Russia Adds Sixth Official Gambling Zone In Altai Republic

Russia has approved a new casino zone in the Altai Republic, with officials tying the plan to tourism, jobs, and extra tax income.

Good to Know

• The new Altai Republic gambling zone became official after Vladimir Putin signed the law.
• Authorities expect more than 1,000 jobs and over $4 million in yearly tax revenue.
• Russia is also discussing legal online casinos with a proposed 30% tax on operator profits.

Russia Adds Another Casino Zone As Budget Pressure Grows

Russia has added the Altai Republic to its list of approved gambling territories after President Vladimir Putin signed the law, published on May 2.

The casino zone is expected near Manzherok, the Sberbank-owned ski resort in the mountains. Officials want the project to feed into tourism, hotels, restaurants, skiing, and outdoor travel rather than stand alone as a casino site.

The location also gives the plan a local economic angle. The Altai Republic remains one of the poorest parts of Russia, with 13.8% of residents below the set subsistence level. Authorities expect the venue to create more than 1,000 jobs once launched.

Money pressure adds another layer. Russia recorded a $74 billion federal treasury deficit, while regional budgets had a combined $20 billion deficit. Against that backdrop, the Ministry of Finance had already raised gambling growth as one possible revenue source.

The new site would become the sixth official gambling zone in Russia and the second in the wider Altai region. Existing zones include Crimea, Sochi, Krasnodar, Primorye, and Kaliningrad. Russia banned casino gambling outside approved zones in 2009 after concerns linked to addiction, organized crime, and social harm in major cities.

Altai already has history in that system. Russia approved its first official gambling zone in the region in 2007, though full operations did not begin until 2014 after years of slow development.

At the same time, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov has proposed a wider online casino reform. The plan would remove the iGaming ban, create a Unified Betting Accounting Center, license Russian online casino operators, and tax operator profits at 30%.

Officials estimate the online casino plan could bring in about $1.3 billion per year, or nearly 100 billion rubles. Player winnings would not count in the tax calculation.

Russia has banned online casinos since 2009, yet offshore operators still reach players through mirror websites and duplicate servers. That enforcement problem now sits beside the new Altai casino plan as Russia weighs how much legal gambling revenue it wants to capture.