Casinos in Asia

Asia is the world's biggest casino region, and it works differently from Las Vegas or Europe. Some countries roll out the red carpet for their own citizens; others let only foreign visitors through the door. This page walks through the whole landscape: which countries have casinos, who may enter them, what you will find on the floor, and the rules that apply once you are inside. If you want to compare the major destinations side by side, see Asia's casino destinations compared.

What is legal, country by country

The picture varies enormously from one country to the next, so here is the whole map at a glance.

A few notes on each:

Macau is the region's gambling capital. Its casinos are open 24 hours, many have restaurants serving international cuisine, and free shuttle buses arranged by the casinos run from the border entry points and tourist hotspots¹. Anyone under 21 is not allowed to enter¹. Horse racing in Macau was abolished in April 2024, so the casinos are now the whole show.

Singapore legalized casino gambling as part of its two integrated resorts. The legal forms of gambling there are:

• social gambling
• betting with Singapore Pools
• casino gambling at Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa
• jackpot gambling in private clubs³

South Korea has a two-track system. Legal gambling for Koreans includes horse racing, cycling racing, boat racing, lotteries, sports promotion voting tickets and bullfighting, while the casinos are reserved for foreign visitors⁶. The single exception is Kangwon Land in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, which is the only casino in the country that allows access by both domestic nationals and foreigners, permitted by special legislation⁷.

Japan legalized land-based casino gambling only in very specific circumstances: inside Integrated Resorts, which must combine casino operations with hotels, conference and exhibition facilities, entertainment venues and other tourist infrastructure⁴. No such resort is operating yet, so for now Japan's legal gambling includes public racing, such as horse racing, with night races conducted at four racecourses⁸.

Vietnam legalized brick-and-mortar casinos in the pursuit of economic stabilization, after locals were banned from land-based casinos for over a decade before being allowed in under conditions⁵. The legal casino gambling age is 18⁵. Venues such as Hoiana and The Grand Ho Tram serve the foreign and domestic markets.

The Philippines hosts the large integrated resorts of Entertainment City in Manila, including Solaire and Okada Manila. Cryptocurrency transactions are completely legal in the country, and residents cannot join local online casino sites but are allowed to use offshore-based casinos⁹.

Hong Kong has no casinos at all. Casino-style gambling there is generally not legal, including land-based casinos, online casino games and live dealer casinos¹⁰. What is legal is horse racing betting, football betting and the Mark Six lottery, run through the Hong Kong Jockey Club¹⁰.

China (outside Macau) has no legal casinos, and gambling online carries hefty fines and imprisonment¹¹.

Malaysia bans all forms of gambling under an old 1953 gambling ban¹², yet the country's two associated turf clubs, the Perak Turf Club and its partner, keep racing alive¹³. In practice, the casino at Genting Highlands operates as the country's famous gambling mountain resort.

Thailand remains in a gray zone for both land-based and online gambling¹⁴. There are no online casinos approved or regulated by the Thai government, though offshore sites are accessible in practice¹⁴. Tournament poker was officially legalized in August 2025, when the government overturned a long-standing ban, though a full legal framework has yet to be implemented¹⁵. A first entertainment complex with a casino could open by 2030.

India has no national casino scene, but the state of Goa runs floating and shore-side casinos, including the Deltin casinos and Big Daddy.

Cambodia hosts NagaWorld in Phnom Penh, one of the region's biggest casino complexes.

For a deeper look at any single country, see our guides to Macau, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Thailand, India and Cambodia.

Who the rules apply to

The single most important thing to understand about Asian casinos is that the rules often depend on your passport, not just your age.

In South Korea, the law is blunt: casino operators must not allow Korean nationals to enter, with the exception of overseas emigrants under the Overseas Emigration Act¹⁶. The Tourism Promotion Act states the same rule for licensed casinos¹⁷. So a Korean citizen cannot walk into Seven Luck or Paradise, but a foreign visitor can, and the same building may hold a floor the Korean staff cannot even step onto. Travel agency staff and visitors may enter with a visitor badge but must not be allowed to play¹⁶.

In Japan, the legislation behind the coming integrated resorts directs the government to set the scope of who may enter casino facilities, specifically to prevent harmful effects of casino use by persons other than foreign tourists¹⁸. In practice, the entry rules already published ban persons under 20, members of organized crime groups (boryokudan), those who have not paid the entry fee, and those who exceed the entry frequency limits¹⁹. Japanese residents will pay an entry fee, which we cover in detail on casino entry fee for Japanese residents.

