| New law in Czech Republic |
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THE new Gambling Act in the Czech Republic came into force on January 1, 2017. The primary goal of the legislation is to raise more taxes and to bring the country in line with EU regulations. The new Bill also sets out clear guidelines for the online gambling market. In order to apply for a licence, operators need to a show transparent organizational and ownership structure. An applying company also needs to have €2m in equity and make a security deposit of € 1.1m or €1.9m, depending on the type of games offered. Additionally, an applicant mustn’t have any outstanding public debts, criminal history or history of bankruptcy or liquidation. The new law has led to several leading online operators temporarily withdrawing from the market, presumably in order to apply for the new licences.
It is possible, though, that William Hill and other major operators won’t seek licences, however, as the tax structure implemented by the new gambling law is extremely punitive. Licenced internet gaming operators will now be taxed 35 per cent of gross gaming revenues from any game that uses a random number generator. Sport betting and lottery revenues are taxed at 23 per cent. On top of that, operators still have to pay a 19 per cent corporate income tax rate. (2017/03/06)
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