Mauritius is set to eliminate an entire category of gambling licenses and enhance its regulatory oversight of casinos as part of its 2026/27 budget. The government will fully repeal hotel casino licenses, a significant structural shift in the country's gambling framework, established since the Gambling Regulatory Authority Act was consolidated in 2007.
Under the new budget, introduced on June 19, hotel casinos will no longer be licensed. Instead, all casinos will operate under standard casino licenses, regulated by the amendments in the budget annex, which outlines numerous changes to existing gambling laws.
In addition to the hotel casino licensing changes, the digital gaming regime introduced in 2025 will now include limited payout machine operators. All gaming terminals, including those in casinos and Gaming Houses, must connect to the Mauritius Revenue Authority's Central Electronic Monitoring System (CEMS). This system aims to improve fiscal monitoring and accountability within the gambling sector.
The reforms come after previous government attempts to enhance the credibility of the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA). Prime Minister and Finance Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam pledged to restore public confidence in the GRA, particularly concerning its oversight of the horse racing industry. This commitment was reiterated during the last significant gambling reform discussion in the Assembly on July 4, 2025.
Legislative discussions on the new gambling reforms will commence once the Finance Bill is presented to the National Assembly. The Cabinet confirmed on July 3, 2026, that an economic committee led by the Prime Minister would finalize these legislative changes, with an initial meeting scheduled for July 8.
Notably, the budget's changes to the gambling framework include the outright removal of definitions relating to ‘hotel casino’ activities, thus ceasing all associated operations under the current licensing regime. Consequently, the existing hotel casino system that permitted hotel-based casino operations under specific licenses will be replaced with a standard casino license framework, establishing a more uniform regulatory environment.
Further, the budget expands the digital gaming framework rather than establishing a new system. With this expansion, a statutory definition of ‘digital games’ will be included in the Act for the first time, and all platforms will require certification from an accredited independent gaming laboratory prior to going live.
The CEMS will provide even greater oversight by mandating connectivity between both betting operators’ and casinos’ servers to the MRA’s systems, enhancing real-time monitoring of gaming activities. Alongside these measures, the GRA will establish new divisions focusing on Responsible Gambling and Communications, as well as Finance and Procurement.
As part of the reforms, bookmakers will be allowed to operate up to five betting terminals in approved locations, increasing from the previous limit of three, with one terminal exclusively for payouts. The taxation structure for horse racing will change, as taxes will now be calculated on net stakes rather than gross stakes.
These new measures build on the earlier Anti-Money Laundering legislation passed in April 2026, which aimed at reinforcing the GRA’s regulatory frameworks and compliance processes. Financial Services Minister Jyoti Jeetun highlighted the need for licensing reforms to include beneficial ownership details and cash transaction limits for gambling operators.
In January 2026, a report indicated that the horse racing sector faced poor regulation, according to sources within the Horse Racing Integrity Division. However, the GRA has contested this claim, asserting its commitment to effective regulation as the industry undergoes these significant reforms.
