Vietnam local gamblers’ pilot program open to all casinos?

Vietnam’s pilot program to allow local residents to gamble in casinos appears to be less restricted than originally advertised, according to local media reports.

Last week, Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance released a draft circular adding more details to the government’s Decree No.03/2017/ND-CP, which authorized a three-year test of relaxing the country’s longstanding ban on allowing its citizens to gamble in the nation’s casinos, which are reserved for international tourists and Vietnamese nationals who hold foreign passports.

This pilot program was said to apply only at two casinos – one in Quang Ninh province in the country’s north and the other on Phu Quoc island in the south – neither of which has been built yet. But this limitation is absent from the draft circular, leading some Vietnamese media outlets to speculate that all of the nation’s casinos will be allowed to participate in the trial.

Regardless of how many casinos are eligible for the trial, the circular further details the financial hurdles local residents must clear in order to cross a casino threshold, including the ability to prove a monthly income of at least VND 10m (US $440).