Betting Licences
Bookmakers
The Finance Act 2002 requires a bookmaker to have a licence. The premises where bookmaking is carried out must also be registered.
Betting Act Licences require a Certificate of Personal Fitness from Garda Síochána. A Certificate of Suitability for betting premises requires an application to the Garda Síochána.
Bookmakers are obliged to account for and return betting duty. They are also obliged to keep and retain records. The principal regulations are the Betting Duty Regulations 2004.
Gaming and Amusement
There is a range of excise licences for the gambling, amusement, and leisure industries. These have a long-standing historical basis. Most of the charges are flat fees.
The person who makes a gaming machine available for play must have a gaming licence for each machine (section 43 Finance Act 1975). The licence must be displayed and produced for inspection.
A person who makes an amusement machine available for play must have a permit for the premises and a licence for each amusement machine. (Section 124-1992)
The following licences require an annual court certificate:
- Gaming machine licence, 3-month or annual
- Gaming licence (premises), 3-month or annual
- An amusement machine permit must be in a schedule of public places.
- The amusement machine’s annual licence requires a valid permit.
- An amusement machine high-season licence applies at a lower rate of duty per machine.
A court certificate must be produced to the Revenue Commissioners within 12 months of issue.
Gaming Machines
The Finance Act 2002 consolidated the law on betting duty. A gaming machine is a machine which has been constructed or adapted for gaming where the player pays to play the machine, whether by inserting a coin or token, and the outcome is determined by the action of the machine, whether or not a provision is made for the skills of the player and when played once successfully affords that player no more opportunity to play again once and more often without paying to play.
Gaming means playing a game, whether of skill or chance or partly of skill and chance for stakes hazarded by the player. A stake includes any payment of the right to take part in the game and any other form of payment required as a condition for participation. It does not include a payment solely for the facility.
A gaming machine is one constructed or adapted for gaming. A gaming machine licence may only be issued for a machine where a gaming licence exists for the premises.
The 1956 Gaming and Lotteries Act prohibits unlawful gaming . This promoting or providing facilities for any gaming in which by reason of the nature of the game, the chances of all players , including the banker are not equal.
In which any portion of the stakes is retained by the promoter or banker otherwise than as winnings or by means of any slot machine.
Amusement Halls Circus & Carnivals
The District Court may grant certificates authorising the issue of a licence permitting gaming at an amusement hall or fun fair. The local authority must permit gaming by adopting Part 3 of the Gaming and Lotteries Act.
Gaming Licences are issued by Revenue on receipt of a valid court certificate and payment of the duty.
Section 6 of the Gaming and Lotteries Act allows gaming as part of a circus or travelling show subject to certain conditions. See generally the section on gaming.
There is a similar exemption with respect to carnivals. The relevant stakes and amounts are out of date.
Online Betting
Finance Act 2011 extends the betting duty to betting undertaken including by electronic means. It introduced a new licensing regime.
A remote bookmaker’s license duty was provided for by FA 2011. When the legislation providing for licensing remote bookmakers was introduced, the license duty became chargeable on every license. The initial excise duty is €5,000.
Additional duty is charged on renewal based on turnover. The basis of the duty charge is the business’s annual turnover, in the twelve-month period ending on 30th September preceding the renewal. The duty varies from €5,000 for entities with a turnover under €50 million up to €100,000 for entities with a turnover of €500 million.
A separate betting duty is charged and levied on every remote bookmaker with respect to bets made or otherwise entered with persons in the state. The general 1% rate of duty applies. This is equivalent to betting duty applicable to fixed premises bookies.
The Finance Act 2012 provides online bets from Irish bettors are subject to 1% betting duty and Betting Exchanges pay a 15% intermediary duty based on the commission earned from peer-to-peer wages.
Finance Number 2 Act 2013 provides that betting duty is payable on remote bookmakers’ and remote betting intermediaries’ licenses. The act provides a license duty of €10,000.
Excise duty is €500 for a two-year license. Excise duty is €760 on registration of premises, which lasts for two years.
Remote Betting Intermediaries
FA 2011 provides for remote betting intermediaries license duty. It is based on annual commission earnings of the business.. The level of duty varies from €5000 at under €3 million to €100,000 license at €30 million.
Remote betting intermediate licence duty applies in respect of remote betting by intermediaries. An initial duty of €5,000 is paid for every licence to act. This applies at less than €3 million. It increases to €100,000 at €30 million.
Betting intermediaries will be subject to a betting intermediary duty at the rate of 15% of commission charges. Commission charges refer to amounts that Irish persons pay to betting exchanges for bets made when using the facilities of remote betting intermediaries,
Betting intermediary duty becomes due when commission is charged by a remote betting intermediary in respect of a bet made using the facilities of the intermediary. The legislation was to commence on the day appointed by the minister.
Finance Acts
The Finance Act 2018 provided for an excise duty increase in the rate of betting duty and betting intermediary duty with effect from 1 January 2019. The rate of betting duty was increased from 1 percent to 2 percent for bookmakers and remote bookmakers, and the rate of betting intermediary duty was increased from 15 percent to 25 percent for remote betting intermediaries.
The Finance Act 2018 provided for an excise duty increase in the rate of betting duty and betting intermediary duty with effect from 1 January 2019. The rate of betting duty was increased from 1 per cent to 2 per cent for bookmakers and remote bookmakers. The rate of betting intermediary duty is increased from 15 per cent to 25 per cent for remote betting intermediaries.
Finance Act 2019 amends section 64 and section 77 of Chapter 1 of Part 2 of the Finance Act 2002 and inserts a new section 68A to that Act to provide relief from betting duty and betting intermediary duty.
The relief will allow persons liable to betting duty and betting intermediary duty to reduce their liability by claiming relief from such duty subject to a limit of €50,000 in a calendar year. The relief is subject to “de minimis” rules for State aid provided for under Commission Regulation 1407/2013.
In the case where more than one person forms a single undertaking, the total relief claimed by the single undertaking cannot exceed €50,000 in any calendar year. This amendment is subject to a commencement order.
Finance Act 2022 amends the Finance Act 2002, which outlines the sum of any bet when calculating for tax purposes. The amount of the bet shall be the unit stake when a bet placed with a bookmaker is wholly or partially on foot of an offer (including a ‘free’ bet). This means that where a person places a free bet, it is taxable at the value of the bet.