Provisional measure nº 1.182, of July 24, 2023, which regulates sports betting published this Tuesday (25th) has immediate force of law and provides for an 18% rate for companies on the Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR), which is the revenue obtained from all games played. The text of the PM brings a 260% higher taxation in relation to the current law, which was 5%.
The Brazilian Institute of Responsible Gaming (IBJR) clarifies that the total tax burden for companies should reach approximately 30%, after the incidence of taxes such as PIS, COFINS and ISS. Also considering the taxation on player prizes, this would place Brazil among the highest tax burdens on the planet for the sector.
The entity's CEO, André Gelfi, comments that “this burden concerns companies in the segment and should be viewed with skepticism by Brazilian society, as the entire economic chain derived from this sports betting sector must be impacted. Another consequence will be the growth of the parallel market, both physical and online, since companies that operate legally will be able to pass on costs to gamblers and they, in turn, tend to look for more attractive alternatives."
However, the text of the PM brings positive points in relation to the guarantees of protection for players and also for the sport. One of them is the ban on participation, directly or indirectly, by people under 18 years of age in betting or even people enrolled in the national credit protection registers - SPC and Serasa - in order to protect the most vulnerable people from financial losses.
We also value the PM's efforts to create guidelines for advertising in the sector, designating the National Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (Conar) to oversee and regulate communication and marketing actions, in addition to carrying out extensive awareness work, so that sports betting is another entertainment opportunity for Brazilians.
Finally, the IBJR makes itself available to continue the discussions and debates in the legislative environment so that Brazil can build regulations that protect consumers and sport, guarantee revenue to the public sector and offer a sustainable business environment to companies in the sector's production chain.
IBJR Board
Source: GMB
