Blackjack in Singapore: two casinos, one rulebook

In Blackjack World Tour

Singapore is one of the game’s eight destinations.

The artwork on this page comes from the game’s Singapore table: its dealer, crest and chip set. The guide below is about real casinos in Singapore, which play for real money under local law.

Singapore has exactly two casinos, Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa, and a regulator that publishes every approved game rule. That makes it one of the few places where you can read the blackjack rules before you fly: no hole card, dealer stands on 17, 3:2 on a natural, double on any two cards including after a split, surrender unless the dealer shows an ace, and original bets only when the dealer makes blackjack. Locals pay S$150 a day to walk in; tourists pay nothing but must meet the age rule and expect high minimums.

The duopoly and the law

Wikipedia records that the government approved two casino integrated resorts in 2005, each pairing a casino with hotels, convention space, entertainment and retail. Resorts World Sentosa’s casino opened on 14 February 2010, the first day of Chinese New Year, beneath Crockfords Tower with about 15,000 m² of gaming space; owner Genting Singapore’s licence was renewed in 2024 for two years rather than three, citing weak tourism results. Marina Bay Sands, built by Las Vegas Sands, soft-opened its casino on 27 April 2010, with the resort’s official opening on 23 June 2010. Both were conceived with 30-year casino licences, exclusive for the first ten years.

Gambling is governed by the Casino Control Act, the Gambling Control Act and the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Singapore Act. The Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA), a statutory board under the Ministry of Home Affairs, was formed on 1 August 2022 by merging the Casino Regulatory Authority with the ministry’s Gambling Regulatory Unit, and oversees casinos, betting and online gambling. Every casino game rule is approved by the GRA in writing under section 100(1) of the Casino Control Act 2006, which is why the rule documents quoted below are public.

The entry levy, with dates

The levy applies to Singapore citizens and permanent residents only. The MHA statement also notes that about S$4.4 million collected above the legislated rate during the lapse was regularised by the Act, and that minors who refuse to give particulars or use false evidence of age to enter a casino commit offences. Wikipedia adds that the government runs an exclusion system for Singaporeans and bars casinos from extending credit to locals who are not premium players.

Age

Every source we read, including the operators’ own entry conditions as reported, gives 21 as the minimum age to enter or remain in a Singapore casino, and regulator fines for admitting minors are reported regularly. We could not load Marina Bay Sands’ or Resorts World Sentosa’s entry pages during this check, so treat 21 as reliably reported rather than verified here and confirm with the operator.

The approved blackjack rules

The GRA publishes Resorts World Sentosa’s “Blackjack Plus” rules, version 2, effective 6 November 2025. Despite the name, this is a standard blackjack game with optional side bets (RWS Pairs, Boom Busted and Jack’s Bounty) rather than the push-22 variant played under the same name in Australia. Marina Bay Sands’ Electronic Blackjack rules, version 3, describe the shared-hand electronic version of its game. The core rules agree.

Priced with the Wizard of Odds rule-variation figures, this is a good game. The no-hole-card procedure costs nothing because of the original-bets-only rule. Double on any two cards and double after split are the baseline. Surrender declared before the dealer’s second card exists is, in effect, early surrender against a ten, worth about +0.24%, although it is unavailable against an ace. A dealer standing on 17 is S17. On those figures the house edge under basic strategy sits in the region of 0.4% before surrender and lower with it; the exact value depends on deck count and your play, so treat it as illustrative. Use the site’s strategy chart for S17, DAS, double any two, then add the surrender plays from the surrender guide and ignore the no-hole-card deviations, since your doubles and splits are protected. Shared-hand electronic blackjack has its own defaults, including a timer, so read the terminal screen.

Minimums, hours and etiquette

Neither casino publishes blackjack minimums on the pages we could verify; both are premium resorts, so check the sign and budget for a higher minimum than a US downtown table. A S$50 minimum means S$2,000 is only 40 bets. The regulator’s rule documents define every procedure, including what happens on a misdeal, so disputes go to the pit supervisor rather than to argument. Opening hours, dress code and tipping practice are not stated on the pages we could load; check with the operator. Bring your passport: visitors enter the casino on it.

Real-money reminder

Singapore’s casinos are for adults, the entry levy and exclusion system exist to limit local harm, and the house edge, however small the approved rules make it, remains the house’s. The value of the public rulebook is that you can walk in knowing exactly which chart to play.

Related reading

• Blackjack rules around the world
• Surrender
• European no-hole-card rules
• Macau