Parliamentary Group Seeks Overhaul of Gambling Industry Taxation

Under this proposal, independent gambling operators will potentially see their tax rates on gross profits skyrocket from 21% to 50%. In the meantime, the general duty of betting will rise from 15% to 25%. Contrastingly, horse racing might need a leg up, with talks ongoing to slash its rate from 15% to 5%.

This parliamentary overhaul comes in the wake of the UK Treasury’s consultation on the introduction of a singular, streamlined tax for betting and gaming remotely, targeted at simplifying a system that has long been viewed as clunky and archaic. What was initially a tidy-up plan has now transformed into a fully formed debate over how much the gambling sector should be making an effort to contribute towards tax obligations.

The all-party parliamentary group argue that “…the current tax rates do not reflect the scale of harm caused by gambling,” claiming that a hike would fund much-needed support services and address growing concerns over responsible gambling in both the UK and Ireland.

With this being said, industry leaders are definitely ringing alarm bells. Gambling firms (with the inclusion of major UKGC-licensed casinos and sportsbooks) have been arguing that these steep rises could be more harmful than beneficial. “Punitive taxation will only stifle innovation, cut jobs, and hurt the economy,” one operator told the iGaming Post.

It’s beginning to seem that the government may agree with this sentiment. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has reportedly dumbed down the notion of an increase, with the Treasury stating that their recent consultation on tax obligations is “…about reducing bureaucracy — not about increasing or decreasing rates.”

Momentarily, nothing is set in stone. If a rise such as this were to be introduced, the repercussions could be monumental across the entire industry. Most operators are being faced with tighter margins, resulting in the reining in of bonuses as well as the ramping up of Know Your Customer (KYC) checks to oversee and check risk factors, which could foreseeably change how both UK and Irish players experience gambling online.

This overhaul is being kept on close watch by us to see if it begins to snowball or fades away like a cheap shirt. Whatever happens, things are changing faster than ever before.