The Dominican Republic’s Senate is analysing a bill that would put the National Lottery in charge of regulating and overseeing all games of chance in the country. The move would consolidate a sector currently split between different state bodies and a large informal market.
The proposal would turn the Lotería Nacional into a decentralised public entity with financial and administrative autonomy. It would gain powers to authorise, supervise and sanction lotteries, lottery banks, sports betting, casinos and other gambling products.
The initiative comes as the government pushes ahead with a National Regularisation Plan for betting shops and lottery outlets, reactivated in April via Decree 197‑26. The plan seeks to bring thousands of unregistered points of sale into the licensed system and under tighter tax control.
Centralising oversight in the National Lottery is intended to simplify a patchwork of rules and close long‑standing enforcement gaps, especially in the “bancas” lottery segment. Backers say a single regulator would make it easier to align licensing, compliance and tax collection and strengthen coordination with the tax authority and other agencies.
The National Lottery and its consultative council have previously backed reform efforts that give the institution a clearer mandate across all gambling verticals. They argue the changes would improve market integrity and consumer protection while modernising the country’s regulatory model.
For operators, the bill would mean dealing with one primary regulator across product lines, but under stricter oversight and more consistent standards. If approved, the legislation would mark a significant shift in how the Dominican gambling industry is organised, with the National Lottery at the centre of licensing, supervision and enforcement.
The announcement comes as the country is moving ahead with a number of other initiatives aimed at improving oversight. Casino and slot-hall operators in the Dominican Republic faced a 14 May 2026 deadline to file their first sworn suitability declarations with the Casino and Gambling Directorate inside the Ministry of Finance and Economy, under External Circular MHE-2026-011897 of 13 April 2026. The deadline comes from Resolution 161-2026 and was set at 30 working days from the date of the resolution.
Meanwhile, the Senate Finance Committee is working on the merger of two bills overhauling the country’s gambling legal framework.
At the same time the executive’s June 2025 gambling bill—proposing the creation of a General Directorate of Gambling (DGJA) within the Ministry of Finance, with licensing authority over fifteen modalities ranging from casinos and slot halls to online betting, electronic bingo, and charitable raffles—is proceeding on a separate track.
The post Dominican Republic bill would put National Lottery in charge of all gambling appeared first on G3 Newswire.
The Dominican Republic’s Senate is analysing a bill that would put the National Lottery in charge of regulating and overseeing all games of chance in the country. The move would consolidate a sector currently split between different state bodies and a large informal market. The proposal would turn the Lotería Nacional into a decentralised public…
The post Dominican Republic bill would put National Lottery in charge of all gambling appeared first on G3 Newswire.