A new, unified gambling authority is aimed to be launched in France by Spring 2020.
The news was announced by Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, State Councillor for France’s ‘National Commission for Data Protections’.
New season, new beginning
Falque-Pierrotin has been tasked with putting together the new governing body, titled L’autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ).
ANJ will adopt the responsibilities of the country’s existing gambling regulators. These are the French Treasury for land-based gaming, ARJEL for online gambling and Department of Agriculture for horse racing.
According to the State Councillor, the governing body has already begun integrating existing laws. An official launch date hasn’t been announced yet.
Unity
The French Senate asked for the country’s regulatory framework for gambling to be reassessed in 2018. This followed En Marche’s sale of Francaise des Jeux (FDJ), a French lottery brand. The asset was floated on the Paris Stock Exchange in November 2019.
According to the French Upper House, gambling regulation had been disrupted by a non-coherent framework. This resulted in licensees becoming frustrated by what was referred to ‘double guardianship’ – i.e. needing to meet requirements set by multiple authorities.
Does this affect the tax laws in France?
No. In spite of a new governing body, the proposed tax changes for gambling operators will not budge. These were included in the country’s 2020 budget.
Announced in December 2019, sportsbooks will need to pay a new tax rate of 33.7% gross gaming revenue (GGR). Meanwhile, online sports betting operators will have to pay an additional 10.7%. This will go to the National Centre for the Development of Sport.
Horse racing will be taxed at 19.9%, with poker being 36.7%.
