How to know when there are pokies machines available in sale for Clubs and Hotels in Australia?

Pokies Machines for Clubs and Hotels in Australia are put for sale by the Australian Government. If you own a club or hotel then you need to first obtain a license to get the pokies machine on sale on your premises. Remember that your pokies license should be approved by the Commissioner for Liquor and Gaming to have more number of gaming machines on your premises, and you must obtain an ‘entitlement’ for each pokies machine you are approved to operate.

Buying pokies machines for Clubs in Australia

As said above as a club owner you must have Entitlement or Right by law to have a pokies machine on sale. Entitlements become the entitlements of the State when:

• They are attached to a gaming machine license that is canceled (unless the cancellation occurs due to a transfer of the liquor license and a new gaming machine license is issued at the same time that the transfer of the liquor license occurs)
• Entitlements that must be permanently transferred because the approved number of gaming machines for the premises has been decreased, or because the licensee has advised the Commissioner of the surrender of the license or the cessation of gaming at additional premises, are not transferred within 2 years of the date that the reduction takes effect.

A sale will be called when the Commissioner considers that the supply of entitlements of the State is sufficient to justify an authorized sale.

How to know when club entitlements are for sale

Each time a tender for club entitlements opens, the Public Trustee places an advertisement in The Courier Mail announcing the commencement of the tender. The advertisement states the number of operating entitlements available for sale in each region, the closing date, and lodgement details.

The Commissioner may instruct the selling entity to conduct an authorized sale.

 The Commissioner reserves the right not to call a sale where less than two clubs are eligible to participate in the sale as bidders.

Once instructed to conduct an authorized sale, the selling entity will cease to attribute entitlements of the State to the sale pool.

 This will normally be ten working days prior to the advertising of the authorized sale by the selling entity.

Entitlements that become entitlements of the State during this period will be available at the next sale after the one that the Commissioner has instructed the selling entity to conduct.

The Commissioner, when instructing the selling entity to conduct an authorized sale, must include as part of those instructions the following details:

• When the sales are to be advertised as agreed between the selling entity and the Commissioner
• The total number of entitlements for sale.

The selling entity conducts authorised sales of entitlements of the State as agreed between the selling entity and the Commissioner.

The way in which entitlements may be sold is prescribed in the Regulation and is by a competitive tender process. A tender in an authorised sale is the submission of a tender sale bid (monetary amount) by a category 2 gaming licensee which may enable the category 2 gaming licensee to purchase entitlements at an authorised sale.

Providing entitlements sufficient to meet the minimum number of entitlements required by a bid remain in the authorised sale pool for allocation

An eligible premises is a premises where the approved number of gaming machines exceeds the number of entitlements for the premises, inclusive of any entitlements temporarily transferred to or from the premises.

Advertisement of sales Upon being instructed by the Commissioner to hold an authorised sale the selling entity must:-

• Advertise the authorised sale in a way and on a date as agreed between OLGR and the selling entity
• Include in any advertisement of an authorised sale, the location of the tender box including details of public access to the tender box in order to lodge a bid
• Nominate the date and time for the closing of the tender
• Advise the number of entitlements being offered for sale by tender
• Provide brief terms and conditions of the tender sale or alternatively provide information on where these may be obtained.

The Commissioner nominates a closing date for the tender which addresses the business requirements of OLGR and is not less than 10 working days following the advertisement of the sale.

Points to note for a tender sale:

• A person must only submit one tender sale bid form in each authorized sale of entitlements
• A person must only submit one bid price in each tender sale bid form in an authorized sale of entitlements
• The opportunity to purchase entitlements at an authorized sale will be allocated by the selling entity to the person who submits the highest value of tender bid price by a valid bid.

How bids for pokies machines are made?

Entitlements offered for sale by a selling entity in an authorised sale are offered for sale by a competitive tender process. The entitlements are offered for sale as a pool of entitlements (the government sale pool). A person seeking to purchase entitlements in an authorised sale will tender to purchase a specified number of entitlements from the government sale pool. Any allocation of a specific entitlement against a bid is for the purposes of administering the sales process by the selling entity only

Buying pokies machines for Hotels in Australia

If you are a commercial hotel licensee that has been granted a gaming machine license or approved to increase the number of gaming machines on your premises, you must obtain an ‘operating authority’ for each gaming machine you are approved to operate.

In Queensland the number of pokies machines is capped, therefore operating authorities may only be obtained by participating in an authorized sale conducted by the Public Trustee of Queensland. Sales are conducted by competitive tender in each of the three authority regions (South East, Coastal and Western) and authorities are only able to be sold in the region from which they originated.

The sale of gaming machine operating authorities is essentially a tender auction, with bids made through the lodgement of a tender bid form provided to eligible purchasers at the commencement of the sale.

How to know when the tender is called

The Public Trustee places an advertisement in the Courier-Mail announcing the commencement of a tender. The advertisement states the number of operating authorities available for sale in each region, the closing date, and lodgement details.

The Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR) then contact all eligible buyers when the new tender has been advertised. Sellers will also receive forms by registered mail.

If you intend to bid for authorities, you need to contact at email  OLGRlicensing@justice.qld.gov.au for the tender bid form, which must be placed in the tender box at the Public Trustee’s office no later than that time and date specified on the tender advertisement and paperwork. Note that the Public Trustee will not accept any bids by email, post or fax. Bids cannot be accepted at any OLGR office.

• Only one tender bid form per eligible premises will be accepted, and you may not bid more than one amount per operating authority. If you are licensed to operate gaming machines at more than one premises, a separate tender bid form for each eligible premises will be required.
• Tender documents must be lodged in the tender box at the office of the Public Trustee of Queensland. as OLGR cannot accept any tender documents.
• Documents lodged without the lodgement fee (currently $55) or received after the closing time will be declared invalid. If you are lodging bids for more than one premises, a lodgement fee will be required for each.

Once the tender has closed, the Public Trustee will allocate each operating authority against valid tenders in order of highest to the lowest bid. The Public Trustee will notify successful bidders of their allocation and require payment within 5 working days. Payment for each operating authority will be the amount bid on your tender form, an administration fee of $440 per operating authority, and stamp duty.

Clickhere to know NSW hotel gaming machine gaming entitlements for sale

How much you should bid for an operating authority is a matter for you and/or your accountant to determine. The Public Trustee will set a minimum acceptable price for each region and any bids below the amount set will not be successful. Also, the minimum acceptable price will not be disclosed and the staff at OLGR and the Public Trustee’s office are unable to assist you with how much to bid.