Holland Casino aims to partner with Dutch unions to fight incoming tax increase
Dutch operator reaches out to unions across the country to form a partnership to push back against the proposed hike from 30.5% to 37.8% of GGR
Holland Casino is looking to partner with Dutch unions to stop the proposed gambling tax increase to 37.8%, according to the De Unie trade union.
As it stands, the market is set for a staggered tax rise from the current 30.5% rate to 34.2% on 1 January 2025 and a further hike to 37.8% 12 months later.
The planned increase has not yet impacted Holland Casino, which said the February 2025 closure of its branch in Zandvoort, 23 miles west of Amsterdam, was unrelated.
But in August, the firm did note that the spike will put pressure on its results and has suggested a partnership with De Unie, which represents private sector workers, to prevent the 1 January 2026 tax increase from coming into effect.
Speaking to news outlet Financieele Dagblad, Holland Casino CEO Petra de Ruiter said her firm will be making losses as it is unable to pass the costs to customers.
To halt the tax rise, De Unie reported that the operator was seeking help from trade unions.
De Unie also pointed out that it had “pleaded” with Holland Casino to open its voluntary departure scheme but faced friction and resistance from the operator’s board.
The scheme, which forms part of the Netherlands’ social plan, allows employees to choose to leave a company or wait until official redundancy procedures are initiated.
Holland Casino claimed it would need to retain its employees to be deployed across other land-based sites following next year’s closure of the Zandvoort casino and is not yet prepared to sanction a voluntary departure scheme.
Holland Casino is not the only operator to be affected by the upcoming tax hikes, with Flutter pulling its tombola brand from the Dutch market at the start of October.
Despite pushback from the Netherlands Online Gambling Association that the increase will fuel the black market, Dutch MP Chris Stoffer advocated for a direct rise to 37.8% from the start of next year instead of a two-stage rollout.
Tax has been a key talking point in European gambling markets this year, with Sweden hiking GGR tax in July across all verticals from 18% to 22%.
Meanwhile, in the UK, the rumoured remote gaming duty or remote betting duty tax increase was not announced on Wednesday when the Labour government unveiled its Budget.