President Luis Abinader has enacted the new law regulating gambling in the Dominican Republic and has provisionally appointed Teófilo “Quico” Tabar Manzur as director general of the newly created General Directorate of Gambling (DGJA).
Following the recent publication of Law 86-26 in the Official Gazette (No. 11,263), the Dominican Government issued Decree 684-26, under which Tabar will assume the highest executive, administrative, and legal representative authority of the new regulatory body. The official had previously served as coordinator of the Gambling Regularization Process.
Decree 684-26 also establishes that the Advisory Council (originally created through Decree No. 533-21) will continue to provide honorary advice and support to the DGJA. The advisory body will assist in developing public policies aimed at optimizing internal processes and ensuring the delivery of an efficient public service in the sector.
The Executive Branch has also instructed all relevant state authorities to actively cooperate with the DGJA to ensure the effective start of operations of the new government body.
The enactment of Law 86-26 and the appointment of Tabar Manzur come as part of the implementation of the new institutional framework for gambling regulation in the Dominican Republic.
Key points of the new regulatory framework:
- Lottery shop licenses: Following parliamentary debates in Congress, operating licenses for lottery shops and sales points were set at a five-year term, instead of the two years initially proposed in the draft legislation.
- Casinos and slot machines: For casinos, Article 47 establishes that they may only operate under a license issued by the DGJA, valid for 10 years and exclusively available to establishments located within four-star or higher-rated hotels. Slot machine halls will require a separate license with the same validity period.
- Minimum distance between sales points: To prevent uncontrolled proliferation, the law imposes geographic location restrictions. A minimum distance of 500 meters from schools, universities, churches, hospitals, and government offices is required. In addition, a minimum distance of 500 meters was established between sports betting shops and horse-racing agencies, and 200 meters between lottery shops. Casinos are exempt from this requirement.
With the DGJA structure now operational under the provisional leadership of Quico Tabar, the Dominican Republic’s iGaming and retail betting sectors are entering a decisive phase of formalization, oversight and alignment with international regulatory standards.