Namibian gambling operators lose court bid to avoid levies

Gambling operators in Namibia have lost their legal battle to avoid paying statutory levies under the current gambling laws, Namibian Sun reports.

The Windhoek High Court has dismissed an application filed by the Gambling House Association of Namibia and Irmgard Fourty CC, ruling that all licensed operators are obligated to pay levies as stipulated by the Gaming and Entertainment Control Act (GECA), which came into effect on 1 December 2021. The court further ordered the applicants to pay the costs of the case.

The legal challenge was rooted in a dispute related to a 2020 settlement agreement between the applicants and the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism. That agreement had temporarily exempted the applicants from paying certain levies until all illegal gambling establishments were either licensed or closed. However, with the enactment of GECA, which repealed the previous 1994 Gambling Act, the court found that the exemption agreement was no longer valid and had “fallen away by operation of law”.

In its ruling, the court reinforced the legal obligation of licensed gambling operators to comply fully with the new regulatory framework. The decision underscores the government's position that the GECA applies uniformly and takes precedence over previous arrangements made under the old legislation.

The applicants had also challenged the constitutionality of sections 40A, 57, and 88 of the GECA, but the court did not find merit in their arguments.