| Costa Rica Plan Online Gambling Tax |
| Tuesday, 28 July 2026 03:56 |
|
In the Central American country of Costa Rica, where there are more Internet gambling operators legitimately based than anywhere else in the world, the government is perennially on the lookout for ways to raise additional taxation revenue. It has tried unsuccessfully for several years to come up with a viable plan for wresting some of online gambling's massive profits away from the companies that make them. Each time it has set the wheels in motion, the plan has failed for one reason or another. Past failures apparently have not deterred the government's politicians and law makers and in two weeks time, they will make another attempt.As Costa Rica is the home of a large number of online gambling companies, most of which target the North American gambler, the government sees a huge flow of revenue going into the swollen coffers of these companies and none for itself. To rectify this situation, the Legislative Assembly proposes to levy a tax of 2 percent on the income generated by the online gambling companies licensed within its borders. This, they surmise will result in an additional $85 million being generated in revenue for the government. It is reported by the Tico Times that officially, there are 46 businesses licensed for online gambling operating in the country. Unofficially, that figure is estimated to be in the region of several hundreds of unlicensed businesses operating online gambling websites. The Costa Rica government started levying a licensing fee several years ago but only a few or the more reputable online gambling companies paid the fee. The majority avoided payment and one of the bigger companies that did pay then upped sticks and left the country. Following that, another tax proposal failed when it set out to punish the larger and more successful of the companies by basing their tax figures on the number of company employee stations. If this current proposal passes through successfully, there will be a regulatory body set up to ensure the correct licensing of all online gambling businesses and their affiliates and to ensure they pay the new tax. Gambling in the land based casinos of Costa Rica have seen a similar slump in revenue to their Las Vegas counterparts with job losses and cuts affecting the industry quite badly. The timing of this new tax proposal comes at a bad time for the industry, but all involved are waiting to see if it gets through the Legislative Assembly, where it is scheduled for 3rd August. |