New Year Brings Dramatic Shift in Online Gambling Regulations in Italy
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Reorganisation Decree designed to improve protection for players, paying particular attention to minors who could easily fall victim to gambling addiction.
The New Year is set to bring dramatic changes to Italian gambling laws.
The country’s government approved a new mandate on Jan. 2 which will transform regulations on online gambling.
Known as the Reorganisation Decree, the legislation will require a regulatory evaluation of online gambling in Italy. The decree is designed to improve protection for players, paying particular attention to minors who could easily fall victim to gambling addiction. The decree will also target criminal activity in online gambling.
Italy’s new legislation will bring further benefits for the country as a whole, as it’s expected to boost tax revenue via online gambling, helping to support a wide range of different government initiatives.
AgiproNews reports that the Italian government has estimated “expected revenue from the competition is €350m, while the concession fee will bring in new annual revenues of 100 million.”
Trickle-down effect
We’re likely to see significant improvements in funding for problem gambling support programs in Italy, along with campaigns addressing the issue of gambling addiction.
These initiatives will be run by a newly created government department, dedicated to all things gambling. The department is to report to the Italian agency for customs and monopolies, known as ADM.
A licensing framework will require those offering online gambling to obtain a full license, at considerable expense.
Online gambling companies wanting to operate in Italy will now need to pay a €7m authorization fee for the license, along with a 3% operating fee. Annual fees of 0.2% will also apply. Gambling companies are to be restricted to five licenses each.
Treasury deputy minister, Maurizio Leo, is positive about the changes, commenting that the “approval of the Decree will allow the government to put an end to the legal disputes on licensing extensions.”
Prior to the introduction of this legislation, there were 83 online gambling companies operating in Italy. Estimates suggest that up to 50 could apply for the new license to continue their business in the country.
