Bill 5,144/2023, presented this Tuesday (24) by federal deputy Jorge Goetten, intends to classify as a crime the conduct of capturing bets, and advertising and marketing of betting services to obtain a prize, for the benefit of an operator not authorized by the competent Public Authority.
To this end, Bill amends articles of Law 13,756/2018, determining that:
“Art. 35-G. It is a crime to take bets of any type, lottery or not, with the promise of a prize resulting from the correct result of a sports competition or random draw, offered in physical or non-physical format, via the internet, electronic equipment or printed ticket, in Brazilian territory, without due authorization from the competent Public Authority, in accordance with Brazilian laws.”
In this case, the deputy stipulates a sentence of three years in prison and a fine.
Anyone who participates in the activity described in any way, as a facilitator of payment or receipt of a prize resulting from the bet, incurs the same penalty.
The Bill goes further and changes art. 35-H, giving it a new wording:
“It is a crime to carry out publicity, advertising and/or marketing in the national territory, of a company or brand, national or foreign, that explores the activity of any type of gambling or lottery modality without authorization from the Public Authority competent under Brazilian laws. Penalty: imprisonment of two to four years, and fine.”
For this, it determines a prison sentence of two to four years, in addition to a fine.
In his justification, the deputy points to the significant growth of online betting platforms based abroad that capture bets in national territory, which reached approximately R$40 billion (US$ 8bn) in the first five months of 2023 alone, without any collection of taxes on the business.
Furthermore, Jorge Goetten points out that the operation of betting houses without due authorization from the Public Power has encouraged foreign companies “to capture bets in national territory and that, in parallel, these companies have intensified their advertising, marketing and publicity activities as an aggressive strategy of promoting their brands.”
The deputy points out that “these measures aim to protect the popular economy, consumers and users of lottery services, guarantee sporting integrity and ensure the effective collection of taxes. The popular economy would be protected by preventing the significant outflow of financial resources from the country that could be reinvested locally, generating jobs and stimulating internal growth.”
Source: GMB
