Slovakia is set to open its online casino market to internationally licensed operators by revamping its already existing gambling laws.
Just recently, Slovakia’s Ministry of Finance unveiled a draft legislation which could take affect by March 2019 and it would rearrange the country’s gambling legal framework completely.
After much anticipation coming from the industry experts, the Slovak government is taking first steps which would allow international companies to seek online casino licenses and would erase the monopoly currently held by state-run operator Tipos.
The new law responds to the latest trends in digitization which are also affect the gaming industry and among the goals the legislations is also seeking to increase consumer protection.
Sources claim(CalvinAyre.com) that online casino revenue would be taxed at a rate of 23% (locally licensed online sportsbook operators currently pay 27%).
Land based
The bill reinforces the conditions for the exercise of gambling operation within the Slovakian territory and the availability of gambling will be reduced. As of March 2019, this limit will be set to a minimum of 15 units. After increasing the minimum number of devices in the gaming halls from 5 to 12 units, there has been a decrease in the number of operations since January this year.
The law will also impose the presence of only one gaming operator per room. Also the time of limited play and to the municipal administrations will be allowed to prohibit certain types of games of chance during the established days, but in any case no more than twelve in a year.
All the measures adopted in the previous amendment to the law remain in force, for example a ban on installing gaming machines in pubs or bars. The law also provides for the introduction of the register of excluded persons who will not be allowed to play with certain types of games of chance.
Online
Among the most important changes brought by the new legislation are the measures for online gambling, an activity that involves which is rapidly growing. The Ministry of Finance was inspired by European countries, such as Denmark, Sweden, Romania or the Czech Republic, with particular attention to strengthening the protection of players. The bill creates a new licensing structure which would regulate online operators to strict rules and those who will not comply or do not have a license will have to answer before a judge.
Upcoming briefings about the Slovakian gambling market will be during CEEGC Budapest, where Štefan Švec (Playtech) will share more insights. Visit www.ceegc.eu for more details.
