It is part of the commercial strategy of bookmakers to grant promotional credits to be used as a "test" for a beginner. Some platforms, for example, also offer this bonus on their customers' birthdays as a gift.
If bettors use the credit and lose, the platform earns nothing and returns the money deposited. If they win, however, the bonus becomes a cost, not revenue, since it came out of the company's cash, say the operators.
Executives from the sector, who spoke on condition of anonymity, consider the measure a desperate attempt by the government to increase revenue in order to comply with the fiscal adjustment demanded by the market. They claim that there is no legal basis for this taxation, which is not provided for in the 'Bets' regulations.
When contacted, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting said that it published the technical note with the aim of increasing legal certainty, predictability, protection of bettors and the public interest. It stated that "questions from the sector will be evaluated, always with attention to the provisions of the legislation and regulations."
In the note, the secretariat justifies the taxation by saying that these promotional credits are a form of direct financial incentive for bets, since their sole purpose is this type of operation.
Without the tax, the secretariat argues, there could be an incentive [for gambling] above what the regulation intends, "especially when we take into account the importance of actions to promote responsible gambling", says the technical note.
Source: Painel S.A.
