Romania Increases Remote Gambling License Fees

According to Romanian Insider, the Government of Romania approved changes for regulations of remote gambling. The changes include switch in the currency and protection of minors as well as online gamblers from Romania.

The president of the RNOG (Romanian National Office for Gambling) gave a statement concerning the changes. He explained that now Romania has a legal frame that “allows gambling operators to get licensed in Romania.” In his opinion, this legal framework will help Romania to protect under-aged citizens and those Romanians who regularly play online casino games.

Odette Nestor, the president of RNOG, also added that there will be a change in the currency. Until the new changes were presented, the tax that gambling operators had to pay was in RON, whereas now they will have to pay it in Euros. According to him, these latest changes bring Romania in line with the requirements imposed by the European Commission.

Additionally, the existing fixed tax rate of 25% on lottery and gambling will be replaced by a progressive one. Also, the Government plans to impose taxes on gambling profits bellow 133 Euros, something that did not exist up till now.

When it comes to the new progressive tax level, online operators have to know that it will apply to all gains on daily basis and that they will have to declare all winnings to the state tax authority every fiscal year. The tax table is as it follows: 1% tax on winnings less than 15,000 Euros, 16% tax on winnings between 15,001 Euros and 100,000 Euros and 25% tax on winnings bigger than 100,000 Euros.

Also There Were Some Changes in 2013

These changes in the remote gambling legislation came as a surprise to Romanian people because in 2013 the country approved series of new gambling regulations. In that period Romania named the National Office for Gambling Games as the new entity that would regulate and monitor gambling activity.

Some of the responsibilities of this entity were to grant gambling licences to gambling operators and to issue certificates as well as approvals. Furthermore, this body was named responsible for settling preliminary complaints filed by operators who are not satisfied by the Committee’s decisions.

Not the First Country That Changes Its Remote Gambling Regulations

Romania is not the first country in Europe that decided to change its remote gambling regulations. This year United Kingdom presented its brand new online gambling licence which is issued by the UK Gambling Commissioner to operators who want to serve UK citizens.

In November, Poland was another country to take serious actions against illegal online gambling activities and warned Polish citizens that they are facing criminal charges when they play at online sites that do not hold Polish gambling licence.

The biggest surprise in the online gambling industry this year was the Czech Republic. The country announced its plans to fight online gambling as illegal drugs and approved changes in the country’s national strategy for fighting addictions.