.
  • Second cabinet review and approval: After review by the Council of State, if no further comments are made, the bill will be resubmitted to the cabinet for final approval—expected to occur possibly around late February or early March 2025.
  • House of Representatives deliberation: Once approved, the bill will proceed to the House of Representatives for a deliberation period that may last for up to 180 days. The deliberation period comprises three readings.
  • Senate review: After passage by the House of Representatives, the bill will be submitted to the Senate for three additional readings, which may take up to 60 days.
  • Royal assent: Upon Senate approval, the bill will be forwarded to the king for royal assent and published in the Government Gazette.

The exact timing of these stages may vary widely, but passage of the draft act likely will not be possible until at least the second half of 2025.

For more details on the draft Entertainment Complex Act, or on any aspect of gaming regulations in Thailand, please contact Tilleke & Gibbins at [email protected].

Related Professionals

Industries

Technology

Practices

Corporate/M&A

Real Estate

Location

RELATED INSIGHTS​ 

July 31, 2022
Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced three new regulatory requirements, which primarily require digital asset business operators to provide investors with training or a knowledge test on cryptocurrencies and to disclose information about the quality of their service and IT usage capacity. The amended SEC notification detailing these new obligations was promulgated on July 1, 2022; however, the measures come into effect separately, as detailed below. Training or Testing on Cryptocurrency From August 30, 2022, cryptocurrency exchanges, brokers, and dealers must provide guidance and education to their clients on basic asset allocation suitable to their capacity. These types of digital asset business operators must also provide for training or a knowledge test on cryptocurrency. The content should at least cover cryptocurrency, blockchain technology, digital wallets, and an overview of the market and investments. The following types of clients are exempted from these requirements: Existing clients of the digital asset business operators before July 1, 2022; New clients of the operator who already have experience investing in cryptocurrency before using the service of the business operator; and Institutional investors, ultra-high-net-worth investors, and high-net-worth investors. If the clients are legal entities other than those mentioned above, their representatives or appointed persons are required to undergo training or testing. The training or knowledge test is a prerequisite to using a digital asset business operator’s services. Operators are not allowed to provide their services to clients who do not undergo training or testing. Disclosure of Service Quality and IT Usage Capacity From January 1, 2023, cryptocurrency/digital token exchanges, brokers, and dealers are required to disclose to the SEC information about the quality of their services (including any technological errors and complaints from clients), and their IT usage capacity. For more information about the latest SEC rules and regulations for digital assets,
Read More
July 25, 2022
Vietnam’s current Law on E-Transactions was passed in 2005 and has been effective since March 1, 2006. This law is considered a framework law, developed based on the Model Law on E-Commerce of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). According to the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC), over the past 17 years, the implementation and application of e-transactions has shown significant evolution in certain areas demanding high levels of international integration, such as banking and e-commerce, but has faced difficulties in other areas due to a lack of detailed guidance. In addition, with the strong growth and breakthrough development of digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, biometrics, and blockchain, and in the context of the ongoing Industrial Revolution 4.0 and the development of digital government, digital economy, and digital society, the 2005 Law on E-Transactions has revealed its shortcomings. Therefore, the government of Vietnam has entrusted the MIC to take the lead in drafting a new Law on E-Transactions, which will replace the old 2005 law in order to meet the country’s development needs. Accordingly, the MIC published a Draft Law on E-Transactions (“Draft Law”) for public consultation from May 4 to July 4, 2022. The latest accessible version of the Draft Law at the time of writing is Version 4. The effective date of the Draft Law is still not yet determined, though this law is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly for its review and comments in October 2022 and approval in May 2023. The following are some key contents of the Draft Law: 1. Scope of Application Unlike the current law, which explicitly excludes certain areas such as the issuance of certificates of land use rights and marriage certificates from the scope of application, the Draft Law attempts
Read More
July 19, 2022
On June 23, 2022, Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) opened a public hearing period on regulatory controls for initial coin offering (ICO) portals that serve as financial advisors to digital token issuers. The proposed measures aim to prevent conflicts of interest; allow ICO portals to outsource certain functions; and establish additional notification obligations for ICO portals. The public hearing is open for general comments until July 23, 2022, and the new legislation is expected to be issued soon after that. During the public hearing period, any interested parties can comment on the SEC’s proposed principles. The key proposed points are outlined below. Conflicts of Interest Similar to SEC-approved financial advisors for securities offerings, ICO portals must be clear of conflicts of interest when representing issuers in a coin offering. According to the draft regulation, the following conflicts of interest are prohibited: The ICO portal (and certain individuals as specified by the SEC) directly or indirectly holds a prohibited amount of shares in the issuer, its affiliates, or its subsidiaries. If the issuer is not a listed company, any shareholding or portion thereof is prohibited. If the issuer is a listed company on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), the shares held by the ICO platform may not total more than five percent of the total voting rights. The issuer (and certain individuals as specified by the SEC) directly or indirectly holds shares in the ICO portal in any amount if the ICO portal is not a listed company, or totaling more than five percent of the voting rights if the ICO portal is listed on the SET. Any of the ICO portal’s directors or executives, or the head of the department responsible for screening the ICO project, is also a director in the issuer. The ICO portal has
Read More
June 30, 2022
On May 30, 2022, Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it would start regulating ready-to-use utility tokens, a type of digital token that had previously been exempted from the SEC’s approval and regulatory control. A public forum was open for comments from various stakeholders until June 29, 2022, and the draft regulation is expected to be issued soon. So far, the SEC has only supervised the issuance of not-ready-to-use utility tokens—digital tokens with the underlying right to acquire specific goods or services, which cannot be utilized upon issuance but at a later date. Due to the growing digital asset industry and lack of regulatory control, ready-to-use utility tokens have become more popular and many are listed for trading in digital asset exchanges. The SEC claimed that it is now necessary to regulate ready-to-use utility tokens as some issuers appeared to be exploiting the regulatory loophole to manipulate the price and supply of these tokens in both the primary and secondary markets, while providing insufficient data disclosure to investors. The SEC’s proposed principles include the following key points: Pre-Approval Requirements The same pre-approval requirement applicable to not-ready-to-use utility tokens will apply to ready-to-use utility tokens which an issuer intends to list on a digital asset exchange. This means that the issuer must proceed with the standard formalities, i.e., obtaining prior approval from the SEC, filing a draft prospectus, and offering the approved tokens via a SEC-approved ICO portal operator only. The SEC offers a fast-track (15 days) approval for qualifying ready-to-use utility tokens, which are those with plain-vanilla characteristics; with an offering price corresponding to the value of the underlying goods/services; for which the supply of goods and services does not vary with the price of the tokens (i.e., fixed coins); and which are not intended to be
Read More