Republic Of Srpska Adopts New Law On Games Of Chance

Earlier in 2019, the National Assembly of Republic of Srpska adopted the Law on Games of Chance, aiming to improve the organization of games of chance and their introduction into legal frameworks.

The new law - adopted in March 2019 - brought an increase in taxes paid by gamblers to the RS budget and greater control of payments and payoffs in internet betting. Another novelty is the introduction of an international standard in order to protect players.

Additionally, the law strengthens the role of the public company "Lottery of Republic of Srpska". The Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Srpska has abolished the right to organize electronic games by private organizers. According to the new law, such games can only be organized by Lottery of RS, which can then independently select another company for the organization of these games.

The law introduced two new types of electronic games of chance: video-lottery and virtual electronic games, as well as an electronic system through which it supervises the organizer.

Certain changes also apply to the taxation of gains from games of chance. The tax collection depends on the residence of the winner or the seat of the organizer and represents budgetary revenue for the local government unit. The tax on profits will be paid in favor of the budget of the local government unit in which the winner is located. If the winner is a non-resident, the tax should be paid based on the location where the payment was made.

According to the law, the tax base is the amount of the individual payoff of the win minus the amount of the individual payment as a result of which the gain was realized. Tax should be paid at the following rates:

10% of the winnings whose value is greater than BAM 1,000 and equal to or less than BAM 10,000; 15% of the winnings whose value exceeds BAM 10,000 and is equal to or less than BAM 50,000; 20% of the winnings whose value is greater than BAM 50,000 and equal to or less than BAM 100,000; and 30% on winnings whose value...