Flutter Says Fears Over Irish Gambling Tax Rise Are Overblown

^{A Paddy Power betting shop. Owner Flutter Entertainment says fears over a possible rise in Ireland's betting duty are overblown. (Photo: Alan Stanton / Wikimedia Commons)}

Flutter Pushes Back on Tax Rise Concerns

Flutter Entertainment, the owner of Paddy Power and Betfair, says concerns within the gambling industry over a potential increase to Ireland's betting duty are overblown, according to the Business Post.

Ireland currently applies a 2% duty to bets placed with bookmakers, whether in physical shops or online, while betting exchanges pay a separate 25% duty on the commission they charge customers. The rate has become a focus of debate as the government looks at ways to raise additional revenue from the gambling sector.

Flutter is understood to be lobbying for the existing 2% rate to be retained, arguing that raising it would put pressure on the regulated betting industry without necessarily delivering the revenue gains the government expects.

Warning Over Growth of Unlicensed Betting

The company's central argument is that a higher duty could push more Irish customers toward unlicensed, offshore operators that do not pay Irish tax or meet the same regulatory requirements. Licensed betting firms in Ireland already operate under stricter rules on responsible gambling, advertising and customer protection introduced since the establishment of the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland.

Flutter has made similar arguments in other markets where it operates. In the UK, the company has previously warned that higher online gambling taxes announced in the November Budget will have a "substantial effect" on its earnings, and said mitigation measures would be needed to offset the impact.

Flutter's position, as reported by the Business Post, is that keeping the current 2% duty would provide greater stability for the regulated sector while still allowing the government to collect significant revenue from betting activity.

The debate comes only months after Ireland's former Paddy Power chief executive link_text_goes_here, illustrating how divided opinion is within the industry itself over how gambling firms should be taxed.

The Irish government has not confirmed whether it will change the betting duty rate. Any decision is likely to be considered alongside wider gambling policy questions, after link_text_goes_here in its first national anti-money laundering strategy.

Ireland's Regulator Still Bedding In

Ireland's Gambling Regulatory Authority only became fully operational in the past two years, and it is still working through the licensing of the country's betting and gaming operators under the new regime. Any change to betting duty would land at a time when licensed firms are already absorbing the cost of complying with the regulator's rules on advertising limits, self-exclusion and customer protection.

Flutter is Ireland's largest gambling employer and one of its most valuable listed companies internationally, giving its public position on tax policy considerable weight in the domestic debate. Smaller independent bookmakers, some of which operate on much thinner margins than Flutter, have previously said they would be less able to absorb a higher duty without passing costs on to customers or reducing their retail footprint. The government is expected to weigh those competing pressures as it finalises its approach to gambling taxation in the coming Budget cycle.

Source: Business Post