28 Pc GST On Online Gaming, Casinos And Horse Racing To Be Proposed

It is reported that the finance ministers of Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and revenue officials of Telangana will finalize the imposition of GST on online gaming, casinos, and horse racing. The GST council has been mulling increasing the tax on online gaming to 28 percent.

The GST Council has given the Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma, time till July 23 to review its proposals. There is a proposal by the ministers to tax online gaming equally with betting and gambling in the country. As per the proposals, 28 percent GST will be levied on gaming.

A group of finance ministers will meet in Bengaluru on July 23 to finalize GST on online gaming, official sources said. The proposal will be considered by the Federal GST Council headed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

In the case of casinos, it is decided to levy tax on the amount paid at the point of entry. This GST will be applicable only when buying chips and not every time. It is proposed to continue the current practice of levying 28 percent GST on betting amounts on horse racing. The GoM will finalise its report on taxing casinos, online gaming, and horse racing by August reports in ET state.

At present, the current rate of GST on this sector of the online skill gaming industry is 18% on the Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) and 0% on Contest Entry Fee (CEF).The GoM will only review whether tax should be imposed on the total amount spent at a casino or the amount spent on gambling. The GoM had recommended that the highest GST rate of 28% be charged on the full face value of chips or coins purchased at a casino by a player. The chips may be used for buying items such as food and beverages as well. It said that once GST was charged on the purchase of chips or coins, no further GST should be applicable to the value of bets placed in each round of betting, including those played with the winnings from previous rounds.

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