Philippine president announces shutdown of all POGOs

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr recently announced the shutdown of all offshore casinos, the sites known as Philippine Offshore Gambling Operators, or POGOs¹. The announcement was reported on 10 September 2024, in coverage of the regional gambling market¹. No date for the shutdown, no figure for the number of operators affected and no detail of how the closure would be carried out have been reported¹.

POGOs operate within the Philippines and cater mostly to the Chinese market¹. The announcement comes as Thailand's government is devising legislation that would permit the construction of "entertainment complexes" that will boast casinos, hotels, restaurants, convention centers, and entertainment venues¹. Experts already estimate that the introduction of Thai casino complexes could boost the country's tourism revenue by $12 billion¹. The planned Thai casinos would be spread through the country's main tourist hubs¹:

• two planned for Bangkok
• one in Chiang Mai
• one in Phuket
• one likely built somewhere in the Eastern Economic Corridor

Under the Thai plans, both tourists and Thai residents will be permitted to enter and gamble at the casino, but Thai citizens will have to pay an entry fee of $215, while admission to foreign visitors will be free¹. Gambling has been officially banned in Thailand since the passing of the country's Gambling Act in 1935 and was strictly prohibited even before then¹. One of the main proponents of the gambling legislation was former prime minister Srettha Thavisin, who was dismissed on 14 August this year, so the legislation may now face difficulty as it makes its way through parliament, although some governmental figures still support its passing¹.

The Philippine gaming regulator estimated last year that the country's gambling revenue would at least double by 2028¹. With a potential Thai gambling market to compete with, whether this will be attained is no longer clear¹. An impressive 1.2 million people visited the Philippines during the first two months of 2024, with South Korea remaining the country's top source of tourism, accounting for 28.50% of the total¹. Given that South Koreans are generally not allowed to gamble in the casinos located within their country, it can be assumed that many of these tourists used the Philippines gambling facilities while here¹. Thailand welcomed over 28.15 million people in 2023, and since March 2024, both Chinese and Thai tourists have been able to visit each other's countries freely, without needing a visa¹. An estimated eight million Chinese tourists will visit Thailand by the end of the year¹.

What it means for players

The announcement concerns POGOs, the offshore operators licensed in the Philippines that serve mostly Chinese customers¹. It does not, on the reporting available, change the rules for people gambling in the Philippines itself, and no enforcement date or transition period has been reported¹. Offshore sites remain available to Philippine and Chinese gamblers, as well as other Asian markets¹. For players in the region, the practical question is where licensed offshore operations will be based if the Philippine industry closes and Thailand's casino legislation passes; that legislation is still being devised and has not been approved¹.

What happens next

Thailand's gambling legislation must still make its way through parliament, and its passage is uncertain after the dismissal of former prime minister Srettha Thavisin on 14 August 2024¹. No timetable for the Philippine shutdown has been reported¹.

For background on the Philippine market, see The Philippines' Ban on Offshore Gaming (POGOs), Can I Gamble in the Philippines? and Can I Play at Online Casinos in the Philippines?. Regional context is in Crackdowns on Offshore Online Gambling Hubs in Asia and Online Gambling Hubs in Asia and What Their Shutdown Means for Players. For the Thai side, see Can I Gamble in Thailand?.