House panel approves bill banning POGOs

The House committee on games and amusements approved House Bill No. 5082 and House Resolution No. 1197 on Monday, February 12, both seeking to prohibit Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) in the country¹. The committee, chaired by Cavite Rep. Antonio Ferrer, approved the measures unanimously, subject to style and inclusive of recommendations and amendments, during a public hearing⁴. HB 5082 was filed by Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. and HR 1197 by Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez².

HB 5082 would prohibit "any person or entity to conduct online games of chance or sporting events via the internet using a network and software or program, exclusively to offshore authorized players within Philippine territory"². Rodriguez said the government can no longer regulate its way out of the problems associated with the industry³.

Regulator PAGCOR, which renamed the licensees Internet Gaming Licensees in the last quarter of 2023, told the panel it was already strictly regulating the firms and expressed reservations about a ban². PAGCOR chair Alejandro Tengco said the reforms had produced positive gains and that "the crimes have definitely been addressed"⁴. He said the number of licensees fell to 75 as of end-2023 from close to 300 in 2019, and that at its peak the industry generated P7 billion in license fees, against P5.2 billion from the smaller pool². PAGCOR revenues from POGOs were 5 to 6 percent of the agency's total income, he said².

Reported figures on the industry's economic weight differ between accounts:

Tax collections reached P7.38 billion in 2021, below P12.46 billion in 2020 and P14.44 billion in 2019¹.

Separately, Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto ordered the shutdown of POGOs, e-games and e-bingo in the city on Friday, February 9, with police assistance¹. Sotto said 18 e-games and e-bingo operators did not heed Pasig City Ordinance 55 Series of 2022, under which more than 20 online gambling establishments were told to cease operations by end-2023 when their permits expired¹. He said PAGCOR filed a temporary restraining order against the city's decision, which was denied, and the case is on appeal¹. PCSO lottery outlets are not included in the closures¹.

What it means for players

The House measures are approvals at committee level, not law, so POGO operations remain subject to existing licensing rules for now. The Pasig closures apply to POGOs, e-games and e-bingo inside that city; PCSO lottery outlets there are unaffected¹. Players outside Pasig are not covered by the city order. The status of PAGCOR-licensed Internet Gaming Licensees, and of the appeal against Pasig's shutdown, has not been finally resolved in the reports. Background on the sector is in our guide to the Philippines' ban on offshore gaming (POGOs) and on whether you can gamble in the Philippines; the wider regional picture is in gambling laws in Asia.

What happens next

The two measures now move forward in the House process; no floor vote date has been reported. The Pasig case remains on appeal after the temporary restraining order was denied¹. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has said he needed a "good reason" to outlaw all POGO operations, saying issues with the hubs are caused by illegal operators³.