Portugal Gambling
A little history on casinos in Portugal Although casinos in Portugal are not in a great quantity, the history of legal gambling began more than a hundred years ago. The national charity quiz in 1783 was the first example of gambling in Portugal and the first casino was opened in 1904. Top Northern Portugal Casinos: See reviews and photos of casinos & gambling attractions in Northern Portugal, Portugal on Tripadvisor. Portugal’s government must introduce limits on online gambling during the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) shutdown, following the passage of a bill demanding action through the country's parliament. 326, which was introduced by members of the environmentalist Partido das Pessoas, dos Animais e da Natureza (PAN) – did not set. Portugal's controversial new online gambling tax came into force at the end of June, prompting a number of online gaming providers to exit the country. Under the new regime, the gross revenues of companies providing online gambling services will be subject to a 15 percent tax if their annual income is less than EUR5m (USD5.48m).
It isn’t unusual for a country that allows gambling on its territory to be a significant tourist destination. For Portugal in particular, this comes as a considerable source of income. In fact, last year’s GDP of Portugal was around $210 billion, and the revenue from online gambling was $122 million – which makes up for 0.05%. This is just a small part of what is about to come in the upcoming years.
The Laws Behind the Gambling Industry – Which Games are Regulated
Casino Lisboa is located at Lisbon's Park Of The Nations in Portugal's capital city and is a major landmark. It is the largest casino in Europe and the 9th largest casino in the world with 165,000 square feet.
Online gambling is a fresh phenomenon in Portugal, and it is due to the fact that the government had recently changed it’s gambling laws, which now include online betting. This means that online casinos and sportsbooks are completely legal, licensed, and regulated by the nation’s Regulatory and Inspection Services of Games and Tourism of Portugal or RISGTP administration for short.
While it is somewhat strange that a governing body that answers for tourism in the country would also be responsible for regulating any type of gambling activity, it’s not very surprising. In the regulatory code, it states that “the practice of games of chance may be held only in casinos located in specific law-determined gaming zones”. So far, 10 areas have been approved, every single one of which sees its fair share of tourists.
The Taxes are Merciless
Something that makes a big impression in the online casino and sportsbook sectors is the amount of tax those businesses pay in Portugal. The online gambling tax is 44%, and yes, it is considered to be quite high. Because of that, many economists projected that the online business in the country would decline, but what happened was quite the opposite. Today, there are many new companies lining up to apply for an online gaming license.
Online Gambling Laws are Recent in the Country
In order to be able to start issuing licenses, a government needs to cover a particular set of requirements. Portugal fulfilled its own in 2015. After the legislation was passed, it required testing labs and online operators to obtain licenses in 4 different fields – horse race betting, fixed odds sports betting, bingo, and games of chance, such as poker, roulette, slots, and other casino games. Today, there are many land-based and online gambling venues that provide people with the actions they’re looking for.
Portugal Gambling Casinos
Tourism is a Unity of Sports Gambling and Cultural Events
Last year, it was reported that the revenue from tourism in Portugal was around $23 billion – which makes up for almost 11% of the national GDP. This includes entertainment events such as sports games, concerts, and even cultural events. A lot of tourist regions include fascinating beaches and coastlines, castles, shrines, city squares and parks. In truth, Portugal holds around 14 awards as a more preferred tourist destination in more than 10 categories.
Improvement of Social Welfare Programs
It is an all-known-fact that the state of public administrations and social welfare programs in Portugal were in a very poor state even since the beginning of the 90’s. The country is also renowned for having an outstandingly slow and inefficient administrative structure, which results in slow, over-blown bureaucratic proceedings. As the European Union announced its decision to help Portugal out of the financial crisis, measures were taken to improve the government’s overall public system.
Some Challenges Remain to Be Tackled
Portugal Gambling Commission
Portugal Gambling Tax
As Portugal is making its slow recovery from a dynamic decade of financial woes, there are many other issues that await to be resolved. While this is happening, the country continues its steady rise by providing superior tourist destinations and services to its visitors and re-developing its national industries. Despite the difficulties, you can expect many great things to happen for Portugal in the future!