In Singapore, the Casino Control Act provides that a person enters and remains on casino premises only by the license of the casino operator²⁰. Citizens and permanent residents pay an entry levy; foreign visitors do not.

In Vietnam, locals were banned from land-based casinos for over a decade before being allowed in, and authorities have sought higher entry fees for locals to simplify verifying their financial eligibility to gamble⁵.

In Macau, by contrast, the rules barely distinguish between locals and visitors: everyone plays, subject to the 21-plus age limit¹.

Casinos and who may enter

Here is the practical rundown of entry rules at the venues themselves.

Macau. The casinos are open 24 hours and free shuttle buses connect the border crossings and tourist spots to the resorts¹. Macau law also bars from the gaming areas persons under 21, incapacitated persons, habitual gamblers declared insolvent, public administration staff, off-duty concessionaire employees, drunk or drugged persons, and anyone carrying weapons, explosives or recording equipment²⁵.

Singapore. Entry to the casinos at Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa is by the operator's license, meaning the venue can refuse anyone²⁰. Citizens and permanent residents must pay the entry levy before entering.

South Korea. The foreigner-only rule is enforced venue by venue. Paradise Casino Jeju Grand is a foreigners-only casino facility²², as are the Hyatt Regency casino in Jeju²³, Paradise Casino Busan²⁴ and Paradise City Incheon, which the Korea Tourism Organization describes as "for foreign nationals and overseas permanent residents only," with Korean nationals barred from entry²¹. The law requires that Korean nationals must not be allowed into the foreigner-only gaming area of any casino premises²⁶. Operators must verify the identity of everyone entering²⁷, so bring your passport. Persons under 19 may not be admitted to any casino¹⁶.

The exception is Alpensia Casino in Pyeongchang, open to both Korean citizens and foreigners². Even there, admission is restricted against minors, local residents, people with limited access, violators of safety management guidelines and people under the influence of alcohol². A Korean court has confirmed that entering a casino as permitted by the Special Act on Development Support of Abandoned Mine Areas is an act permitted by law²⁸.

Japan. The casino facilities planned for the integrated resorts will ban persons under 20, boryokudan members, those who have not paid the entry fee and those exceeding the entry frequency limits¹⁹.

Vietnam. The legal age is 18, and locals may enter under financial-eligibility conditions⁵.

Cruise ships. On cruise liner casinos, only persons listed on the passenger manifest of that particular voyage can gamble at the vessel's casino²⁹. See our page on casino cruises and floating casinos in Asia for the regional picture.

What to expect inside

Once you are through the door, Asian casinos share a lot of DNA with Las Vegas, with some local twists.

The games. Macau's Law 16/2001 permits 24 games of fortune in casinos, including baccarat, railway baccarat, blackjack, craps, sic bo, fan tan, fish-prawn-crab sic bo, thirteen-card poker, mahjong, mahjong pai gow, pai gow, five-card poker, roulette and san gong baccarat²⁵. Baccarat dominates the region, and you can learn it on our baccarat rules page, or explore the variants on baccarat variants. For the traditional Asian table games, see fan tan, pai gow, niu niu and other Asian table games, and for the dice games, sic bo rules and dragon tiger rules.

A typical Korean foreigner-only casino gives you a similar spread. Seven Luck Casino Busan Lotte, a landmark of the port city, offers roulette, blackjack, baccarat, sic bo, poker, slot machines and video games²³. For which games are allowed in each jurisdiction, see which casino games are allowed in each Asian jurisdiction.

The atmosphere. Macau's casinos are part of large integrated resorts, so you can eat, watch shows and shop without leaving the building¹. The resorts are entertainment complexes first, and the gaming floors sit alongside hotels, restaurants and performance venues rather than standing alone.

Money matters. Table minimums and maximums vary widely; see casino table minimums and maximum bets in Asia. For buying and cashing chips, currencies and cage rules, see buying and cashing chips. Tax on gambling in Asia mostly falls on the operators rather than the players: Kangwon Land, for example, pays 10% of its casino turnover to the government under the Tourism Promotion and Development Fund Act, along with other taxation⁷. For players, the notable exception is Kangwon Land's slot machines, where tax is imposed on slot machine winnings, with reporting thresholds reported variously at KRW 5,000,000 and over KRW 2,000,000. If you hit a big slot win there, expect paperwork at the cage.

