A major requirement of the reform package is the creation of a transparent and legal online casino sector.
While Denmark has announced a new licensing phase, Curacao has begun reforming its online gambling sector. This is the subject of a letter from Raymond Knops, Deputy Home Secretary for the Kingdom.
The legislation is amended on the basis of an agreement signed with the Netherlands on financial support during the COVID-19 Landspakket pandemic (State Package). Two tranches under the contract were transferred before May of this year. The government now has to meet a number of conditions to reform national laws, reports Curacao Chronicle.
A major requirement of the reform package is the creation of a transparent and legal online casino sector. In particular, the H.2 and H.19 agreements of the package refer to the dubious reputation of several thousand operators who operate under Curacao’s licence around the world. A list of all online casinos with Curaсao licence can be found at the page.
There will be three packages in total.
As part of the State Package, by 1 March 2021 the Curacao authorities are to prepare a plan for the establishment and operation of a single regulatory body in the gambling sector. Further licensing and sanctions for operators will be carried out by the same authority. At present, the conditional role of the regulator is played by four gambling operators – the holders of the main licence. Other providers can obtain a sub-licence by applying to one of the four companies. At the same time, the fee for the sub-licences goes to the accounts of the main licensees and not to the state budget.
The next requirement is that by 1 September 2021, Curacao’s licensed providers who operate outside the Kingdom must comply with Curacao’s gaming laws and the country in which they operate. The current rules do not contain such a rule. Under these conditions, online casinos licensed by Curacao will only be able to serve players from Curacao and several countries that have ratified the gambling license of the jurisdiction. As a result, the sales market may decrease from billions of users to 160,000 inhabitants of Curacao.
The third reform will address tax rates for operators income. Under the terms of the agreement, Curacao’s fiscal authorities will be obliged to charge gambling tax, corporate tax and licence fee to all licensees. In the current period, providers will deduct 2% of the profit generated in Curacao’s e-business area to the state budget. If an operator works in a country that is not part of such an area, they do not pay any taxes.
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