Online Gambling Bill Coming To Chile

Chile will be pushing to legalise online gambling in the country with a new bill according to the country’s Finance Minister.

According to local reports the government will put forward a bill to legalise online gambling by the first quarter of this year, it is expected to allow for online sports betting, all online casino games including poker and other forms of online activities including it is thought a lottery product.

The move is to generate much needed tax revenues and also try and remove illegal unlicensed operators within the country. Included in the bill it was revealed would be amendments to land based casino can operate, the Minister said it is to modernise the current casino business in the country.

In the latest report land based casinos generated some $210 million in taxes for the country on revenues of $670 million according to 2019 government figures.

The Finance Minister was reported to have said at the press conference: “Casinos are relevant for the economic development of the country both in their contribution to the financing of the municipalities and regional governments through the payment of taxes and in the development of tourism in the regions.”

“However, both the pandemic and new global trends in the industry require new standards that ensure further development of the sector and higher tax collection through competitive tenders.”