French senators backs move to make Parisian gaming clubs permanent

French senators have adopted an amendment to the Finance Bill that would make Parisian gambling clubs a permanent fixture, ending nearly eight years of experimental status for the capital’s tightly regulated gaming venues. 

The proposal, tabled by Socialist, Ecologist and Republican group members Marie-Pierre de La Gontrie, Colombe Brossel and Rémi Féraud, will still require full Senate approval of the 2026 budget and a second reading in the National Assembly.

Lawmakers backing the measure said the pilot programme has proved its value as a regulated alternative to illicit gambling dens. “The gaming club experiment has proven its effectiveness by offering a legal and regulated alternative to clandestine gambling dens, while guaranteeing the transparency, traceability, and integrity of financial flows,” the senators said.

They added that gaming clubs generate around €120 million ($139.60 million) a year, including €40 million for the State and €10 million for the City of Paris, while supporting several hundred jobs. Making the clubs permanent would “provide a clear and lasting framework for a model that has fully proven its worth from both a public order and economic regulation perspective.”

Public Accounts Minister Amélie de Montchalin also backed maintaining the regulated structure. “I believe it is in our interest to have well-known operators. We know that money laundering is also a risk, and maintaining this established framework is perhaps the best way to do so,” she said.

Not all lawmakers supported an immediate transition to permanency. The Senate Finance Committee’s general rapporteur sought withdrawal of the amendment, arguing that the issue should be examined in the next budget cycle to allow a more complete assessment of the scheme’s performance.

Parisian gaming clubs were first authorised in 2017 under Law No. 2017-257 as part of a temporary, controlled experiment excluding slot machines and electronic games. The three-year trial was extended twice, first to the end of 2022 and later to the end of 2024, with the government noting that COVID-19 disruptions in 2020–21 made meaningful assessment difficult. A political stalemate over the 2025 budget triggered a three-month shutdown of all clubs from January to March this year.

The Senate said its 24 November vote aims to eliminate recurring legal uncertainty for operators and workers. It highlighted benefits for public safety and oversight, saying the system “has demonstrated its effectiveness by offering a legal and regulated alternative to illegal gambling establishments, while ensuring the transparency, traceability and integrity of financial transactions.”

Industry representatives welcomed the move. The casino trade association Casinos de France said the government’s support “confirms the relevance of the gaming club model, which meets the requirements of transparency, security, and economic attractiveness,” adding that it remains committed to “a legal, transparent, regulated gaming sector that fully serves the public interest.”

The final decision will hinge on parliamentary votes in the coming months, with the National Assembly required to sign off before the change becomes law.