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After the final approval of the decree regulating the issue of new Italian gaming licenses and of the decree on casino and cash poker games, here are the final FAQs to help operators willing to apply for one of the Italian online gaming licenses:
Q. – Why do I need an Italian gaming license to enter into the Italian gaming market? My company already holds a foreign gaming license, what are the benefits of an Italian gaming license?
The offer of games to Italian residents without an Italian gaming license is subject to criminal sanctions and, as the recent Betfair case proves, AAMS is adopting a more stringent approach against non-licensed websites.
Q. – Do I need that my company is established in Italy or that the servers are located in Italy to apply for an Italian gaming license?
No, the operator and its servers can be located in any country of the European Economic Area which include Gibraltar. On the contrary, it will not be possible to keep the company and infrastructure in non-EU countries like Alderney and the Isle of Man.
The above leads to considerable tax savings as the operator shall pay only Italian gaming taxes, but it shall not pay Italian corporate taxes.
Q. – What is the turnover of the Italian gaming market?
Read this article on the topic “Italian Online Gaming Market: 2010 data“.
Q. – Ok, can apply for a license NOW?
Yes! The decree on the new licenses has been just published. 200 new remote licenses are now available, but applying companies should hurry up as the licenses will be available only up to the 31st of December 2011. Subsequently, it will be necessary the approval of a new law regulating the issue of new licenses.
Q. – Ok, so I have plenty of time to apply for a license.
Operators have time up to the 31st of December to apply for a license, but if operators want to benefit of the casino games market, they should hurry up. The decree of cash poker games and casino games has been recently approved, but the current operators will be able to launch them only after the upgrade of their current license to the new licensing regime.
Consequently, a completely new market is about to open up and a delay in the entrance in the Italian gaming market can oblige operators to bear relevant investments to catch up.
Q. Let’s speak about technical issues, I have heard that operators have to comply with stringent technical requirements.
This is true, but especially in case of casino games the problem can be overcome using the platform and games that the software provider has already certified.
Q. – Final question: Taxes
The gaming duty varies depending on the type of game involved. For instance in case of cash card games and casino games it will be 20% of the revenues, while in case of skill games (including online poker tournament) it is 3% of the turnover.
If you are interested in entering into the Italian gaming market or you have additional questions, feel free to contact me, Giulio Coraggio.
