Russia to rise online sports betting tax

Government officials proposed to amend the current law and to introduce a new 10 percent tax on all online sports betting sales.

Russia.- Last week, Russian government officials sent a proposal that aims to amend the current law on online sports betting sales and to introduce a new tax rate starting in December.

The Finance Ministry has yet to clarify if the ‘sales’ aspect of the tax denotes turnover or revenues, which is one of the aspects of the amendment that left many operators questioning.

On May 5th the proposed new tax rate will be open for public debate. Industry officials, regulators and operators will have the chance to express their views and concerns and to ask any question they may have in connection to this issue. If the amendments are approved, Russian operators will suffer not only a higher tax rate, but a new set of fees that they are already experiencing to accept online wagers across the country.

The first sports betting license was awarded this year in Russia, to operator Liga Stavok. According to the first gaming Russian operator, the amount wagered in 2015 through illegal gambling operations declined. Football led the sector as the most wagered sport bettors placed their bets on.