Hotel Check-In Documents for Foreigners in Asia

Why hotels in Asia ask for your passport

When you check into a hotel anywhere in Asia as a foreign guest, the front desk will almost always ask to see your passport, and usually to copy it. This is not the hotel being nosy. Governments require accommodation providers to record who is staying, and for foreign visitors the passport is the document that proves who you are, where you are from and that you entered the country lawfully.

In Japan, the registration rules are explicit: a foreigner with no residence in Japan registers with a passport, and the only exceptions are people who cannot obtain one, who may use a residence card or a special permanent resident certificate instead¹. Foreign residents granted short-term stay status under a special registration scheme present both a passport and a Special Registrant Card⁵. So the physical passport is the default document, and alternatives exist only for narrow categories of people.

Casinos take the same requirement further. Here is what the Seven Luck Casino branches in Korea each require:

The reason is simple: most casinos in Korea admit foreigners only, so the passport does double duty as proof of identity and proof that you are allowed in at all.

The practical takeaway for a trip covering several countries is that your passport is the one document you cannot leave in the hotel safe. You will need it at the front desk on arrival, and again at the casino door even if you are a guest of the resort. If you are planning a wider trip, our page on gambling as a visitor in Asia covers the other documents worth carrying.

Documents hotels accept at check-in

What counts as acceptable identification varies by country and by the type of registration involved. Here is the practical picture.

Japan. The passport is the standard document for foreign visitors. For account-based services, Japanese operators often accept copies rather than originals. Boat Race's Teleboat account system, for example, accepts a copy of a driver's license, a copy of a passport, a copy of a resident register, a seal registration certificate, or a certificate of recorded matters from the alien registration original register⁹. If you submit a passport copy, you must copy the photo side and the page showing your address⁹. Documents such as resident register copies, seal registration certificates and foreigner registration certificates must have been issued within the last six months, and copies are allowed¹⁰.

South Korea. For casino entry, the list of accepted documents is set by regulation. Operators must directly verify one or more of the following for foreigners: a passport, a PT passport (travel certificate), a diplomat ID, a US military ID card, a seaman's book, an alien registration card, an overseas Korean domestic residence report card, or a permanent resident card². Overseas emigrants, a separate category, must show their passport, proof of permanent residency issued by the country they emigrated to (such as a green card), and a copy of their resident registration abstract, among other documents designated by the culture ministry².

Macau. For the official self-exclusion scheme run by the gaming regulator, the DICJ accepts an identity card, a travel document or another document as proof of identity, which reflects the general expectation that visitors carry either their national ID or their passport.

Thailand. Casino regulations there specify that a foreigner must present a passport or an equivalent document issued by their home country¹¹.

Self-exclusion forms. If you ever register for a self-exclusion from a venue, bring identification photos: support guidance suggests taking a couple of passport-size photos for the form so staff can identify you¹².

The short version: carry your original passport everywhere, and keep a spare copy of the photo page and address page in your luggage. The copy will not get you into a casino, but it speeds up account registrations and helps at consulates if the original is lost.

Registration rules at casino resorts

Casino resorts combine hotel check-in with a second, stricter identity check at the gaming floor door. The two checks are separate: being a registered guest of the hotel does not exempt you from showing ID at the casino entrance.

South Korea. Korea has 16 foreigner-only casinos, where a passport is required and Korean nationals are not admitted¹³. The one exception is Kangwon Land, the first casino-style hotel in Korea open to both Korean nationals and overseas visitors¹⁴. At the Paradise casinos, the rules are spelled out in detail. At Walkerhill, City (Incheon) and Busan, first-time foreign customers need a passport (mandatory), plus a domestic residence report card for foreign-national Koreans or an alien registration card, and a certificate of alien registration issued at community centers if needed¹⁵. First-time emigrant customers at the same venues need a passport with verification of recent stamps if necessary, a permanent resident card in any form, and a copy of the resident registration showing the emigration declaration¹⁵. At Paradise Jeju, first-time visitors and membership card holders can show one of: a passport with entry stamp, an alien registration card or overseas Korean residence report card, a US military ID, or a diplomat ID or seaman's book¹⁶. The legal basis is the Tourism Promotion Act and the Jeju casino ordinance¹⁵. Jeju KAL Hotel Casino, the Hyatt Regency casino and Paradise Casino Jeju Grand are all foreigners-only venues¹⁷,⁴,¹⁸, as is Majesta Jeju Casino¹⁹ and Paradise Casino Paradise City, which bars Korean nationals²⁰. Operators are also directed to strengthen nationality screening and the management of customer data²¹, and the enforcement rules require operators to verify the identity of everyone entering the casino premises²².

