Irish online gambling tax laws due this week

The slow-moving Irish government’s tax proposals for remote gambling companies accessing the Irish market have been in legal drafting for some time but are now due for publication this week, according to the Sunday Business Post.

Just how the government proposes to collect the tax on an industry that is for the most part based offshore will be studied with interest by the industry.

The proposals, which have been widely discussed this year, centre on a one percent tax on turnover, and a 15 percent tax on betting exchange commissions.

The Post reports that cabinet minister Simon Coveney is confident that the draft law will receive the approval of the European Commission, clearing the way for implementation early in 2013.

In related news, the British government’s long-running Culture, Media and Sport Committee’s consultation and study report on the internet gambling business is also due for publication this week.

The committee has consulted widely on its remit, which includes:

How effective the Gambling Act has been in

Ensuring that gambling is maintained crime-free and conducted in an open and fair manner,

Protecting children and vulnerable people from the adverse effects of gambling,

Updating the legislative framework with regards to online gambling, with particular emphasis on where gambling legally takes place (ie the ‘point of consumption’.

The financial impact of the Gambling Act on the UK gambling industry;

The effectiveness of the Gambling Commission since its establishment, and whether it represents good value for money;

The impact of the proliferation of off-shore online gambling operators on the UK gambling sector and what effect the Act has had on this;

Why the Act has not resulted in any new licences for casinos or “super” casinos;

The effectiveness of the classification and regulation of gaming machines under the Act;

What impact the Act has had on levels of problem gambling.

The politicians don’t intend to implement new laws and tax on internet gambling until 2014.