Poland purges online market from illegal operations

Under the new regime, international operators are able to apply for a license for the provision of sports betting options only. Online casino, poker, and bingo games can only be offered by the country’s designated gambling monopoly.

International companies interested to operate in the local market are facing a 12% tax on turnover. The Polish Ministry of Finance, the authority responsible for the regulation of the country’s gambling industry, has been approached with vocal criticism for its decision to implement a rate that is extremely high by all standards.

The Ministry has made it very clear that unlicensed operations will be highly unwelcome and that the market will be monitored strictly for any wrongdoing and violation. To prevent such unlicensed operations, the country’s financial department announced earlier this year that it would create a blacklist of unauthorized operators that would later on have their access to the local gambling community blocked.

First names were added to the list in early April and more have joined the company since then. Following the latest update on the Ministry of Finance’s website, it can be seen that there are 311 domains added and that the list has been updated almost daily over the past two months.

Those included in the list will have access to their websites blocked by Polish Internet service providers. The Ministry of Finance has given local ISPs up to July 1 to begin blocking unlicensed operations.

Europe and the world’s largest gambling operators are becoming more and more keen to operate in a regulated gambling environment and to avoid ambiance that lacks in proper regulations.