Modifications of the gambling legislation has been agreed upon

Translation of the agreements is underway and will be published on our website in January 2015. Of special interest to the licence holders it should be mentioned that it has been agreed upon it to change the period of duty payment for betting and online casino from weekly to monthly and the scale for the annual fee to make the fee more proportional for gambling providers with a GGR over 100 mio. DKK.

A broad majority of the Danish Parliament has reached an agreement concerning gambling

A broad majority of the Danish Parliament has reached an agreement, which among others prevents gaming machine arcades from cheating with the distribution of funds for charity.

Stop for cheating with allocation of funds

The TV2 programme ‘Operation X’ revealed in a number of programmes in the autumn of 2013 how gaming machine arcades with gaming machines offering cash winnings cheated with the distribution of funds for charity. The programmes showed examples of fictive non-profit associations, which had been established with the sole purpose of getting a share of the funds. And associations, who were pressured into entering agreements with local gaming machine arcades concerning the illegal quid pro quo.
The Danish Tax Authority (SKAT) has since conducted a number of inspections of gaming machine arcades and found irregularities at about half of the inspected gaming machine arcades.
The Government (Socialdemokraterne og Radikale Venstre), Venstre, Dansk Folkeparti, Socialistisk Folkeparti og Det Konservative Folkeparti want the agreement to put an stop to this kind of fraud.
’Gaming machine arcades, who deliberately cheat the community, is taking part in in ruining it for the many. With the new agreement we ensure that actual charities get all the money and prevent kickback with the money.

Support for association activities will continue

A fundamental part of the new agreement has been that the local associations that currently receives funds can also receive allocation of funds within the new scheme.
The current reduction in tax for allocation of funds to charity will be repealed by 1 January 2016. However, in 2016 and 2017 an interim scheme will be created for the associations, which have previously received allocations, can apply for funds. In the autumn of 2016, an evaluation of the interim scheme will take place and the future model for the allocation of funds will be reviewed between the parties.

Gaming machine arcades will be closed during the night and limit on winnings will be raised

The parties to the agreement have also decided to keep gaming machine arcades closed at night to reduce the prevalence of problem gambling. With the new agreement, arcades are to be kept closed from 12 am until 7 am.
Given the limitations of the opening hours the parties have also agreed to raise the current deposit limit of 0.50 DKK and the limit on winnings of 300 DKK to respectively 1 DKK and 600 DKK for gaming machines offering cash winnings. The limits have not been adjusted since 1987 and an increase will secure an attractive legal market.
‘Hardened compulsive gamblers can stand and play uninterrupted for several days in a row. The treatment centers have therefore recommended to us to keep the gaming machine arcades closed at night. We have listened to this good advice’, says the Danish Minister for Taxation Benny Engelbrecht.

The gambling providers are met

A supplementary partial agreement has been made after an extensive review of the new Gambling Act, which allowed for a partly liberalisation of the Danish Gambling market in 2012.
The Government (Socialdemokraterne og Radikale Venstre), Venstre, Dansk Folkeparti, Socialistisk Folkeparti, Liberal Alliance og Det Konservative Folkeparti have on this background agreed on a number of modernisations of the legislation, which have been requested by the gambling providers.
This is the Danish Gambling Authority's translation of the Danish Ministry of Taxation’s press release (link is external).