A tax too far?


Greece is told to end levy that penalised private casinos; 15% off winnings worries S. Africans


The cash flowing into casinos is a tempting target for revenue-hungry governments on every continent. But could over-enthusiastic taxation rebound on them? That seems to be the case in Greece and South Africa, at least. The European Commission has


ordered Greece to fix a two-tier ticket- price system which meant that consumers were paying just €6 to enter state-owned casinos, but a comparatively whopping – and legally- required – €15 to pass through the portals of privately-run venues. With an 80% tax applied to both price levels, that arrangement meant that while state casinos were giving €4.80 per ticket back to the government, private outfits had to pay €12. The government won in two ways: by making its own properties more attractive to consumers through lower admission charges, and by imposing a much higher cost per customer acquisition on their rivals. Now, the European Commission


has ruled on a 2009 complaint that the system was discriminatory – and concurred. It rejected a government


defence that the higher prices in private locations helped discourage gambling, and said the state must now reclaim additional money from its own casinos covering all entrance fees back to 1992, so that their per- customer tax bill is comparable to the private firms’. The Greek government has also said it is examining a restructure of the two-tier system.


In South Africa, meanwhile, there is concern over the government’s plan to impose a 15% withholding tax on all winnings of more than ZAR25,000 ($3600), from April next year. “We are very concerned about this tax,” Marcel von Aulock, Chief Financial Officer of Tsogo Sun Group, was quoted as saying.


“It has the potential to be far more detrimental to casinos than people imagine.”


It would effectively increase the


hold percentage, he said, and dissuade consumers from spending their leisure budgets in casinos. Betting on horses is also expected to suffer if the tax comes into force.


Blackjack in bed Nevada okays in-room gaming, after all


Good news for lazy gamblers: the state of Nevada will, after all, allow gaming in the bedrooms of casino hotels.


Although at one point bedrooms


were specifically excluded from the proposed legislation allowing gaming to extend into new locations beyond the main casino floor, Governor Brian Sandoval has now approved rules that will let customers play electronically from their suites. Regulators had opposed the move, saying that it would make enforcement of gambling age limits impossible. But supporters cited research from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority


showing that fewer than 7% of guests have kids in tow.


Sandoval also, as expected, put his imprimatur on another bill laying the foundations for Nevada gaming businesses to offer online Poker when the federal government permits it.


He has directed the Nevada Gaming Control Board to draw up a framework for regulating e-Poker by January. Its rules are likely to include a


provision that operators must have an unblemished five-year record of land-based gaming in the state. No chance, then, of Nevada becoming another Malta or Isle of Man.


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