Tanzania
Gaming Act
Chapter 41
- Commenced on 1 July 2003
- [This is the version of this document at 30 November 2019.]
- [Note: This legislation has been thoroughly revised and consolidated under the supervision of the Attorney General's Office, in compliance with the Laws Revision Act No. 7 of 1994, the Revised Laws and Annual Revision Act (Chapter 356 (R.L.)), and the Interpretation of Laws and General Clauses Act No. 30 of 1972. This version is up-to-date as at 31st July 2002.]
Part I – Preliminary provisions
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the gaming Act.2. Application
This Act shall apply to all gaming activities in Mainland Tanzania3. Interpretation
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—"Act" means the Gaming Act;"applicant" means any person who applies for or is about to apply for a gaming license, manufacturer or operator or distributor's licence, registration or finding of suitability under the provisions of this Act, or approval of any act or transaction for which the Board's retail gaming licence, a lottery licence, approval is required or permitted under the provisions of this Act;"application" means a request for the issuance of a gaming license, a lottery licence, manufacturer or distributor’s licence, operator or retail gaming licence, registration of finding of suitability under the provisions of this Act, or for approval of any act or transaction for which Board’s approval is required or permitted under the provisions of this Act;"Board" means the Gaming Board of Tanzania established by section 4(1);"book maker" means a person who, whether on his own account or as servant or agent to another person carries on, whether occasionally or regularly, the business of receiving or negotiating bets, or who in any manner holds himself out, or who receives or negotiates bets, so however that a person shall not be deemed to be a bookmaker by reason only of the fact that he carries on, or is employed in—(a)operating a totalisator in respect of which a licence has been issued; or(b)a business that is wholly concerned with, a pool betting scheme in respect of which a licence has been issued;"casino" means premises used for gaming purposes where the public have access to play various games of chance notably table games, slot machines and others;"Chairman" means the Chairman of the Gaming Board appointed under section 5;"Commissioner" means the Commissioner General appointed under the Tanzania Revenue Authority Act;[Cap. 399]"contest" means a competition among patrons for a prize, whether or not:(a)the prize is a specified amount of money; or(b)consideration is required to be paid by the patrons to participate in the competition;"credit card" means a card code or other device with which a person may defer payment of debt, incur debt and defer its payment, or purchase property or services and defer payment thereof, but does not include a card, code or other device used to activate a pre-existing agreement between a person and financial institution to extend credit when the person’s account at the financial institution is overdrawn or to maintain a specified minimum balance in the person’s account at the financial institution;"court" means a court of competent jurisdiction;"dealer" means a person who is representing the interests of the licensee;"Director" means a person appointed as such pursuant to the provisions of section 11 and includes the Director General of the Gaming Board of Tanzania;"electronic transfer of money" means any transfer of money, other than a transaction initiated by a check, draft or other similar instrument, that is initiated through an electronic terminal, telephone, computer or magnetic tape for the purpose of ordering, instructing or authorizing a financial institution or person holding an account on behalf of another to debit or credit an account;"Fiv" has the meaning ascribed to it under the unti-Money Laundering Act;[Cap. 423]"gaming activities" means any game played with cards, dice, equipment or any mechanical electromechanical or electronic device or machine for money, property, checks, credit or credit card or any representative of value, including but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, bingo, wheel of fortune, baccarat, slot machine, horse race, lottery, wager or stake, any banking or percentage game or any other game or device approved by the Board, but does not include games played with cards in private homes or residences in which no person makes money for operating the game, except as a player, or games operated by charitable or educational organizations approved by the Board;"gaming employee" or "key employee" means any person connected directly with the operations of gaming activities;"gaming licence" means any license issued pursuant to this Act, which authorizes the person named therein to engage in gaming activity or business;"gaming machine or device" means any equipment or mechanical, electromechanical or electronic contrivance, component or machine used remotely or directly in connection with gaming or any game which affects the result of a wager by determining win or loss;"gaming management system" means a computerized record keeping system that includes all devices, hardware, software and networking links which form part of the system that record and manage gaming transactions;"gaming premises" means any premises wherein or whereon any gaming activity is done;"gaming regulatory monitoring system" means a computerized monitoring system that includes all devices, hardware, software and networking links of which form part of the system that collect gaming regulatory and revenue information from gaming devices, gaming management system or any other such system in facilitating gaming regulatory function, government revenue assurance and in any other manner set out in the regulations or as specified by the Board;"internet casino" means a game of chance or skill played for money by using a remote device with internet connection;"licence" means a gaming license, a manufacturer’s or distributor’s license, a license issued to a disseminator of information concerning racing or a license issued to an operator of an off-track pari-mutuel system;"licence fees" means any money required by law to be paid to obtain or renew a gaming license, manufacturer or distributor’s license or operator or retail gaming licence or a license issued to an operator of am off-track pari-mutuel system and includes the fees paid by a disseminator of information concerning racing;"licensee" means any person to whom a valid licence has been issued;"lottery" means and includes a sweepstake, a raffle and any scheme or device for the sale, gift, disposal or distribution of any property depending upon or to be determined by lot or chance, whether by the throwing or casting of dice or by the withdrawing of tickets, cards, lots, numbers or figures, or by means of a wheel, or otherwise howsoever;"member" means a member of the Board appointed under section 5;"Minister" means the Minister responsible for finance;"national