The idea of creating gambling zones in Kazakhstan, where local residents will not be allowed, is actively discussed with the aim of attracting foreign investments without worsening the situation with gambling addiction in the country.
Attracting Without Harm
The Ministry of Tourism and Sports is looking for ways to create such zones, which should attract foreign capital. According to official data, 46% of the residents of Mangistau support this initiative.
According to the ministry's forecasts, by 2029, 148,000 tourists will visit the region, creating 7,000 jobs, and tax revenues from casinos could reach 1.2 billion tenge per year.
In Zhetysu, 67% of the population supports such an initiative. It is expected that the region will receive 36,000 tourists, create 700 jobs, and provide tax revenues of 2.4 billion tenge annually.
In Almaty region, 54.5% approve of the idea, and the creation of two gambling zones is planned by 2028, which will attract at least 22,810 tourists by 2030, create 2,000 jobs, and tax revenues will amount to 6.5 billion tenge.
The ministry notes that each new casino could bring in 2-3 billion tenge in taxes per year and create about 500 jobs. Construction has already begun at "Warm Beach" in Mangistau and at the international tourist center "Ak-Bulak" in Almaty region with private investments.
— International experience shows that gambling zones intended exclusively for foreigners can become an additional incentive for attracting tourists and developing infrastructure, without negatively impacting the local population, — the ministry asserts.
However, the experience of neighboring countries indicates that the situation may not be so straightforward.
Who Benefits?
It should be noted that strict separation of gambling zones based on citizenship in the CIS countries is rare.
One of the few examples is Kyrgyzstan, where casinos on Issyk-Kul and in Bishkek were closed to citizens, and only in 2025 did the budget receive 443 million soms from them (just over 5 million dollars). However, in Kyrgyzstan, this concerns only two or three establishments.
In Russia, all four gambling zones located in tourist regions are open to all citizens.
Georgia offers a completely different model — casinos operate throughout the country, especially in Batumi and Tbilisi, without separation into "foreign" zones. Since 2021, the authorities have introduced strict restrictions for Georgian citizens, including a minimum age of 25 and an automatic ban for civil servants and people with debts. As a result, more than 1.5 million citizens ended up on a blacklist.
Foreigners can play from the age of 18, pay lower taxes (5% on winnings for locals), and have access to special online platforms with favorable conditions. This model is indeed tourist-oriented and brings significant funds to the budget, but it has led to an increase in gambling addiction among locals, which has prompted the introduction of strict measures.
The Ministry of Kazakhstan refers to two main global examples: Singapore and Macau.
Let’s examine them in more detail.
In Singapore, citizens are subject to an entry fee: 150 Singapore dollars per day or 3,000 per year, which has effectively reduced their participation in casinos to 2-3%. Thus, there is no outright ban on gambling for citizens, but the established financial barrier minimizes their activity.
Macau took a different path, opening 12 zones exclusively for foreigners in 2023, while providing operators with tax benefits of up to 5%. However, this led to failure — there were few foreigners, and the zones remained half-empty. As a result, they were deemed ineffective.
Kazakhstan seeks to attract foreign tourists while simultaneously protecting its internal society, but this initiative is overshadowed by corruption risks.
Gaming Injection
It is worth recalling the unsuccessful attempt to create a Betting Accounting Center (BAC).
From 2018 to 2020, the Ministry of Culture and Sports (later — Tourism and Sports) actively worked on creating the BAC, which was supposed to become a unified system for all betting offices in Kazakhstan. The official goal was to legalize the shadow market estimated at 600 billion tenge per year, increase tax revenues by 25-30 billion tenge, protect players from fraud, and close illegal online offices.
However, it soon became clear that the BAC was conceived as a private monopoly: all bets were processed through one server, and the operator charged a 4% commission (estimated to bring in 20-25 billion tenge per year).
On February 22, 2021, the anti-corruption service detained the Vice Minister of Culture and Sports Saken MUSAYBEKOV, who was removed from the flight Nur-Sultan — Dubai at the airport. The owner and director of the company "Exirius," chosen to be the BAC operator, were also detained.
In August 2021, the court found Musaybekov guilty of bribery and fraud, imposing a fine of 62 million tenge.
The BAC project was frozen after the scandal, and in 2022, the Ministry of Culture officially abandoned it as a "useless structure." Nevertheless, the idea did not disappear.
In 2024-2025, it was revived under a new name — Unified Accounting System (UAS), positioning itself as a state platform with a 1% commission, which would lead to 13-15 billion tenge per year.
The scandal with the BAC became an example of how a good idea for regulating gambling can turn into the creation of a private cash cow and be buried after the emergence of corruption schemes.
Today, while discussing new gambling zones and the UAS, many recall this story as a warning.
Revealing the Cards
It is premature to speak of corruption risks, believes tourism consultant Yulia PALCHEVSKAYA. The main question is: how justified is this scheme?
— Citing Georgia or Singapore in this context is inappropriate, — she says. — In Georgia, the gambling business has indeed developed rapidly, but it is clearly geographically oriented. In neighboring Turkey, which has a developed economy, some of the strictest anti-gambling laws in the world are in effect. As a result, Georgian casinos attract clients from Turkey. But where does Kazakhstan intend to attract players from?
According to Palchevskaya, foreigners do not choose places with roulette and poker tables, but those with developed tourist infrastructure and reasonable prices.
— It would be naive to believe that foreign investors will rush to Kazakhstan because of new gambling zones, — she adds. — There are many variables in this sector, such as logistics, that determine where centers of gambling business emerge. How to develop tourism is already a consequence.
The idea of creating gambling zones only for foreigners seems like a way to quickly attract tourists and currency, believes lawyer Aigerim KHANDULLAEVA. However, from a legal point of view, this model is extremely risky.
— This is essentially the introduction of different legal regimes depending on citizenship, which contradicts the principle of equality and Kazakhstan's international obligations, — she emphasizes. — Even if such restrictions are enshrined in law, they will become the subject of litigation, creating legal instability for businesses and investors.
The expert also notes that for foreign tourists, not only the opportunity to play is important, but also the protection of rights, transparent rules, and financial security. If a country is associated with problems such as corruption and weak control, the flow of quality tourists will not increase. Instead, capital may come that cannot operate in normal financial systems.
— The practice of other countries shows that gambling zones for foreigners quickly become places for fictitious residents and shadow transactions, which increases the risks of money laundering and international claims, — adds Khandullaeva. — A state that seeks to become a financial hub cannot simultaneously be known as a "casino jurisdiction" for dubious capitals, as this undermines trust in the financial system.
As a result, short-term benefits may turn into long-term damage to the economy and the country's reputation, which will be more costly than any temporary gain.
If the new zones in Mangistau or "Ak-Bulak" fall into the hands of "necessary" investors, and control is merely formal, all forecasts of billions of tenge in taxes and thousands of jobs will remain unrealized, and the money will simply go into the pockets of intermediaries.
As a result, Kazakhstan may face not success, but failure and new corruption scandals.
Are the stakes too high?
