A new tax bill has been introduced in Uganda to centralise betting payments and operators attempting to bypass the system will face staggering penalties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kampala, Uganda: The Uganda government has fired a decisive shot in its campaign to rein in the country’s high-flying betting industry, unveiling a game-changing tax bill aimed squarely at boosting compliance, tightening oversight and driving up revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unveiled as Bill No.9<\/strong>, the Tax Procedures Code (Amendment) Bill 2025<\/strong> tabled by Finance Minister Matia Kasaija<\/strong>, the legislation proposes sweeping changes including a new mandate for centralised payments in the betting world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Under the bill, all transactions – whether placing a bet or cashing out a win – must be processed through a centralised payments gateway system. Licensed by the Bank of Uganda<\/strong> and tightly monitored by the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA)<\/strong>, this system will act as the digital nerve center of the country’s gambling economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “An operator of a casino, gaming or betting activity shall only receive a wager or money staked and only make payouts through the gaming and betting centralised payments gateway system,” the bill states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Operators who attempt to bypass the new system will face staggering penalties. Non-compliant operators will be slapped with double the amount of the gaming or withholding tax owed or 5,500 currency points – whichever is higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The timing of this is also no coincidence. The country’s betting industry is booming and the state wants a slice of it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The bill fits neatly into Uganda’s broader digital tax crackdown. The country has already rolled out powerful surveillance tech to monitor mobile money transactions – the dominant method of online betting – via systems like the Telecommunications Intelligent Monitoring System (TIMS)<\/strong> and Data Monitoring System (DMS)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n TIMS and DMS have given URA real-time visibility into mobile money-fuelled betting, translating into some serious cash. In 2019\/2020, gaming taxes collected via these two systems totalled just over $5m. Fast forward to recent years, and that number has ballooned to around $26m – a fivefold jump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With the gaming industry expanding at breakneck speed, the 2025 amendment bill is poised to become a cornerstone in Uganda’s evolving approach to tax and transparency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In a sector once known for its opacity, the new message is clear: The house always wins, but now, so does the state.<\/p>\n\n\nPenalties for those who bypass the system<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Broader digital tax crackdown<\/h2>\n\n\n\n