A Landmark Decision Reshapes Ukrainian Gambling

Published: 15/07/2020 | Last Updated: 27/07/2020

Reading Time: 4 Min

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One of Ukraine’s prominent international betting firms, Parimatch Holding welcomes the country’s new legislation. It describes it as a turning point for the country’s growing economy as well as the international betting industry.

On July 14, the committees at the Verkhovna Rada voted in support of country-wide gambling right after the 248-95 success at second reading.

Market Potential of Ukraine

The beginning of a reliable and transparent regulated betting sector is the great news for the country. Ukraine showcases that now they are wide open for the business. The approval of the bill will drive more international investments into the country. It will also boost innovative technology as well as payment departments which are a significant part of the betting industry.

Moreover, tax contribution and license fees would generate maximum revenue for the state budget.

The bill covers several international practices of best standards, which will generate a network for the competitive and fair market. The parliament is waiting for the signature of Volodymyr Zelenskyi to legalize betting in order to boost the country’s economy.

In November 2019, the country’s draft budget was presented to Oleksiy Honcharuk. The Prime Minister believed that the legal gambling market would assist in enhancing the annual state income. He predicted that legalized gambling would contribute an additional $110.6m to Ukraine’s budget.

Once the bill is finally sanctioned, Parimatch also believes that there is a need to upgrade the tax code of the country to conduct this regulatory framework. This will make sure to have prolonged viability of the industry in Ukraine.

Parimatch feels proud to provide its innovative betting services to millions of customers globally. After 2019, they are pleased to have this opportunity to offer their cutting edge products to their home market. Now the Ukrainian people can get a chance to experience their products and services.

A Decade without Gambling

The government of Ukraine has recently approved a new bill that regulates online as well as land-based gambling in the country. Ukrainian Parliament voted 248-95 for the sanction of Bill 2285-D to impose gambling law.

Since 2009, gambling has been prohibited in all forms except state-run lotteries in the country. In October 2019, the members of the legislative council proposed Bill 2285-D.

However, it failed to receive approval during its first reading in December 2019. After several amendments and changes, the newly drafted gambling regulations will be most likely to become law in August 2020.

The bill will look after the legalization of land-based casinos, bookmaking, and online gambling. The parliament approved more than 100 amendments during the last week.

About Bill 2285-D Guidelines

In June, legislators proposed the new draft of Ukraine’s Gambling Bill while making some amendments to its last year predecessor. The Ukraine committee modified the licensing cost in the original bill. As a part of new licensing guidelines, all the sports operators will be required to pay $2.6m. On the other hand, a gambling license will cost up to $1.1m with a requirement of license renewal after every five years.

The bill enables all the operators of land-based casinos to operate within four to five-star hotels in Ukraine. Land-based casino operators will have to pay licensing fees up to $4.5 m. Moreover, till now legislators have not confirmed tax policies related to gambling.

The parliament of Ukraine will vote on five different proposals for the tax framework. Bill 2713-D will be most likely to approve and if sanctioned by the president, it will cover a 10% tax on gross gaming revenue for lotteries and online gaming.

In addition, all land-based slot machines will be required to pay a tax of 12.5% while land-based practices will be most likely to be taxed at 5%.