Greek Government to Introduce a New Online Gambling Framework

The Greek economy is not yet out of the woods and with pressure mounting, the Syriza government is trying to find alternative ways of replenishing state coffers. One solution is to create a new licensing regime for Internet gambling operators, after the previous framework failed miserably. The officials have announced their intention to reform the entire system and make it easier for international casinos to apply for a license.

Tax Revenues Expected to Surge in 2016

Greek players are big fans of online gambling and Dublinbet Casino and Jackpot City Casino are some of the Internet casinos popular with the local audience. Even so, the lack of a coherent licensing strategy resulted in paltry tax revenues since 2013 and numerous opportunities lost. Over this period of time, gambling operators paid no more than €60,000, an insignificant amount compared to the projected revenue for 2016.

The Greek Syriza government is expecting the changes to result in a significant revenue boost, with as much as €500 million to be collected this year. Increasing the revenue 1000 times is not going to be easy, but the Greek Deputy Finance Minister Tryfon Alexiadis considers this to be a plausible scenario. A complete reform of the licensing regime is necessary to create the proper market conditions that will act as a magnet for international gambling operators.

A Key Element in Syriza's Growth Strategy

The Greek ruling party announced a batch of comprehensive reforms, with seven distinct pylons during the national election campaign. The reform of the online gambling environment is one of the most important changes and the new licenses will revolve around the value of €3 million. Online gambling operators will rejoice knowing that the authorities have no intention to bump the tax rates, so their profit margin shouldn’t be affected.

It remains to be seen how the Greek will lay out their online gambling plans.