Taiwan: gambling regulation and licensing
Republic of China (Taiwan)
- Online sports bettingMonopoly
- iLotteryMonopoly
- Online casinoProhibited
- Online pokerProhibited
- Land-based (reference)Prohibited
- Regulator
- Ministry of Finance
- Headline tax
- Not yet verified
- Licence required
- Yes
- Last verified
- 30 Aug 2026
Summary
Taiwan permits two lotteries and prohibits everything else. Article 266 of the Criminal Code makes gambling in a public place an offence and applies the same rule expressly to gambling via telecommunication equipment, electronic communication and the internet, so remote play is caught directly and the player is liable as well as the operator. Article 268 punishes furnishing a place to gamble for profit with up to three years imprisonment. Against that baseline sit two statutory exceptions. The sports lottery, under the Sports Lottery Issuance Act as amended on 2 July 2025, is issued by a professional agency established or selected by the competent authority and may be sold in person, by telephone or over the internet, with sales to minors prohibited and 90 per cent of profits ring-fenced for sports development. The Public Welfare Lottery, under the Public Welfare Lottery Issue Act, is issued by a bank appointed by the Ministry of Finance, currently CTBC Bank for the 2024 to 2033 term, with net revenues split 45 per cent to the national pension system, 5 per cent to the health insurance reserve and 50 per cent to social welfare. There is no casino statute in force.
Key facts
- Regulator
- Ministry of Finance (MOF)
- Regulator type
- Government ministry
- Headline tax
- Not yet verified
- Licence required
- Yes
- Minimum age
- Not yet verified
- Tax base
- Neither lawful product is taxed through a conventional gaming duty. Under the Sports Lottery Issuance Act, 10 per cent of the profits from issuance is appropriated to the Taiwan Lottery and regulated under the Public Welfare Lottery Issue Act, and the remaining 90 per cent is handled by the competent authority solely for sports development, expressly not as a government sports budget. Public Welfare Lottery net revenues are allocated 45 per cent to the national pension system, 5 per cent to the national health insurance safety reserve and 50 per cent to social welfare expenses. No gross gaming revenue or turnover tax rate is recorded because no such rate was verified and there is no commercial market to which one would apply.
- Capital
- Taipei
- Currency
- TWD
- Official languages
- Mandarin Chinese
Legal framework
Primary statutes
Criminal Code of the Republic of China, Articles 266 to 270
- In force
- Yes
- Summary
- Article 266 punishes gambling in a public place or a place open to the public with a fine of not more than NT$50,000, and applies the same to gambling via telecommunication equipment, electronic communication, the internet or other similar means, with an exception for gambling provided for temporary amusement. Article 267 is deleted. Article 268 punishes furnishing a place to gamble or assembling persons to gamble with intent to profit by imprisonment of not more than three years plus a possible fine of up to NT$90,000. Article 269 punishes operating an unauthorised prize-giving business or issuing lottery tickets without government permission with up to one year imprisonment or short-term imprisonment plus a fine of up to NT$90,000, and intermediaries with up to six months plus a fine of up to NT$30,000. Article 270 increases the punishment of a public official who harbours a gambling offender by up to one half.
- In force
- Yes
- Summary
- Latest amendment 2 July 2025. Its purpose is to promote sport, raise funds for training, discover and care for sporting talent and govern the issuance of and use of profits from the sports lottery. Article 2 names the Ministry of Education as competent authority. Article 4 provides that issuance is handled by a professional issuing agency established by the competent authority or selected through a public selection process. Article 11 permits sale in person, over the telephone, via the Internet or other telecommunication equipment. Article 13 prohibits sale or prize payment to minors. Article 25 permits termination of issuance rights for serious violations and Article 26 permits revocation where application documents prove invalid. Ten per cent of profits is appropriated to the Taiwan Lottery under the Public Welfare Lottery Issue Act and the remaining 90 per cent is handled by the competent authority solely for sports development and may not be used as a government sports budget.
Public Welfare Lottery Issue Act
- In force
- Yes
- Summary
- The Ministry of Finance is the competent authority. The Public Welfare Lottery is issued by a bank appointed by the competent authority through public selection, which handles issuance, sales, promotion and prize distribution. The current issuing institute for 2024 to 2033 is CTBC Bank Co., Ltd. Net revenues are allocated 45 per cent to the national pension system, 5 per cent to the national health insurance safety reserve and 50 per cent to social welfare expenses, with a separate Feedback Fund supporting employment services for vulnerable groups and social welfare.
Key amendments
- 9 Sept 2025The Ministry of Sports was established on 9 September 2025, coinciding with National Sports Day, with the Sports for All Agency and a planned Taiwan Sports Industry Development Center among its arms and NT$24.8 billion allocated in the 2026 central government budget. The English text of the Sports Lottery Issuance Act still names the Ministry of Education as competent authority, so the practical effect on sports lottery supervision should be re-checked at the next review.
