the tippinG point Denmark has been on the brink of iGaming reform for several years. Danish
politicans remain split over the distribution of tax revenues, which has ironically prevented the collection of any tax from the online industry.
Denmark has been teetering on the edge of a legalised online gaming market for the last year or so.
With an initial January 1 2011 launch date the country however has been pushed back into a state of limbo following ongoing disputes over tax rates.
An appeal has now been lodged with the EU Commission and it is thought this could take up to six months now to finalise although some fear this could carry on for the next couple of years if an agreement is not reached. And so at the moment it is still illegal for Danish and foreign operators without a Danish licence to provide online games in the country.
The dispute revolves around Danish politicians who are arguing over the best way to spend the future online casino tax revenues. Ironically as they continue to argue they are preventing any licences from being issued and therefore not generating any tax revenue to spend in the first place.
Meanwhile another bone of contention in the law is the provision which allows online gambling operators to pay lower taxes than traditional land based casinos. The Danish slot machine operators via the association DAB and the Royal Casino in Aarhus have already filed complaints over the tax rates with the European Commission.
danish politicians aRe aRGuinG oveR the Best way to
spend the futuRe online casino tax Revenues.
online tax rate claim it is being subsidised by the Danish state which they say is against the EU Commission’s principles of a level playing field. However the Danish Tax Ministry (SKAT) believes that the legislation adopted is in line with EU rules and tax rates and do not constitute state aid.
At the moment there is now a standstill period involved and the Danish government cannot take any further steps to implement the regulatory framework. Many are hoping this will be sorted before the long summer break in August however some suggest that the beginning of 2012 is the earliest that Denmark will see regulated online gaming.
The current gambling tax for land based casinos in Denmark is set at 45 per cent of gross gaming revenues up DKK4m. Meanwhile gaming machines pay 41 per cent of GGR whilst slots in arcades and restaurants pay 30 per cent on GGR (subject to various revenues levels).
Meanwhile Danske Spil which provides the monopoly on dog and horse racing pays 11 per cent of GGR plus an additional 19 per cent on part of the monthly gross gaming revenue when it exceeds DKK16.7m.
In comparison the tax for online casinos is currently set at 20 per cent of gross gaming revenues.
Those who are campaigning against the lower
It is thought once the application process is opened there will be between 20 and 30 online gaming operators who will immediately apply. This will be a huge difference considering the government has for the last 50 years only had to deal with one operator.
Meanwhile just recently due to heavy pressure from the EU, Denmark recently amended its anti competitive section of its laws and will now permit licensed online casino operators to host parts of their internet systems outside of the country, but only in special cases and under strict supervision.
Originally the proposal stated that it was mandatory for all licensees to have their servers located in Denmark but this caused
16
denmaRk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68