Crown Melbourne Limited (Crown) has held the single statewide licence to operate the Melbourne Casino since 1993. The licence runs until 2050.
What Crown's licence allows
The Melbourne Casino can have up to 2,628 gaming machines, 440 gaming tables and 100 poker tables (within approved boundaries) at any given time.
View the Casino legislation, licence and agreements(opens in a new window).
Crown's obligations
Crown is obligated to:
- get approval for new business associates
- make sure relevant employees hold a current Casino special employee licence
- implement a Responsible Gambling Code of Conduct that complies with the Ministerial Direction(opens in a new window)
- follow all approved internal controls and systems
- not allow gambling on gaming machines or electronic table games unless accessed via a player card
- ensure Australian residents gambling on gaming machines set a net loss and time limit
- comply with all other regulatory obligations and operate safely, fairly, and free from criminal influence
For more details, view the Casino legislation, licence and agreements(opens in a new window).
Got a complaint?
If you have any concerns about the casino’s operation, please contact us(opens in a new window).
How we regulate at the Casino
The following is a list of ways we regulate the Melbourne Casino:
- on-site inspectors 24/7 to monitor Crown's compliance with laws and regulations (opens in a new window)and the casino licence(opens in a new window)
- investigating external complaints and tip-offs
- monitoring and auditing internal systems
- working closely with Victoria Police as well as other Commonwealth, state and territory law enforcement agencies
- working closely with other state, territory and international regulators
- assessing proposed associates(opens in a new window) of the casino operator
- approving new games(opens in a new window), rules, and equipment
- auditing payment of casino taxes
- review Crown’s operations(opens in a new window) to make sure they're suitable to hold the casino licence
Suitability of the Melbourne Casino operator
Following the 2021 Royal Commission into the Casino Operator and Licence (RCCOL), Crown came under intense scrutiny. As a result, the Government:
- Created a Special Manager for the Melbourne casino with unprecedented powers of control over Crown and a mandate to report to the VGCCC on Crown’s actions to remediate the failures identified by the RCCOL
- Enhanced VGCCC’s powers to monitor the casino and increased the maximum penalty we can impose on Crown from $1 million to $100 million.
These changes were brought about in the Casino Legislation Amendment (RC Implementation and Other Matters) Act 2022(opens in a new window). In March 2024, after considering the Special Manager’s 4 reports and a range of additional information, the Commission announced it was clearly satisfied that Crown was suitable to operate the Melbourne casino and that it was in the public interest for the licence to continue in force.
Past decisions and actions
Visit Enforcement actions(opens in a new window) to find out more about disciplinary and enforcement actions.
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