Licensing
- Licence required
- Yes
- Application window
- Not yet verified
- Local establishment required
- Not yet verified
- Local server required
- Not yet verified
- Barriers to entry
- Both lawful products are single-issuer regimes awarded by government selection, not licences an operator can apply for at will. Everything else is criminal: Article 266 of the Criminal Code reaches internet gambling directly and Article 269 punishes issuing lottery tickets without government permission. There is no casino statute, so no casino licence exists to seek.
Licence types
Sports lottery issuance right (Sports Lottery Issuance Act, Article 4)
- Scope
- Issuance of the sports lottery by a professional issuing agency established by the competent authority or selected through public selection. Sales may be in person, by telephone, via the Internet or other telecommunication equipment.
Public Welfare Lottery issuing institute (Public Welfare Lottery Issue Act)
- Scope
- Issuance, sale, promotion and prize distribution of the Public Welfare Lottery by a bank appointed by the Ministry of Finance through public selection.
- Term
- Ten years. The current term runs 2024 to 2033 and is held by CTBC Bank Co., Ltd.
Taxation
- Headline GGR tax
- Not yet verified
- Effective date
- Not yet verified
- Tax base
- Neither lawful product is taxed through a conventional gaming duty. Under the Sports Lottery Issuance Act, 10 per cent of the profits from issuance is appropriated to the Taiwan Lottery and regulated under the Public Welfare Lottery Issue Act, and the remaining 90 per cent is handled by the competent authority solely for sports development, expressly not as a government sports budget. Public Welfare Lottery net revenues are allocated 45 per cent to the national pension system, 5 per cent to the national health insurance safety reserve and 50 per cent to social welfare expenses. No gross gaming revenue or turnover tax rate is recorded because no such rate was verified and there is no commercial market to which one would apply.
Compliance
- Minimum age
- Not yet verified
- National self-exclusion
- Not yet verified
- KYC requirements
- Article 13 of the Sports Lottery Issuance Act prohibits the issuer, commissioned organisations and licensed agents from selling the sports lottery or paying prize money to minors. No numeric minimum age is stated in the English texts read at review, and none is recorded here rather than infer one from the general age of majority.
- Stake limits
- Not yet verified
Advertising
- Advertising permitted
- No
- Affiliate rules
- Affiliates are not separately licensed. Promotion of an offer that is itself unlawful is caught by the underlying prohibition rather than by an advertising code.
- Penalties for breach
- Taiwan has no commercial gambling advertising market, because outside the lottery monopoly there is no lawful product to promote.
Restrictions
- Gambling is an offence under the Criminal Code, so there is no lawful commercial gambling offer that may be advertised.
- The sports lottery operates under a statutory monopoly and is the principal lawful product.
- Promotion of unlawful gambling falls within the underlying prohibition rather than being separately regulated as advertising.
- Offshore operators marketing to Taiwanese consumers are acting outside the law rather than in a grey area.
Enforcement
- ISP blocking
- Not yet verified
- DNS blocking
- Not yet verified
- Payment blocking
- Not yet verified
- App store takedowns
- Not yet verified
- Operator liability
- Article 268 of the Criminal Code punishes furnishing a place to gamble or assembling persons to gamble with intent to profit by imprisonment of not more than three years plus a possible fine of up to NT$90,000. Article 269 punishes issuing lottery tickets without government permission.
- Player liability
- Yes. Article 266 of the Criminal Code applies to the gambler, not only the operator, and expressly covers gambling via telecommunication equipment, electronic communication, the internet or other similar means. The penalty is a fine of not more than NT$50,000, with gambling apparatus and lottery found at the site subject to confiscation whether or not it belongs to the offender.
Outlook
The institutional question is where sports lottery supervision now sits. The Ministry of Sports was established on 9 September 2025 and publishes the Sports Lottery Issuance Act on its own laws database, but the English text of the Act as amended on 2 July 2025 still names the Ministry of Education as competent authority. That should resolve at the next review. Beyond that, expect continuity: the two issuance terms run to 2033, the Criminal Code amendment covering internet gambling has been in force since January 2022, and no casino enabling statute has passed.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you bet online legally in Taiwan?
- Only on the sports lottery. Article 11 of the Sports Lottery Issuance Act permits sale in person, over the telephone, via the Internet or other telecommunication equipment. Any other online gambling falls under Article 266 of the Criminal Code, which expressly covers gambling via the internet.
- Are casinos legal in Taiwan?
- No. No casino statute is in force and Article 268 of the Criminal Code punishes furnishing a place to gamble for profit with up to three years imprisonment.
Sources
- Criminal Code of the Republic of China, Articles 266 to 270 (offences of gambling)
Laws and Regulations Database of the Republic of China (Taiwan), Ministry of Justice (translated)
Tier 1Accessed 5 Aug 2026 - Sports Lottery Issuance Act (latest amendment 2 July 2025)
Laws and Regulations Database of the Republic of China (Taiwan), Ministry of Justice (translated)
Article 2 of the English text names the Ministry of Education as competent authority, while the Act is also published on the Ministry of Sports laws database and Taiwan established a Ministry of Sports on 9 September 2025. The competent authority is recorded here with that discrepancy noted rather than resolved. The original promulgation date and the identity of the current issuing agency were not read from this source and are not asserted.
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