Croatian online gambling regulations approved by European Commission

The stage appears to be set for Croatia’s entry into the online gambling regulated market; the country’s draft law on internet and mobile gambling licensing and regulation has just received European Commission approval.

The government will now take the law through parliament, ultimately leading to a new licensing and regulatory regime by June-July 2015.

Passage through the EC was made easier by the Croatian lawmakers’ decision to eschew a dedicated national network approach that would exclude outside operators and players, apparently learning from the mistakes made by countries like France, Italy and Spain.

However the financial demands proposed by the government may prove too rich for many operators; proposed licensing fees run at the currency equivalent of US$490,000, with a further half-million dollars as an annual top-up.

Then there is a requirement that operators hold a $490,000 deposit in a local bank as a guarantee of financial stability, and a five-percent monthly levy on gross gaming revenues.

Operators will also be responsible for ensuring that players pay a withholding tax on their winnings, calculated on a sliding scale that includes 10 percent on winnings between HRK 750 and HRK 10,000; 15 percent up to HRK 30,000; 20 percent up to HRK 500,000; and 30 percent on amounts above that.

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