SkyCity loses High Court appeal on casino duty ruling

The casino operator will have to pay US$8.75m.

Australia.- SkyCity Entertainment Group has announced that the South Australian High Court has rejected its appeal on the taxation of loyalty points accumulated at SkyCity’s Adelaide casino. It will have to pay casino duty of AU$10.3m (US$6.9m) to January 2024 plus AU$2.8m (US$1.8m) of additional casino duty as a consequence of part of an earlier judgment that was not appealed to the High Court.

The court favoured the interpretation of the Treasurer of South Australia, ruling that credits on gaming machines resulting from the conversion of loyalty points should be considered in gaming revenue calculations for casino duty. SkyCity said it has already set aside AU$13.1m (US$8.75m).

The amount of interest payable has yet to be determined by a judge of the Supreme Court at a later date. If the ruling is unfavourable to SkyCity, it could be required to pay up to AU$25.3m (US$16.9m) in penalty interest accrued up to September 30, 2024.

SkyCity’s chief executive officer Jason Walbridge, said: “This is a long-running matter involving highly technical tax issues regarding the calculation of casino duty. Given the complexities, both parties decided to seek declaratory relief through the court. We look forward to the resolution of this matter and will continue to work with RevenueSA to achieve this.”