EU complaint lodged over unnotified legislative changes for gambling in Croatia
EUROMAT has objected to Croatia’s failure to notify changes to the Croatian Gambling Act to the European Commission.
Belgium.- The European Gambling and Amusement Federation (EUROMAT) has submitted an objection to the European Commission over Croatia’s failure to notify of changes to the Croatian Gambling Act (PZ_42) under the TRIS procedure. The trade body argues that as several amendments constitute technical regulations under European Union Directive 2015/1535, they should have been subject to a formal notification.
The Croatian gambling reforms include mandatory player identification for entry to gambling venues, a self-exclusion register, advertising restrictions, tough rules on the location of gambling venues, restrictions on days of operation and increases to licensing fees and taxation. It’s estimated that municipal reviews could lead to a reduction of up to 15 per cent in the number of gambling venues.
EUROMAT raised concerns that the Croatian Government was proceeding with the legislative process without any notification. It pointed out that EU Member States must notify any national provisions that restrict market access or the provision of services. Failure to comply with the procedure constitutes a breach of EU law, which can potentially lead to the suspension of the law’s application and the initiation of infringement proceedings.
The association recalled that Croatia notified its last update to gambling legislation in 2014, which resulted in the legislation being withdrawn following scrutiny from the European Commission. The country also notified a law in 2023 with impacts for the amusement sector and there are more than 500 examples in the European Commission’s TRIS database of similar notifications from across Europe.
EUROMAT president Jason Frost said: ”If the Commission is serious about strengthening the Internal Market then it has to ensure that Member States respect the law. The Commission intervened in 2014 and as a result Croatia had to withdraw its gambling law, which underlines how important the notification procedure is.
“The Commission needs to intervene again but this time to ensure that Croatia actually notifies. Companies need legal certainty to invest and operate in Europe, and if the Commission allows Member States to disregard their responsibilities then it sets a very concerning precedent”.
Filip Jelavic, general secretary of the Croatian Gaming Association, said: “It is inconceivable that any European Member State could be allowed to introduce such far reaching and disruptive legal changes without following the correct procedure. We are calling on the Croatian Government to act responsibly in this case and follow the law”.
