Mexican lawmaker pushes first major overhaul of 1947 gambling law
2026-08-07
Source: iGaming Expert
A MORENA lawmaker has proposed a major reform of Mexico's 1947 Federal Law on Games and Raffles, including public-health warnings, stricter ID checks, and advertising limits, while the government's recent tax-heavy approach to gambling faces industry criticism.
Mexico’s Congress is weighing a reform package that would modernize the Federal Law on Games and Raffles of 1947, a statute that has governed the country’s gambling sector for nearly eight decades. The initiative, introduced by Mexico City deputy Alberto Martínez Urincho of the ruling MORENA party, seeks stronger licence oversight and tougher player protections, with gambling-related harm explicitly framed as a public-health issue.
Under the proposed changes, operators licensed by SEGOB, Mexico’s Interior Ministry, would be required to carry visible public-health warnings on digital platforms and at the entrances of physical gambling venues. Martínez Urincho is also urging MORENA to back stricter ID-verification rules across the country’s roughly 400 land-based gambling establishments, a step he argues is critical for shielding vulnerable consumers and better identifying signs of problem gambling.
Advertising is another target. The plan calls for tighter restrictions on how online betting and gaming services are promoted through social media, influencers, and digital advertising, with Congress asked to revisit existing rules and significantly limit gambling exposure among younger audiences.
The push comes amid mounting concern over youth gambling. The proposal cites estimates suggesting that between 4% and 8% of Mexican adolescents may display problematic or dependent gambling behaviour. Separate figures referenced by the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) indicate that problem gambling could affect up to 3.9 million people, based on a prevalence rate of 1% to 3% of the population.
Long-delayed reform
Despite MORENA’s eight years in power, no comprehensive revision of the 1947 law has been undertaken. The issue regained momentum in 2025, when officials acknowledged the need for a modern framework ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which is expected to drive a surge in betting activity.
Proposals to replace the law were later presented to President Claudia Sheinbaum’s government, but a full overhaul stalled as the administration chose a different policy route. Instead, the 2026 Budget focused on taxation, raising the IEPS gambling tax rate from 30% to 50% as part of a broader fiscal and public-health strategy tied to welfare spending.
That tax hike drew sharp criticism from Mexican gambling operators, who warned it would curb investment in new ventures and weaken the regulated market’s competitiveness. Industry voices also cautioned that the higher tax burden could push consumers toward black-market and offshore operators serving Mexico from neighbouring regions.
Mexico’s SAT tax agency has not yet published complete data on revenue under the new rate. MORENA nevertheless maintains a target of collecting roughly MXN 41bn ($2.1bn) from gambling taxation.
Martínez Urincho’s proposal now returns the unresolved reform question to Congress, where its fate likely depends on backing from MORENA and its allies. The central debate for Mexico is whether it will continue managing gambling through taxation and piecemeal regulation, or finally undertake a structural overhaul of the law that has governed the market since 1947.