Swedish government plans to increase gaming tax from 18% to 22% as from July 2024

On 15^th September 2023 the Government of Sweden submitted the budget bill for 2024, where section 12.20 outlines how Regeringskansliet plans to increase the gambling tax payable by Swedish-licensed operators from eighteen to twenty-two percent (18% – 22%) as from 1^st July 2024:

“The government’s assessment: The excise tax on gambling should be increased from 18 to 22 percent of the balance for each tax period.

The upcoming proposal should enter into force on 1 July 2024.

The reasons for the government’s assessment: One of the purposes of today’s gambling regulation is to protect the surplus from gambling activities for the general public by contributing to the financing of government activities. With the exception of gambling that is reserved for public benefit purposes, licensed gambling is taxed according to the Act (2018:1139) on tax on gambling. According to this law, excise duty is levied at 18 percent of the balance for each tax period. The balance is made up of the difference between the total stakes and the total payouts. A taxation period consists of one calendar month.”

With the government intending to return to Riksdag (legislature and supreme decision-making body of Sweden) in the spring of 2024 with a proposal according to the above, Gustaff Hoffstedt – Secretary General of the Swedish Trade Association for Online Gambling (BOS) – argued that the government is not understanding the current vulnerable position of the market. The Swedish gambling market’s channelization currently stands at 77% out of the targeted 90%, and this figure could drop even lower with the proposed tax increase.