The Dominican Republic has launched one of the deepest regulatory overhauls in its gaming industry after Senator Pedro Tineo, from the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM), introduced a bill on 13 May 2026 that would transform the National Lottery into the country’s main regulator for all gambling activities. The real central issue is that the Dominican government has begun dismantling the historically fragmented model led by the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the Directorate of Casinos and Gambling (DCJA) to centralize regulatory, supervisory and operational power under a single autonomous entity.
The proposal would convert the National Lottery into a decentralized body with administrative, financial and technical autonomy, as well as its own legal assets and regulatory authority over lottery shops, sports betting shops, casinos, electronic gaming and other gambling operations. Today, most of those powers remain under the DCJA, operating within the Ministry of Finance and Economy, led in 2026 by Finance Minister Magín Díaz.
Finance Minister Magín Díaz
The bill arrives amid a broader government crackdown targeting informality, tax evasion and illegal gambling operations. In March 2026, President Luis Abinader reactivated the National Gambling Regularization Plan through Decree 197-26, reviving a formalization process that had stalled since 2022. At the same time, the Ministry of Finance signed agreements with the Financial & International Business Association (FIBA) to strengthen AML controls and anti-money laundering supervision across casinos and sports betting operations.
Teófilo “Quico” Tabar Manzur
The initiative would also reorganize the industry’s revenue distribution model. According to the proposal, 50% of gambling revenue would remain under the National Lottery for payroll, healthcare, sports and social programs; 20% would go directly to the state through the Ministry of Finance; 10% to the Ombudsman’s Office; 10% to pensions and elderly healthcare; and 10% to Promese/Cal for catastrophic disease programs.
The National Lottery, currently led by Teófilo “Quico” Tabar Manzur, would also conduct mandatory nationwide inspections every six months to determine which operators are allowed to continue operating legally. Although the bill still requires congressional approval and executive ratification, the proposal fundamentally reshapes the Dominican gaming regulatory map and points toward a far more centralized system with stronger fiscal oversight, AML enforcement, operational inspections and political supervision over the entire gambling industry.