Japan. Under the IR Development Act, operators must verify identity each time a person enters or leaves the casino gaming area, using the My Number card or, for Japanese people and foreigners without residence in Japan and certain foreign residents, a passport, and must confirm the person is not subject to an entry ban²³. A Diet answer confirms the wider scheme: entry limits, an entry fee and lending restrictions apply to Japanese nationals and foreigners residing in Japan²⁴.

Singapore. Foreigners enter the casinos free of charge, while residents pay a levy²⁵. For chips, Singapore casinos accept payment in cash, chips issued by another casino operator, chip purchase vouchers, credit card, direct debit from a deposit or check cashing account, credit account, or another mode approved by the authority²⁶. One limit applies: chips paid for in another operator's chips equal to or exceeding SGD 10,000 in a single business day are prohibited²⁶. In Korea, by contrast, operators must exchange chips for cash immediately when a customer asks, though the cashier may delay or refuse for customers who did not play or have not repaid credit².

If your trip takes you across a border to reach a casino, our page on crossing a land border to a casino explains the entry stamp side of the same checks.

Macau casino entry: checklist and dress codes

Macau is the easiest casino destination in Asia from a paperwork point of view, but there are still rules at the door.

Opening hours. Casinos in Macau are open 24 hours⁵, and many have restaurants serving international cuisine, so a visit can double as a dining stop⁵.

Who can be turned away. Under Law 10/2012, concessionaires may bar persons they deem unsuitable from entering or remaining in a casino, subject to a non-discrimination principle covering sex, race, nationality, residence, language or religion⁴. In practice this is the legal hook for dress codes and behavior rules. Under Law 16/2001, people carrying weapons, explosive devices or items, or video or audio recording equipment are banned from casinos²⁷, so leave the camera behind when you head to the tables.

Health-era rules, as a lesson in how access can change. During the pandemic period, people wishing to visit Macao casinos had to provide a nucleic acid test certificate proving freedom from COVID-19 infection, undergo a body-temperature check and present a valid green Macao Health Code result, while people entering integrated resorts, hotels and guest houses needed only a temperature check and a valid health code result¹⁸. When cases were detected in late October 2022, people who had spent over half an hour in a casino during the affected days had their health code turned yellow, requiring one daily rapid antigen test declared via the health code plus nucleic acid tests on days 1, 2, 3, 5 and 7, with the code turning green on day 8 after a negative day-7 test¹⁷. Those rules are gone now, but they show how quickly entry conditions at the same venue can shift.

A practical checklist for a first visit:

• Bring your original passport; it is the standard ID for visitors.
• Dress smart casual; venues can refuse entry to anyone deemed unsuitable.
• Do not bring recording equipment into the gaming areas.
• Expect the casino to be busy around Chinese New Year and other peak periods; our page on peak travel periods at casino destinations has the details.

If you are combining Macau with Hong Kong, see getting between Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai for the border crossings.

Vietnam: passport-based casino entry and Corona Phu Quoc

Vietnam runs a two-tier system: foreign passport holders are welcome at licensed casinos, while Vietnamese citizens are admitted only at specific venues under strict conditions.

