Macau’s Casino Industry Was the Main Driver of Tax Income in 2024

Macau’s Financial Services Bureau has published information about the tax contribution of the region’s six casino concessionaires. According to the report, the special administrative region’s gambling industry continues to be the main driver of tax income.

The total tax revenue reported by the government was $10.5 billion. The bureau said that the six casino companies generated roughly $8.1 billion in taxes (converted from MOP 65.25 billion, current rates) in 2023. This means that the gambling industry was singlehandedly responsible for over ¾ of all government taxes.  The $8.1 billion figure also represents an increase of almost 240% from the $2.4 billion in 2022.

Macau taxes its six concessionaires at a rate of 40%. Of this, 35% goes to the government, while 3% is used to fund urban projects and bolster tourism. The remaining 2%, on the other hand, goes to the Macau Foundation, a government-owned charity that supports a variety of cultural and social activities in the region.

Despite Macau’s decision to diversify its tourism in the wake of the COVID pandemic, the 2023 results show that VIP casino gaming continues to be a core pillar of the local tourism industry.

Macau Expects Further Recovery in 2024

Macau recently posted its Q4 and 2023 results, posting gross gaming revenue of approximately $22.8 billion. This figure demonstrated the region’s recovery in the post-pandemic period, sparking optimism about the future of the local gaming sector.

Still, Macau announced its plans to stop relying entirely on gaming revenue and invest in nongaming projects such as sports and esports competitions and other activities that would boost visitation.

In other news, Macau just shared its February results, posting suboptimal GGR in spite of the record-breaking Lunar New Year period. During that month, the SAR’s casino industry earned GGR of MOP 18.49 billion (approximately $2.3 billion).

Despite not meeting analysts’ expectations, these results represented a year-on-year increase of 79.1% and a month-on-month decline of 4.4%. The significant recovery comes after Macau’s GGR experienced a 334% increase in 2023.

For reference, Macau’s gambling market took significant blows during the height of the COVID pandemic. Impacted by China’s Zero-COVID policy, the region was unable to achieve its pre-pandemic results and is still trying to catch up. In addition, the crackdown on junket operators further affected the region’s metrics.

Despite the setbacks, Macau’s gambling industry hopes to experience further recovery in 2024 and achieve a GGR north of $26.8 billion.