Germany has introduced a proposal calling to tax online casinos, pokers and slots. The proposal by the German Bundesrat envisions a 5.3% tax on online poker and slots stakes.
However, the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) has urged the German Parliament to reconsider the said proposal.
EGBA states that tax on online poker and slots stakes would directly undermine EU state aid rules and would dissuade the customers to move to more regulated markets, which is one of the key ambitions of the EGBA.
To avoid taxes, websites and online gaming would switch to unregulated markets and the Bill is more punitive in nature.
As per Gambling Insider, EGBA secretary general Maarten Haijer said: “We welcome the regulation of the German online gambling market, and we fully appreciate that an online gambling tax will need to be paid.”
He added: “However, we urge the German parliament to reconsider the proposed punitive rate of the tax because it will push German players to use unprotected and unregulated black-market websites and give land-based operators a massive tax advantage.”