gambling license - BASIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS

Gambling License (online casino-sports betting-gaming license): BASIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS

-Learn more!: Pure Reseller Services, Tax and Tax-Law Considerations,tax at source on dividends flowing abroad or domestic income tax...

We are an international legal firm giving tax and legal advice and focus on international tax arrangements as well as international gambling law. Most of those offering a service on the Internet are either "local providers" and/or tax consultants or lawyers are not involved. Particularly in the case of purely local providers (e.g. the Isle of Man) there is the problem that although, admittedly, the legal and/or tax-law requirements in the country are known about, there is no international orientation. In this case there is the risk that those interested in/already providing games of chance on the internet will select structures that are illegal and/or fulfil the conditions involved in the abuse of arrangements from the point of view of tax law. In this case, making savings in the wrong place can have disastrous consequences, as relevant examples from the past impressively record. The services offered by our legal firm are:

-legal advice with regard to international gambling law

-selection of the right location for the gambling business

-advice relating to tax law (prevention of the abuse of arrangements, tax arrangements within the context of the associated companies, designing the company with an intermediate holding company, prevention of a high rate of tax being paid at source when distributing dividends etc.)

-application for a permit from the relevant authority up to and including the granting of the gambling licence

-setting up of the company in the relevant country and, on request, the apppointment of a trust director or full-time director (a lawyer in the country where the company is to be domiciled), a proper registered office etc..

-opening of an account in the name of the company, linking up with payment services providers (settlement by means of credit cards, Paypal etc.)

-bookkeeping, advance VAT return, annual accounts, calculation of the gambling tax burden

-procurement of providers of gambling software

General Remarks on the Subject of Gambling Licences

Anyone tackling the subject of "the provision of gambling services on the Internet" will quickly discover that it involves an extremely complex legal subject. Many countries (see the chart below) regulate gambling through internal laws, and in other countries the provision of gambling services is prohibited, as a matter of principle, and, on the other hand, other countries know nothing at all about the regulation of gambling. Providers of gambling services are first of all faced with the question as to which country is suitable for offering internet gambling. In so doing, a series of legal questions and problems relating to tax law must be borne in mind. In addition, creating a gambling service only makes sense if those participating in the gambling are convinced of the seriousness of what is being offered. If what is being offered does not appear to be serious or the whole thing reeks of deception, participants will switch to another provider and, possibly, post negative reports in the relevant internet forums for online gambling. To that extent it should be of huge interest to the provider of gambling services to chose as a location, as far as possible, a country which legally regulates gambling - that is, one where a gambling licence is required along with correspondingly strict conditions and demands.

Fundamental Legal Information

In simple terms, it can be stated that in the gambling sector the law of the country in which the company is domiciled applies (that is, the law of the country where the gambling licence is successfully achieved) and the law of the "state in which the service is being provided" (that is, the law of the country at which the gambling service is aimed). There is one advantage within the EU in this case: first of all the EU freedom of establishment and the decisions of the European Court concerning the freedom of establishment apply. Thus a company which has its headquarters within the EU and has a gambling licence at its disposal (e.g. Malta,England,Gibraltar) can direct the service that it provides to customers throughout the EU. However, there is, in many instances, a "conflict of law", with the result that internal laws (the state within the EU in which the service is being provided) cannot, admittedly, prevent or stop such a service being offered but almost declare participation in such gambling to be illegal. Nevertheless, it can be more than sensible to acquire a licence in the EU, provided that the gambling service on offer is also aimed at EU residents: the fundamentally positive effect of the EU freedom of establishment (providers of gambling services may advertise throughout the EU etc), the strict conditions within the EU (e.g. in Malta) and, along with this, documentation showing the seriousness of what is being offered. And the "trust of the participant" in the case of services being offered within the EU will, by their very nature, be higher than for "services provided offshore". If, on the other hand, the service offered is predominantly aimed at participants outside the EU, then other countries can also be extremely worthwhile considering. We also frequently look after clients who, for the reasons considered and outlined above, successfully achieve more than one licence, e.g. in Malta and on the Isle of Man.

Learn more!: Pure Reseller Services, Tax and Tax-Law Considerations,tax at source on dividends flowing abroad or domestic income tax...