Casinos and casino games in Laos will be charged a higher "charge" if a new law on excise taxes takes effect in "January 2020," according to several media reports.

Media reports reported by China's Xinhua News Agency and Lao English-language outlet Vientiane Times said the "charge" on casinos and casino games would "increase from 35% to 50%.

The reports did not clarify in what form such a levy would be imposed. In many Asia-Pacific casino jurisdictions, a percentage of total gaming revenue is taxed. In some jurisdictions that don't typically have specific gaming laws, no GGR tax is levied, but instead casino operations and/or gaming tables and machines are uniformly taxed.

A senior executive at Macau Legend Development Limited, a Hong Kong-listed casino services company that runs Saban Legend Resort Hotel and Entertainment Complex, including casinos, recently told GGRAsia that he expects the Lao government to introduce changes in tax terms for game operations, which include "standardization" of game-related taxation and regulations, for all regions of the country. 동행복권파워볼

According to Xinhua and the Vientiane Times reports, the purpose of a series of tax changes was to target activities that were considered luxuries or vices rather than necessities of life.

They raised it from "10 percent" to 25 percent, including higher excise taxes on the golf business.

The draft law on consumption taxes was presented by Laos Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Somdi Duandi at a debate in Laos' National Assembly (pictured) last week.

The Lao government has reportedly listed 18 items and services that will be applied to the draft new law. These included fuel, vehicles, alcohol, and other "excessive products." Other services covered by the new law include vehicle racing, chicken fighting, and horse racing, according to a report in the Vientiane Times.