Practicalities. Dress is relaxed at most venues, but check casino dress codes in Asia before you pack shorts and sandals. Photography on the gaming floor is generally off-limits, as Macau's ban on recording equipment in gaming areas shows²⁵; see casino photography and phone rules. Smoking rules are covered on smoking in casinos in Asia, and tipping practice on tipping dealers in Asian casinos. For hours at specific venues, see are Asian casinos open 24 hours?, and for getting there, free casino shuttle buses and transport in Asia.

Online gambling and offshore sites

The online picture is much more restrictive than the land-based one.

Japan is the clearest case: connecting from inside Japan to gamble on an online casino is a crime, even if the operator is legally run overseas. Many offshore casinos nonetheless welcome players from Japan, with Japanese language and yen support³⁰, but the police position is unambiguous.

South Korea does not offer a licensing process for online casinos, real-money betting is not allowed, and it is illegal for Korean citizens to participate in any form of online gambling, with heavy punishment for those caught³¹. Korean gaming law judges games by their speculative nature rather than their type or genre³¹.

Vietnam prohibits all gambling and football betting, including online, and strictly punishes it³². Locals are not allowed to gamble online⁵.

China treats online gambling as a serious offense, with hefty fines and imprisonment among the risks, and foreigners residing in China may face blacklisting and a ban on entry for 10 years¹¹.

Thailand has approved and regulated no online casinos, though offshore sites are accessible in practice¹⁴.

Malaysia bans online gambling under its 1953 law, though there are no records of players being prosecuted for gambling online¹².

The Philippines is the outlier: residents cannot join local online casino sites but are allowed to frequent offshore-based casinos, and players are not fined for joining offshore operators⁹.

Lotteries and betting

Away from the casino floor, legal gambling in Asia is mostly racing and lotteries.

Hong Kong confines gambling to a small number of regulated channels: horse racing, football betting and the Mark Six lottery run by the Hong Kong Jockey Club, plus licensed activities such as mahjong parlors³³. The Betting Facilities Rule defines legal betting as that on horse racing, football matches and lotteries organized by the operators in Hong Kong³⁴.

South Korea offers its citizens horse racing, cycling racing (keirung), boat racing (jeonggyeong), lotteries, sports promotion voting tickets and bullfighting, alongside the foreigner-only casinos⁶. Chance-based games include lotteries, slot machines, roulette, video poker and baccarat, while games of chance and skill include poker and blackjack³⁵.

Japan runs public horse racing with betting, and night races are conducted at four racecourses⁸.

Malaysia keeps racing alive through its two associated turf clubs¹³.

Thailand legalized tournament poker in August 2025, overturning a long-standing ban, though the full legal framework has yet to be implemented¹⁵.

Penalties and enforcement

The practical risks for players are modest in the licensed venues but real where entry rules are broken.

In Singapore, a minor who enters or remains on casino premises, or takes part in gaming there, is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding S$1,500³⁶. A citizen or permanent resident who tries to enter without paying the entry levy faces a fine not exceeding S$1,000³⁶.

In China, online gambling risks hefty fines and imprisonment, and foreign residents risk blacklisting and a 10-year entry ban¹¹.

In Vietnam, all gambling and football betting, including online, is prohibited and strictly punished under the law³².

In Malaysia and the Philippines, individual players face little recorded risk: Malaysia has no records of players prosecuted for gambling online¹², and the Philippines does not fine players for joining offshore operators⁹.

Help and safer gambling

The region's regulators have built support systems into the licensed venues.

Macau has installed Responsible Gambling Kiosks (負責任博彩資訊亭) at seven major casinos: Studio City Casino, Wynn Palace Casino, Galaxy Macau Casino, The Parisian Macao Casino, MGM Cotai Casino, The Venetian Macao Casino and Grand Lisboa Palace Casino³⁷. If you want to understand the house's edge before you sit down, see house edge of casino games compared, and for the tools venues offer, responsible gambling desks, visit limits and spend tools inside Asian casinos.

Singapore maintains the National Council on Problem Gambling, which publishes information on the country's legal gambling forms and support services³.

South Korea runs counseling and support services for problem gambling through its racing bodies, covering the full range of legal gambling from casinos to lotteries⁶.

China is the gap in the map: because the market is not regulated, there are no official channels of support for people experiencing gambling-related harms¹¹.

Wherever you play in Asia, the practical rules of thumb are the same: bring photo ID, know the entry rules for your passport before you travel, set a budget before you walk in, and remember that in several countries the casino door is open to you precisely because it is closed to everyone else.