Singapore Announces Proposed Amendments to Gambling Laws Including Permitting Social Gambling in the Family Home

The announcement, made through a press release on the MHA website, goes on to outline several key changes that will affect the local gambling industry.

These proposed amendments include:

• a new legal definition of what constitutes gambling activity
• more clarity on the difference between gaming and gambling
• a new penalty system that will see repeat offenders face harsher sanctions

Social gambling has been a hot topic in Singapore in recent years and the latest efforts by the MHA should finally provide clarity on what has been considered a gray area for quite some time.

In the press release, the MHA stated:

Social gambling among family and friends will thus be explicitly permitted under legislation. We will take strong enforcement action against syndicates which exploit this exemption to conduct illegal gambling activities.”

On this note the department added:

The department has also chosen to target video and arcade games that offer mystery boxes as prizes. These claw machines can sometimes offer lucrative prizes such as smartphones and gaming consoles that can often be traded for a cash prize. According to the MHA, these machines can lead to issues such as problem gambling. As a result, the department is proposing an SG$100 cap for all mystery boxes limiting the value of prizes.

With regards to the legal definition of gambling, the MHA has proposed a new wording of the definition that will limit any loopholes for future gambling products, particularly those that are online.

While the MHA hopes to have any proposed amendments finalized and put into place as soon as possible, the department will wait until the public consultation period has ended on August 10th before making any changes to existing legislation.

Ciaran McEneaney

Ciaran has been working within the Gambling Industry as a deep analyst since 2019. His deep knowledge and understanding of all the gambling regulations, and processes makes him a true asset, and an always valuable point of view for Gambling Industry News, allowing us to cover every topics from a brand new perspective.