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International Internet Magazine. Baltic States news & analytics Thursday, 28.03.2024, 14:52

Legislative aspect of gambling in Latvia

BC, Riga, 31.08.2017.Print version
Latvia is one of the countries where gambling business is legal and licensed. The license is expensive but gambling taxation is quite reasonable. That is why Latvia is a perfect place for an online casino server.

Different countries stick to different approaches towards gambling. First, it can be banned and prosecuted. Second, it isn’t defined in the legal framework at all. Third, it’s legal and licensed. Despite bureaucracy and extra expenses, the legal status is highly profitable.


Confidence in the future. Feel free to develop your business.


·         Clients trust. They will be more loyal to you knowing that you work within the legal framework and pay taxes.

·         Huge revenue as a result of gamers’ trust and audience enlargement.

 

Many operators appreciated legal work advantages and chose Latvia for the gaming services implementation. However, some licensing nuances should be taken into account while business planning. 

 

Licensing

In Latvia, gambling licenses are expensive: more than €427 thousand. A validity term is one year with its renewal for the same sum. The document can be issued only if at least half of the gambling company board are Latvia citizens.

 

Interaction with regulatory bodies

 

·         In Latvia, there is a ban on gambling for miners (age qualification – 18 years).

·         Latvian public bodies block gambling sites. A universal surveillance system doesn’t exist with the rising number of closed resources every year.

·         Gambling equipment (slots, roulette and computer software) must be tested on a regular basis.

 

Taxation

Latvian authorities and gambling businessmen have signed an agreement preventing gambling taxes from increasing until 2019. Currently, in Latvia, there isn’t any double taxation in the gambling sphere. A tax levy is 15% and isn’t influenced by the income. This taxation policy is pretty reasonable, which partly compensates the high price of the license.

 

Due to its comfortable environment, Latvia became popular among online casino organizers from Europe, Asia and North America. Moreover, POS are also successful. According to experts and businessmen, 2016-2017 were profitable for Latvian casinos: the revenue went up by almost 10% while the turnover increased by 8.5%.

 

Legal aspects of gambling business in Latvia will be discussed in details at Riga Gaming Congress on October 12, 2017. The event will include speeches of first-class gambling experts: Jakub Kolomichenko (Head of the legal department at Endorphina Ltd) and Steve Donahue (business strategies and gambling consultant).

 

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