Chile, Change in taxes: How will it affect online casinos?

But how will these taxes affect online casinos and betting sites? If you usually visit some of these websites, then we recommend reading the following article:

Casinos and Chile

To properly understand how these regulations will work we must first understand how casinos operate in Chile. According to the latest report from the Superintendence of Gaming Casinos (SCJ), brick-and-mortar casinos registered a total income of $46,854 million pesos (US$ 48,370,664) only during the beginning of the year 2022, making it one of the most lucrative industries in the country.

Of the $46,854 million pesos (US$ 48,370,664) collected, $14,411 million (US$ 14,877,484) contribute to the country in the form of taxes, making this industry also one of the largest taxpayers at a national level. However, we must mention that this income does not count online casinos and that is where the new regulations come in.

If you visit the best casinos in Chile through your computer, you will realize that none of these are regulated by the government or pay taxes, this is because there has never been any law regarding this type of casino, so they operate without any control.

New casino regulations

The regulation promoted this year by the finance minister would seek to legalize and regulate the online casinos that currently provide services in Chile. Casinos or websites that offer online games would have to pay a total of 20% of their gross income and acquire annual or temporary licenses to be able to operate within the states of Chile.

Online sports betting sites would also be affected by this new regulation as they now have to pay 2% of their annual income to the National Sports Federation. Additionally, both casinos and betting sites must allocate 1% of their annual income to the promotion of responsible gaming.

The main objective of this regulation, according to the Chilean government, would be to take advantage of the profits generated by the online casino industry and regulate the more than 900 online sites that offer services in Chile, according to the SCJ.

This proposal has been well received by the Chilean Congress; however, the proposal still presents details to correct such as the process of collecting taxes from sites that are not based within Chile, so it is currently still under discussion, and its vote is expected to take place at the end of this year or at the beginning of 2023.

What effects would this new regulation bring for online casinos in Chile?

The new regulation would bring huge changes to the online casino market in Chile because foreign operators wishing to operate would now have to pay the license fee and give up 20% of their profits, which will inevitably make several foreign operators prefer to stop operating. provide services in Chile.

However, this change is not completely negative, since operators who decide to stay or who already have a physical and online platform will see less competition and users will be able to attract a casino to go to.

What effect would these changes bring to Chilean citizens?

Chilean citizens who frequent online casinos will also be affected by the new regulations, due to the fact that they will have to pay 15% in taxes every time they make a withdrawal at an online casino. Additionally, if the number of casinos available is reduced, players will have fewer options to choose from.

However, not everything is bad news, since the casinos that now provide service within the country will have to abide by national regulations and laws, this means that if you have any eventuality or are the victim of any irregularity, you will be able to go to the entities state to solve the problem.

Another benefit presented by the regulation of online casinos is the income that the country would see through the taxes charged to these sites, which would be used for the development of public works or for the financing of entities related to sports such as the National Sports Federation or the promotion of responsible gaming.

As you can see, these regulations will bring huge changes for the users and operators of online casinos in Chile, so we recommend keeping an eye on the news and changes related to these new regulations.