Paraguay’s Senate is examining an executive-backed bill that would abolish the National Gambling Commission, Conajzar, and create the National Directorate of Gambling, Dinajzar. The measure, sent to the Senate on Oct. 12, would establish a new legal regime for games of chance and shift supervision from the tax authority into a separate public body.
Dinajzar would have its own legal status, budgetary self-governance and functional autonomy. The Senate said the overhaul is intended to update a framework shaped by new forms of gambling, technological change and the need for stronger controls.
The proposal follows Conajzar’s incorporation into the National Directorate of Tax Revenue, or DNIT, about a year ago. The existing regulator has 12 officials responsible for nationwide oversight and faces administrative and budget constraints that limit inspections and responses to violations.
The bill would give Dinajzar stronger powers against illegal gambling. It could order telecommunications companies and financial institutions to block unauthorized websites, applications and payment gateways, while clandestine gambling operations could face prison sentences of up to five years.
A strengthened Inspection and Monitoring Department would be able to inspect illegal premises and confiscate materials used in clandestine gambling. The proposed system would also use software to monitor licensed and illegal activity across online platforms, with the stated aim of establishing regulatory coverage in Paraguay’s 263 municipalities across 17 departments.
Player-protection provisions would require identification checks, deposit limits, monitoring of potentially harmful behavior and a central self-exclusion register. The legislation would also create a Department for the Fight Against Gambling Addiction and Responsible Gambling, while requiring promoters, media organizations, influencers, suppliers of machines and software providers to join a national registry.
The bill envisages 26 online-gambling licences to be tendered by the new regulator. Existing provisional authorizations would run until January 2028, and current concessions and authorizations would remain valid until their expiry dates before pending matters move to Dinajzar.
Paraguay has more than 20 authorized online casino operators. The draft sets a proposed minimum monthly licence fee of PYG 12 million, plus 7% of sales less prizes, although the proposed minimum fee remained subject to further study.
Sports betting and quiniela would each be capped at three concession holders under the proposal. Daruma SAM, operating as Aposta.la, holds the existing sports-betting concession; the October draft did not set tender dates for the two unallocated sportsbook positions, and Daruma’s contract would remain in force.
The proposal would allocate 5% of collected funds to the regulator’s operations, with the balance directed to the Directorate of Beneficence and Social Assistance, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Sports. Conajzar’s monthly revenue has risen to about PYG 21 billion from about PYG 12 billion until 2023, according to the Senate’s account of the committee discussions.
Senate committees requested opinions from the Ministry of Economy and Finance and DNIT on Oct. 19, then held a joint discussion on Oct. 26. Javier Balbuena described passage as “highly likely,” but said lawmakers still differed over licence terms of five to up to 10 years and the division of gambling revenue between regional and municipal governments.
A more definitive version of the bill was expected within 15 days of the committee discussions, although no date for a full parliamentary vote had been announced.
