Cutting a Path Through the Tax Jungle, Sports Betting gets a Brazilian

Big gaming outfits eyeing up Brazil’s potentially lush, soon-to-be-launched, online sports betting market have been dealt some clarity if not charity by the announcement of a new tax regime in the South American economic giant.

Under the latest fiscal legislation passed into law by President Jair Bolsonaro, core tax on online sports betting will now be based on a percentage of Gross Gaming Revenue — and not directly applied to customer bets at source.

On winnings, punters will have to pay a tax of 30 per cent on their successful wager, equivalent to the basic rate of income tax.

All government money raised by the new tax regime will be allocated as follows:

Ninety-five per cent of this income will finance the cost of the state boards and entities that oversee and regulate the country’s betting industry; 2.55 per cent will go to the National Public Security Force; 1.63 per cent to sporting institutions and 0.82 per cent to schools.

Companies operating lotteries, that pay prizes in cash or houses, will be subject to additional financial controls, bank account monitoring and the remit of Brazil’s state Banco Central’s Financial Intelligence Unit.

Published on:

Editorial Tags: