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A new bill has been introduced in Serbia’s National Assebly by Minister of Finance Sinisa Mali, which include a major tax increase for online gambling, from 5% gross revenue for all verticals, to 15% for online betting and 10 for other games. The new bill will replace the 2011 Gambling Act.
According to the Ministry of Finance the higher rate for betting was due to the fact that 75% of turnover from betting in Serbia comes from online bets, while only 25% of turnover in other games is online.
The new bill will allow also an increased number (up to 10 valid for 10 years for a fee of a minimum 500.000 euros) of land-based casino licenses. Now only two licensed casinos exist in Serbia. According to the new bill there will be restrictions on the locations of slot machines and bookmakers.
Danica Bukvic of the Socialist Party of Serbia commented in a debate when the bill was introduced in the National Assembly: “We are witnessing breaches of the rules and the fact is that children are betting and giving money to adults to pay for them to bet. Therefore, strict controls are necessary to prevent all this.”
The bill would establish an electronic surveillance system, intended to identify illegal gambling websites so that these may be shut down by the Serbian Gambling Authority. Also, gabling advertisements should be followed by a reminder that minors may not gamble and by an addiction prevention warning.
