Armenian Government Approves New Casino License Rules

The local government approved changes to the casino regulations and the licensing process

The government of Armenia has recently approved a measure that enacts changes to the casino regulations, as well as the licensing process: new investors must place a certain amount of money to develop a casino in the country.

Under the new rules an investor or a group of investors will receive a license for the construction and operation of a casino, if they place a AMD40-billion ($83.5 million) price tag on their development project.

The changes are propelled by Armenian Finance Minister Vardan Aramyan. During a meeting of the government, the official pointed out that interested developers will be able to proceed with their plans, if they are ready to commit to major investment. However, he explained that if a group of investors bids for a casino, the license will be issued only to one of the participants in the consortium.

With very few exceptions, land-based casinos are allowed in four specially designated areas around Armenia, with those being Jermuk, Meghri, Sevan, and Tsaghkadzor.

However, casinos are not the only legal form of gambling in the West Asian country. Under its current gambling law, this type of activity can be conducted by licensed owners of gaming halls as well as by iGaming operators. A state-run lottery operator also services local customers.

Earlier this year, the Armenian government adopted amendments to existing gambling regulations. Those changes were, too, encouraged by the Ministry of Finance and were targeting high roller gambling customers. The new regulations came into effect on June 1.

Under the introduced changes, customers, both of land-based and online gambling operators, wagering more than AMD1 million (approximately $2,000) are set to be included in a special database and to have their gaming-related transactions closely monitored. Operators are required to report any such transactions and to be provided with copies of their high-roller customers’ identity documents.

The Armenian government explained the introduction of the new regulations with the need for stricter money-laundering curbs. Late last year, it discussed a substantial increase in the license fees Armenia-facing operators are required to pay annually. Those were to be raised from AMD100 million to AMD500 million. That decision was attributed to the fact that the country’s gambling industry has been growing at a rapid pace over the past several years, but the government has not benefited from that. It was back in 2006 when the last such changes were implemented in Armenia’s gambling licensing process and the related fees.