Goldprest Impex loses Romanian gaming licence after fee dispute

Romania’s gambling regulator says Goldprest failed to pay its fee in full.

Romania.- The Romanian gambling regulator has revoked the licence of slots operator Goldprest Impex SRL due to it not paying its full licence fee. The Gambling Supervisory Committee launched an investigation into several issues and found that outstanding fees were owed.

The regulator first believed that Goldprest had not paid the correct amount, paying just RON97,753 of RON366,573, leaving a debt of RON268,820 (€55,000). However, it turned out that the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) registered the full amount having been paid in two instalments in November 2022 but reduced the amount to RON97,753 after accounting for certain compensations.

On March 20 and 22, Goldprest Impex submitted a statement rectifying the difference and paid RON268,869, slightly more than the initial debt due to changes in the exchange rate. However, it submitted a number of rectification statements relating to Q4 2021.

The Gambling Supervisory Committee found that these reduced the operator’s authorisation fee for the period so that it was less than the fee it owed, with seven rectifications totalling RON444,348.

The regulator voted to cancel these submissions, finding them to be without legal basis. It said it found a similar situation with the company’s defect tax. It says it has now cancelled the operator’s licence and ordered it to pay the difference in the authorisation fee. Goldprest Impex is expected to appeal against the decision. It has 30 days to do so, but the licence revocation is effective immediately.

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