Brit government pulls back from freebie gambling tax

A proposal by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs late last year to impose a tax on free plays, discounts and bonuses offered by gambling companies (see previous reports) has been pulled from the current Finance Bill 2017, giving a little relief to operators.

That relief may be short-lived – a government announcement revealed that the proposal had been withdrawn because there was insufficient time to give it the required scrutiny before parliament dissolves on May 3 due to the impending snap general election.

Once the political dust has settled, and assuming that the Conservatives return to power following voting on June 8, it is likely that the proposals will be reinserted in a reinvigorated bill.

Major operators have been bracing themselves for multi-million pound annual tax hits under the proposal.