Mauritius is preparing a significant overhaul of its gambling sector after unveiling a series of reforms in its 2026/27 Budget that will eliminate hotel casino licences, strengthen regulatory oversight and expand electronic tax monitoring across licensed gaming venues.
The planned amendments to the Gambling Regulatory Authority Act will remove hotel casinos as an authorised gambling activity. Definitions relating to hotel casinos, their games, gaming machines and operators will be deleted from the legislation, while the licensing framework governing those venues will be repealed.
The reforms are also designed to increase transparency across the industry through enhanced digital monitoring. Under the new rules, casino and Gaming House operators will be required to connect their servers to the Mauritius Revenue Authority’s Central Electronic Monitoring System. Licensees will also be legally required to keep those systems continuously connected, giving tax authorities real-time access to gaming activity.
Authorities are also raising compliance standards throughout the gambling sector. Financial penalties for operators that breach Gambling Regulatory Authority rules or guidelines will double from a maximum of Rs200,000 to Rs400,000. Operators that fail to maintain proper books and records could face fines of up to Rs100,000 as well as prison sentences of up to two years.
The budget introduces several administrative changes to licensing as well. Applications for new gambling licences will carry a non-refundable processing fee of Rs1,000, while relocating approved bookmaker or totalisator premises will require a Rs5,000 fee. Annual licence fees will now be charged on a calendar-year basis instead of a rolling 12-month period, and statutory deadlines will be introduced for processing licence applications, renewals and fee payments.
Bookmakers offering fixed-odds betting on local horse racing through remote communication will see their licence fee increase from Rs50,000 to Rs75,000. In addition, bookmakers will be allowed to offer fixed-odds betting on foreign horse races outside Mauritius’ domestic racing season upon payment of the required licence fee. Betting operators’ servers and terminals will also be required to connect directly to the Gambling Regulatory Authority’s systems.
The gambling reforms form part of a broader package of economic and tax measures announced in the national budget, which includes changes to corporate taxation, investment incentives and digital compliance requirements across multiple industries.