Nonchalant attitude of casino operators, Nepal government forced to put forward new ultimatum

Though the casino operators in Nepal were alarmed last week by the government to pay new taxes or be ready to shut down, the operator’s received the notification nonchalantly and did not respond to the warning positively. Consequently,  the Department of Tourism has issued a renewed official statement urging the five tax-defaulting casinos to either pay what they owe within 35 days or face the law.

According to  the local media and World Casino Directory, the Nepalese Department of Tourism confirmed the warning, with officials reportedly stating that if the casinos and mini-casinos fail to “clear the dues, the government will take stern action against them as per the law.”

As established by the Casino Regulation law approved in 2013, operators must contribute to the country’s finance structure with a Rs 20 million (US$307,800) fee to obtain a casino operating licence. Furthermore, companies must pay an annual fee equal to 50 percent of the operating licence tax per year. As well as this, operators were also required to pay an annual royalty.

Three casinos in Nepal, including Casino Royale, Casino Rad and Casino Venus have been allowed to keep on track  owing to an  interim order from the Supreme Court, but now operations are threatened by the Nepalese government, which had previously shut down several salons in 2014 when operators did not comply with the Casino Regulation 2013.