DR Congo government expects $200 million from gambling taxes

DR Congo government expects to receive up to $200 million annually from gambling taxes. Finance Minister Nicholas Kazadi spoke about this at a press briefing on April 24. The event was broadcasted on YouTube.

"We have games of chance with consolidated sales of around 1 billion USD, but we only receive a maximum of 2 million USD in taxes, often even less than 1 million USD. Compared with other countries, we should be receiving a minimum of USD 100 million, but we can even reach USD 200 million from gambling. The system we've put in place is in its final phase, and we need to connect all the gambling companies to this software, which will enable us to see in real time, in a complete and transparent way, the turnover they're making and what should go to the State in taxes linked to their activity," noted Nicolas Kazadi.

Let us recall that gambling has been legal in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since 1927. New forms of gambling, including sports betting, lotteries and sweepstakes, were legalized in 2005. Online gambling has been legal in the DRC since 2011. Licenses are issued for online casinos and online bookmakers. The country also hosts a national lottery, the Société Nationale de Lotterie (SONAL).