Nepal govt issues warning to casino operators over renewals

Jun 03, 2024 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck  

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Nepal’s Department of Tourism has issued a warning to incumbent casino operators in the country that might be “reluctant” to meet a mid-June deadline for renewal of their rights, warning them that their licences might be revoked. That is according to local media reports.

“The licences of casino operators will be automatically revoked if they fail to submit their renewal applications by mid-June,” said Kali Bahadur Bhujel, the spokesperson and director of the Department of Tourism, as quoted by online news platform Khabarhub.

“Renewal applications should be submitted at least one month before their expiration,” the official added.

According to the report, only a few applications for renewal of casino permits have so far been submitted to the relevant authorities.

The head of the tourism department said a total of 28 licences have been issued for casino operations across the nation.

In order to renew their licences, operators must settle any outstanding fees, pay the specified casino royalties, and submit the required documents for approval from the authorities.

In October, a committee in Nepal’s House of Representatives endorsed an anti-money laundering (AML) bill, in a bid to amend existing law and regulations to make them compatible with international standards.

One change was the inclusion of a provision to bar setting up new casinos within 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) of the country’s international borders. As per the existing legislation, such distance is currently set at 3 kilometres.

In September, the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) said the Nepalese authorities “should significantly enhance risk-based” supervision of the country’s non-financial businesses and professions, including casinos, regarding AML and CFT.

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