The value-added tax (VAT) on gambling in Colombia will be in place until December and relates to player deposits, the government has stated in a notice dated 14 February. After much speculation regarding the VAT measure’s coverage and duration, the Colombian government issued an updated decree (Decree No 0175) last week, temporarily eliminating the VAT exemption on online gambling. This decision is in accordance with Article 420 of the country’s tax code.
The tax rate is set at 19% of player deposits and is scheduled to take effect on Friday, 21 February. This will encompass payments made via cash, bank transfers, or cryptocurrencies, despite the latter not being accepted as a currency for deposits in Colombia.
The decree simplifies the calculation process, applying a formula to the deposit amount which is then divided by 1.19. For example, if a player deposits $100, around $16 would be taken as VAT, leaving approximately $84 available for betting.
Operators will be responsible for filing and paying the VAT, with non-compliance potentially resulting in prison sentences ranging from 48 to 108 months, in addition to administrative sanctions.
Moreover, the decree is designed to bolster the efforts of Coljuegos, the gambling regulator in Colombia. Under this decree, Coljuegos will have the authority to request that internet service providers block illegal sites that “serve the exploitation, operation, sale, payment, advertising or marketing of unauthorized games of luck and chance.”
However, despite the Colombian government’s attempts to clarify the VAT situation, several concerns remain that could frustrate the industry. For instance, Decree No 0175 does not provide a transition period for operators to adapt to the new tax.
Operators must first modify their gaming systems to collect the tax, which requires recertification. Failure to obtain recertification could violate the country’s gambling laws. Local lawyer Juan Camilo Carrasco, a partner at Bogotá law firm Asensi Advogados, indicated to iGB ahead of Decree No 0175’s publication that it was critical for operators to have sufficient time to modify and recertify their systems. “It’s kind of like pushing the operators into the fence,” Carrasco explained to iGB. “You need to collect these taxes, but you [don’t have the capability]. But if you don’t pay taxes, then you commit a crime. If you start collecting taxes after amending the system without the approval of the regulator, then you’re breaching the law.”
Carrasco expressed skepticism about whether the tax will only be in place until December, noting the potential for it to become permanent through future tax reforms. “We know that regarding taxes nothing is more permanent than something that comes in temporarily,” Carrasco continued.
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Carrasco pointed out a peculiar aspect of Decree No 0175: it specifically references both local and foreign operators. Foreign operators without a valid license are banned in Colombia, and Carrasco described this reference as “rather unusual.”
The introduction of the VAT on gambling was initially proposed late last year, but earlier attempts to implement it were halted in December. However, under Article 213 of Colombia’s Political Constitution, the government reintroduced it in January on an emergency basis. This article allows the president to declare a “state of internal commotion” if there is a “serious disturbance of public order, which imminently threatens institutional stability, state security, and citizen coexistence.”
Decree No 0175 states that the tax measures have been adopted to cover the expenses of ongoing disturbances in the Catatumbo region of Colombia, where violence between rebel groups has led to the displacement of an estimated 30,000 people. The government claims that the situation necessitates resources “not foreseen” in the general budget to “ward off the disturbance and prevent the extension of its effects.” Colombia Gambling tax
