Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, August 11: The Lok Sabha during the monsoon session of the Parliament approved amendments to two Goods and Services Tax (GST) bills that would impose a 28% tax on online gaming, casinos and horse racing clubs.
The two bills were introduced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to amend the Central and Integrated GST laws, proposing a 28% tax on the complete nominal value of bets made in online gaming, casinos and horse racing clubs.
Amid protests, the Integrated Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and the Central Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2023 were passed.
The proposed amendments include adding clauses into Schedule III of the CGST Act, 2017, with the intention of providing clear guidelines for the taxation of transactions in gaming establishments such as casinos, horse racing and online gaming.
Similarly, an amendment to the IGST Act aims to impose GST obligations for foreign companies involved in online gaming by requiring them to register for GST in India.
In addition, the amendments contain clauses that, in cases of non-compliance with registration and tax payment obligations, would prevent access to offshore online gaming platforms.
The GST Council approved those amendments to the Central GST (CGST) and Integrated GST (IGST) laws in the preceding week.
It’s noteworthy that the council approved the imposition of a 28% GST on the total nominal value of entry-level wagers made in the online gaming, casino and horse racing domains.