lottery" means a lottery scheme owned by the Government promoted countrywide as authorized by this Act for commercial purposes under an agreement with the Board;"operation" means the conduct of gaming activities or business;"operator’s licence" means a licence issued under this Act authorizing a person to conduct gaming activities or business;"operator of a slot machine business" means a person who, under any agreement whereby consideration is paid or payable for the right to place slot machines, engages in the business of placing and operating slot machines upon the business premises of others at three or more locations;"Regulation" means a rule, standard, directive or statement of general applicability which effectuates law or policy, or describes the procedure or requirements for practicing before the board, and the term "Regulation" includes a proposed regulation and the amendment or repeal of a prior regulation;[Cap. 4 s. 8]"return of income" means a return of income of a person for a month and shall be in a manner and form prescribed specifying the person’s chargeable income for every month from each licensed gaming activity;"SMS lottery" means a lottery whose participation is by sending an SMS from a player's mobile phone for purchase of a lottery virtual ticket;"slot machine" means any mechanical, electrical or other device, contrivance or machine which, upon insertion of a coin, token or similar object, or upon payment of any consideration, is available to play or operate, the play or operation of which, whether by reason of the skill of the operator in playing a gambling game which is presented for play by the machine or application of the element of chance, or both, may deliver or entitle the person playing or operating the machine to receive cash, premiums, merchandise, tokens or anything of value, whether the payoff is made automatically from the machine or in any other manner;"sports book" means the business of accepting wagers on sporting events by any system or method of wagering;"to bet" means to wager or stake any money or valuable thing by or on behalf of any person or, expressly or impliedly to undertake, promise or agree to wager or stake by or on behalf of any person, any money or valuable thing on a horse race, or other race, fight, game, sport, lottery or exercise or any other event or contingency;"tournament" means a series of contests;"wager" means a sum of money or representative of value that is risked on an occurrence for which the outcome is uncertain.[Acts Nos. 15 of 2004 s. 20; 2 of 2007 s. 27; 8 of 2012 s. 14; 10 of 2015 s. 157; 13 of 2019 s. 22]Part II – The Gaming Board of Tanzania
4. Establishment of Gaming Board of Tanzania
5. Composition of Board
6. Management of Board
The powers to carry out the operations and management of the gaming activities in Tanzania shall vest in the Board.7. Functions of Board
8. Tenure of Board Members
Members of the Board shall hold office for a term of three years and shall be eligible for reappointment only for another one term.9. Power to obtain information, documents and evidence
9A. Power of inspection, seizure and forfeiture
10. Conflict of interest
11. The Director General
12. Directors and other staff
The Board may appoint on such terms and conditions and upon such salaries as it may think appropriate, such officers and employees for the proper and efficient conduct of the business and activities of the Board.Part III – Licence
13. Gaming business licence
14. Certificate to manufacture and licence to sell, lease or distribute equipment
A person shall not, unless he is a holder of a certificate or, as the case may be, a licence issued pursuant to the provisions of this Act, manufacture, sell, lease or distribute any software or system, article, machine, instrument or device used for gaming activity.[Act No. 13 of 2019 s. 26]15. Applications for licence and renewal
16. Grant or refusal to grant licence
17. False statement
Any person who, in connection with an application for a licence or for the renewal of a licence, willfully and knowingly makes a statement which is false or misleading in any material particular or willfully omits to state any matter or thing without which the application becomes misleading in any material particular, commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine of not less than five hundred thousand shillings or imprisonment for a term of not less than six months or to both.18. Power of Board to impose conditions or restrictions
18A. Security bond
An operator of gaming activity or business of a specified category or type of licence other than casino shall deposit with the Board a security bond in the nature, manner and amount as may be prescribed in the regulations.[Act No. 13 of 2019 s. 27]19. Licence fee
There shall be paid for every licence granted under this Part such fee as may be prescribed by the Board.20. Period of licence
21. Notification of change of particulars
Where—22. Register of licence holders
23. Operation pending renewal, etc. of licence
Where a licensee has, before the expiration of the licence applied for a renewal of the licence and the licence expires before the grant of application for renewal, refusal or withdrawal of the same, the licensee shall until such time as his licence is renewed, refused or withdrawn, be deemed to carry on gaming activities lawfully.24. Revocation and suspension of licence
25. Appeal to Minister
Part IV – Types of licences
26. Types of gaming licence
27. General condition for grant of licence
The grant of any licence under this this Act shall be made on the condition that:28. Submission of personal particulars on application of licence
29. Determination of application fees
30. Refusal of application for licence
Any person who has an ownership interest of five percent or more in the person whose application has been refused—Part V – Imposition of gaming tax
31. Tax on gaming activities
31A. Imposition of gaming tax on winning amount
32. Returns and remittance
33. Penalty and interest to be considered as tax
Under this Act, tax imposed on gaming activities or business, penalty and interest shall be construed as constituting a tax for the purposes of collection and enforcement and for purposes of criminal liability.34. Proceeds of gaming tax, etc. to promote sports activities
35. ***
[repealed by Act No. 10 of 2015 s. 159]Part VI – Regulation of lotteries
36. Promoters of lotteries to be licenced
37. Issuance of permit and licence for public lotteries
The Board may issue a permit or a license authorizing the promotion or conduct of public lottery for various purposes namely:38. Authorization of public lotteries for charitable purposes
39. Powers of Board with respect to public lotteries
40. Power of Board to require incorporation of promoters of public lotteries
Before authorizing the promotion of a lottery under section 37, the Board may require the promoters of the lottery to become a body corporate under any law for the time being in force relating to incorporation of bodies.41. Appointment of licensee of national lottery