For foreigners. Decree 03/2017/NĐ-CP allows foreigners and overseas Vietnamese situated abroad with a valid foreign passport to gamble in casinos in Vietnam²⁸. The same decree allows foreigners and Vietnamese people residing overseas with passports licensed by a foreign competent agency to gamble at Vietnam's casinos²⁹. In practice, foreign visitors can enjoy games like sicbo freely in licensed casinos across the country³.

For Vietnamese citizens. The government allowed Vietnamese locals to gamble at two locations under a three-year pilot scheme, the first in Vân Đồn and the other on Phú Quốc³⁰. Of those, Corona Resort & Casino is the one casino that allows both locals and foreign tourists to gamble³, and it permits Vietnamese citizens who meet specific criteria to play³. The authorities have also sought higher fees for locals' entry into casinos, to simplify verifying financial eligibility to gamble³¹. Under a draft decree on casino business, all players, both Vietnamese and foreigners, would be issued electronic ID cards containing personal details, access permissions and expiry dates³¹.

So a foreign visitor's passport is all that is needed at a Vietnamese casino door. For Vietnamese citizens, the only door open is at Corona on Phu Quoc, where entry involves extra documentation and an entry ticket that foreigners do not pay. For the wider picture, see casinos in Vietnam.

Hotel terms of use: what you agree to

When you sign the check-in form or tap through the terms on a resort's app, you are agreeing to more than a room rate. Two points are worth knowing.

Casino access is a separate contract from your room. A Philippine court ruling from 2001 noted that in the Philippines, entry of foreign nationals to the casino is allowed, in a case involving the Heritage Hotel Casino in Manila³². The point for a traveler is that your hotel booking never guarantees casino access; the casino checks your documents independently, and in foreigner-only venues your nationality is part of the check.

Your status can change what you agreed to. Paradise Casino in Korea tells customers who lose their foreign resident status through naturalization or restoration of nationality, and customers who lose overseas residency status, that they are no longer allowed to enter, must inform the company, and bear civil or criminal liability if they enter without notice¹⁵. In other words, the terms you agreed to on your first visit continue to bind you, and the obligation to report a change of status sits with you, not the venue.

Chips are part of the deal too. In Korea, chips must be exchanged for cash immediately upon customer request, with the delay-or-refuse exception noted above². At Paradise Jeju, an overseas migration report confirmation is accepted only if issued within one year¹⁶. High1 Resort posted a notice on the validity period for exchanging casino chips in September 2026, so chip expiry windows are a real thing at some Korean venues; cash out before you leave rather than saving chips as souvenirs.

When resorts close or change access

Access rules are not fixed. Venues close, re-open and change their requirements, and a trip planned around a casino can be derailed by a notice posted a week before you fly.

Sudden hotel closures. In late October 2022, the MGM Cotai hotel stopped accepting new guests until further notice³³, during the same period as the health-code measures described above. A resort being open for gaming does not mean its hotel is taking bookings.

Holiday closures at racing parks. If your trip includes Korean racing, note the schedules. LetsRun Park Seoul closes every Monday and Tuesday³⁴, and Seoul's race meeting runs on Saturday and Sunday only, not Friday³⁵, with 16 races on Friday cards elsewhere and 17 on Saturday and Sunday³⁵. Korea Racing Authority branch offices operate as leisure space for racing fans on racing days, Friday to Sunday, and as community, rest and culture space for local residents on Wednesday and Thursday³⁶. The Busan-Gyeongnam park announced closure from September 21 to 29 for Chuseok in 2026, so public holidays can shut venues that are normally open on those weekdays.

What to do about it. Check the venue's own notice page in the week before you travel, especially around Korean holidays, Chinese New Year and Japanese Golden Week. If a resort hotel is closed, casinos in the same complex usually stay open, but you may need a day trip rather than a stay. Our pages on casino resort access for non-guests and visiting LetsRun Park Seoul cover what you can still use when you are not staying the night.

The pattern across all of this is consistent: your original passport is the one document that opens every door, from the hotel front desk to the casino floor, and everything else, copies, registration cards, entry stamps, is a supporting detail that varies by country and venue. Carry the passport, keep a copy in your bag, and check the venue notices before you go.