Australian Capital Territory votes in 15% POC tax
ACT joins Southern Australia in introducing a 15% betting revenue tax to be implemented in January
The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) government has confirmed the introduction of a 15% point-of-consumption (POC) tax on online betting and gambling services in the state.
The new taxation system was announced yesterday as part of ACT’s budget for the 2018-19 financial year and will come into force on 1 January 2019.
“The introduction of this tax will bring the ACT into line with multiple other Australian jurisdictions which are also in the process of implementing point of consumption tax arrangements,” the budget said.
ACT will become the country’s second state to introduce a 15% tax on net betting revenue generated by customers in the territory after Southern Australia, with other jurisdictions expected to follow suit.
Queensland is expected to introduce the same tax rate in its budget next week while Western Australia has been deliberating over the 15% rate for some time now.
New South Wales (NSW) is also debating whether to set a POC tax at 15% or 2% of turnover.
The most bookmaker friendly-state has been Victoria, where lawmakers confirmed in May that its POC tax would stand at 8% to protect the state’s horse racing industry.
Wagering consultant Adrian Molloy told EGR Intel at the time: “Victoria is the premier racing state and to their credit, they have treated corporate bookmakers with a bit more fiscal respect than other states when looking into this tax.”