French government proposes online casino legislation with 55.6% tax rate
Amendment to the 2025 budget calls for framework to bring vertical into the legal fold as land-based casino bosses slam proposals
An amendment to France’s 2025 budget has called for the legalisation of online casino with a huge 55.6% tax rate to drive much needed funds to the state.
The amendment was filed on 19 October by the government, nine days after the budget’s publication.
Reports prior to the budget’s release from daily financial newspaper Les Echos claimed gambling tax hikes could form part of the 2025 financial blueprint for France.
However, operators breathed a sigh of relief when the budget failed to include tax hikes and, with the opportunity to launch online casino now a possible option, interest will be piqued.
The 55.6% tax matches the rate that La Française des Jeux (FDJ) pays for its lottery monopoly in France.
The figure is a combination of a 27.8% GGR tax and a matching 27.8% tax as part of France’s social security framework.
France and Cyprus are the only countries in the EU not to regulate online casino, with some markets, such as Poland, having a state monopoly on the vertical with a commercial sports betting market.
A report from the French regulator ANJ last year claimed the black market in France could be worth between €748m and €1.5bn.
The online casino amendment made reference to the ANJ report, which also suggested that 50% of the black market could be aligned to online casinos.
The amendment also noted that while regulation would allow for a boost to state coffers, the danger of gambling-related harm was pertinent and must be alleviated with “specific regulation”.
The amendment read: “The purpose of this amendment is to authorise and open up to competition the market for online casino games, by defining for this purpose the tax framework applicable to this type of game.
“This opening is the result of aligning the gaming framework with our main European neighbours; France being, along with Cyprus, the only country in the European Union to ban online casino gaming.
“In order to limit the impact on the public health of consumers of online games, to control this ever-growing supply of games and to try to dry up the illegal supply, it is necessary to ensure real regulation of online casino games.”
The amendment to the budget must be approved by the National Assembly and Senate before any progression is made.
Speaking on TV network TF1 today, 22 October, France’s minister for finance Antoine Armand said it was of paramount importance to clamp down on the black market.
He said: “[Companies that] practice illegally must be closed or regulated or be made to contribute. That is what is important today. Why? Because there is no question that there are people who practice activities without contributing to the national tax effort.”
Grégory Rabuel, president of the Casinos de France, the trade body representing France’s land-based casinos, slammed the amendment in an interview with Les Echos.
He said online casino legalisation could decrease land-based revenue by as much as 30% and lead to up to 30% of venues closing, as well as putting 15,000 jobs at risk.
Rabuel remarked: “This amounts to signing the death warrant for land-based casinos. No one is going to cry over the fate of our industry.
“On the other hand, I hope that an employee of a casino has the same value as an employee of the factories where politicians flock when their jobs are threatened.”
The French budget included plans for €60bn worth of spending cuts to help tackle a growing deficit in the nation.