42. Suitability of applicants, etc.
43. Board may authorize lotteries relating to horse racing, etc.
44. Exemption of certain kinds of lotteries conducted for charitable, sporting or other purposes
45. Exemption to small lotteries incidental to certain entertainment
46. Private lotteries
47. Prohibition for sale of ticket by or to person under eighteen years of age
48. Submission of accounts and returns in respect of lotteries
49. Certain prohibition in relation to unauthorized lotteries
50. Control of advertisement relating to lotteries
51. Authorisation of promotion of other gaming products
Part VII – Amusements with or without prizes and money games
52. Provision of amusements with prizes at certain commercial or on commercial entertainments
53. Amusement machine
54. Prohibition against competitions or prizes involving no skill
55. Prohibition of money games, pyramid and other similar schemes
Part VIII – Prohibited transactions
56. Prohibited transaction
57. Round table transactions
58. Multiple transactions
59. Suspicious transactions
60. Requirement for record keeping
61. Internal control
Each licensee is required to incorporate and maintain a system of internal control and upon such incorporation and maintenance, a description of the procedures adopted by the licensee in compliance with this section, shall be submitted to the Board for inspection and approval.62. Structured transaction
Part IX – Financial provisions
63. Sources of Funds
The funds of the Board shall consist of —64. Duty of Board to operate on sound principles
The Board shall perform its functions in accordance with sound commercial and financial principles.64A. ***
[repealed by Act No. 4 of 2017 s. 15]65. Estimates
66. Accounts and financial audit
67. Performance audit
The Controller and Auditor-General may conduct performance audit on the Board in accordance with the Public Audit Act.[Cap. 418; Act No. 13 of 2019 s. 32]68. Annual report
69. Financial year
The financial year of the Board shall be the period of twelve months beginning from the 1st day of July and ending on the 30th day of June in the year following; except that the first financial year of Board shall be the period commencing with the commencement of this Act and ending with the next following 30th day of June.Part X – Prohibitions generally
70. Age of participants
71. Failure to pay winners
72. Use of device for calculating probabilities
73. Use of counterfeit or unapproved chips or tokens or coins or devices etc.
74. Cheating
75. Cheating game and devices
76. Unlawful manufacture, sale, distribution, marking, altering, or modification of equipment and devices, etc.
77. Prohibition of certain acts
78. Offence for obtaining money by cheating at lawful gaming or by wagering
A person who by any fraud or unlawful device or ill-practice in playing at or with an instrument of gaming, or in taking a part in the stakes or wagers, or in betting on the sides or hands of those that are playing, or in wagering on the event of a game, sport, pastime or exercise, wins from another person for himself, or for or on behalf of another person, a sum of money or valuable thing shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding five hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both.79. Power to enter and inspect gaming premises
80. Forfeiture of licence
81. Saving in respect of offences connected with advertisements in newspapers
Where an offence is committed in connection with the printing and publication of an advertisement or notice referred to under this Act, then, notwithstanding the provisions of those sections, no publisher, proprietor or editor or other member of the staff of a newspaper (being a newspaper within the meaning of Media Service Act shall be deemed to have committed that offence if he furnishes to the police officer investigating the occurrence the name and address of the person who caused the advertisement or notice to be published.[Cap. 4 s. 8; Cap. 229]82. Power of court to deal with exhibits
The court by or before which any person is convicted of any offence under this Act may order anything produced to the court and shown to the satisfaction of the court to relate to the offence to be forfeited and either destroyed or dealt with in such other manner as the court may order.[Cap. 4 s. 8]82A. Power of Board to declare unfit machine or device
83. Power of Board to sue for recovery of any moneys due
Any fee due to the Board, tax or any penalty in respect thereof, shall be deemed to be a civil debt due to the Government, and may be sued for and recovered with costs by and in the name of the Board.84. Indemnity of members of Board and employees
Anything done by the members of the Board, Director General or employees of the Board in the execution or performance or purported execution or performance of the duties or functions under this Act, if done in good faith shall not render such members, Director General or employees personally liable for the matter or thing done.85. Regulations
Part XI – Miscellaneous provisions
86. Repeals, savings and transitional provisions
86A. Advertisements of gaming activities
86B. Gaming management system
History of this document
30 November 2019 this version
Consolidation
01 July 2003
Commenced
Cited documents 0
Documents citing this one 4
Judgment 3
Legislation 1
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