Next Monday, 3 August, the Costa Rican government is expected to table a bill proposing a 2% gambling tax. According to Minister Guillermo Zúñiga from the Exchequer, gaming companies have been operating untaxed for over ten years as there have been no laws to govern gambling. The online gambling market in Costa Rica generates an estimated US$4 billion annually, with around 300 companies operating virtually unchecked by the authorities.

The legislative proposal includes regulatory measures to control gambling in the country. Zúñiga said, “We have taken many months studying the proposed regulations and the bill is now ready to present to the Legislative Assembly.” A gaming authority will have the powers to prevent illegal betting, grant and cancel gaming licences, and impose sanctions on any infractions of the law.

An official body will be created to oversee online gambling and exercise ‘precise and rigorous’ control over operators, who will be required to submit to a series of regulations that include the scrutiny of bank transactions by the regulator. One of the principle aims of the new law will be to conform to international money laundering prevention standards. However, a new gaming tax is expected to bring in a minimum US$80 million a year to the government.

There are 46 casinos in the country and the Costa Rican Casino Association is concerned that the new gambling tax will bring about a further reduction in revenues at a time when the industry is struggling. The Association says that gambling activity has fallen about 35% and around 500 employees have lost their jobs already. (E-07.27.09)

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