JCJ - Panama Regulator

Role of Junta de Control de Juegos (JCJ) - Chief Regulator (Panama)

Who is JCJ

Junta de Control de Juegos (JCJ) is Panama's state gambling regulator, operating under the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF). The official MEF page emphasizes that JCJ is responsible for managing and regulating the gaming sector in the country.

Legal support and mandate

The basic act is Decreto Ley Nº 2 of 10 February 1998 (Gaceta Oficial Nº 23484 of 17. 02. 1998). It restructured the JCJ, gave functions, and established that all games of chance and activity generating wagers were subject to state control through the JCJ.

• JCJ exercises control, fiscalization, supervision and regulation of chance and bet games.
• JCJ is assigned the right to determine on a case-by-case basis whether a product belongs to "games of chance," and therefore is subject to regulation. This provides flexibility to new formats (online games, electronic systems, etc.).

What JCJ regulates

JCJ's supervision includes hotel casinos, gaming halls, bingo, sweepstakes and sports/horse racing bets, promotional draws and other forms of chance games - with uniform principles of licensing, audit and sanctions laid down in Decreto Ley Nº 2 and developed by-laws of the regulator.

Online games: separate regulations

Panama was one of the first in the region to introduce a formal framework for remote (online) games. The JCJ Plenum approved Resolución Nº 65 of 25. 10. 2002, which approved regulations for operations through electronic and telecommunications systems; later, the norms were supplemented and updated (for example, by the resolution of 2020).

JCJ functions in practice

Licensing of operators and sites (offline and online), determination of the list of permitted games and technical requirements.

Supervision and inspections: monitoring compliance with regulations, conducting inspections, applying measures of influence and sanctions.

Technical and financial fiscalization: certification, reporting, control of cash flows and compliance with AML/KYC requirements within its mandate.

Rulemaking: The JCJ Plenum regularly issues resolutions/regulations for individual verticals (online games, promotional rallies, etc.).

Institutional position

JCJ - MEF structure, headquartered at the Treasury Building in Panama City; international directories of regulators also indicate contact details and binding to MEF.

Evolution and modernization

The regulator regularly optimizes procedures (reduction of terms and requirements, digitalization of services), which was especially manifested in 2020-2021, when regulations and administrative processes were updated.

Why it matters to the market

1. Single center of responsibility: all key market decisions are concentrated in JCJ, which increases predictability for investors.

2. Flexibility to innovation: the right to qualify the "game of chance" allows you to quickly cover new products and technologies (electronic platforms, remote channels).

3. Transparency and export of services: early regulation of online games in 2002 contributed to the influx of operators, hosting and compliance services to Panama.

Short timescale (important milestones)

10. 02. 1998 - adopted Decreto Ley Nº 2: JCJ restructured, powers enshrined (Gaceta Oficial Nº 23484 of 17. 02. 1998).

25. 10. 2002 - Resolución Nº 65 JCJ Plenum: Regulations for Online Games.

2020 - updates and modifications to the online game mode, confirming the continuity of regulation.

The JCJ is Panama's "nodal" gambling regulator, relying on Decreto Ley Nº 2/1998 and the Plenum's system of resolutions. With unified control, licensing and rulemaking powers, and early regulation of distance games (2002), JCJ strikes a balance between the investment appeal of the sector and player/public interest protection.