None of Macao’s concessionaires will pay complementary income tax on the profits of their gaming operations until at least 2028, GGR Asia reports.
This latest exemption – signed by Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng last week – covers the previous year as well as the next four years.
According to multinational tax firm PwC, complementary tax is imposed on the worldwide income of any Macao-registered entity without a waiver. The tax-free threshold was increased from 32,000 patacas to 600,000 patacas for the 2024 financial year and profits over that are subject to a 12 percent tax.
[See more: Macao reports 19.3 billion patacas in gross gaming revenue for January]
The six casino operators are still liable for other gaming taxes, which comprise Macao’s main source of revenue. Under their current 10-year gaming contracts, each operator faces an effective tax rate of 35 percent on gross gaming revenue
In the first 11 months of last year, that equated to almost 60 billion patacas. The government’s 2024 budget forecast 75.6 billion patacas in gaming revenue tax, representing more than 70 percent of its predicted annual income.
On top of gaming tax, the concessionaires each pay fixed and variable annual premiums to the government. The fixed premium is 30 million patacas, while the variable premium depends on their gaming inventory.
