Senadores aprovam PL das apostas esportivas, mas deixam cassinos online de fora
Foto: Roque de Sá / Agência Senado

This Tuesday, the 12th, the Federal Senate approved the sports betting PL. The bill (PL) taxes the betting sector in the country, the so-called bets.

The report by senator Angelo Coronel (PSD-BA) also included virtual games, such as online casinos. However, the opposition moved and managed to eliminate this section of the text, by 37 votes to 27.

Therefore, the proposal will only be valid for bets on real events when it is defined, at the time of bidding, how much the player can win if he accepts the guess.

Sports betting, despite being legalized since 2018, is still not taxed by the Federal Government. Therefore, the sports betting PL is one of the Ministry of Finance‘s priorities.

According to the project, bookmakers will need to pay 12% tax on revenue.

While bettors will only be charged once a year and if the value of the prizes exceeds R$2,112 — the Personal Income Tax (IRPF) exemption range.

For those who bet, the taxation, which will be 15%, will only apply to the gain obtained with the prize, minus the amount wagered.

Furthermore, these rates will also apply to fantasy games, those in which the player manages sports teams virtually choosing real sports.

The measure was therefore inserted to equalize the taxation of different types of online games.

Withdrawal of online casinos will impact government revenue

The proposal, which was modified by senators, will return to the Chamber of Deputies for a new round of voting.

The changes will impact the Ministry of Finance’s revenue estimate. The first was R$700 million. However, forecasts rose due to the addition of new modalities throughout the debates in Congress.

“Such resources could bring estimated revenues of R$ 10 billion annually to the country, in addition to the almost R$ 4 billion already foreseen by the more than 130 authorizations already requested by the Ministry of Finance”, stated rapporteur, Angelo Coronel, before parliamentarians excluded from the text games like online casinos.

However, the opposition managed to articulate itself and block the inclusion of online games. The suggestion is to consider the theme in another project.

“We offer this amendment with the aim of excluding the possibility of placing bets in the fixed odds modality in virtual online gaming events, as we understand that this modality covers types of bets that are currently illegal in the country, such as typical casino games”, he argued. Carlos Portinho in justifying the amendment.

“Such a device, as presented in PL No. 3626, of 2023, opens up the possibility of a kind of “legalization” of gambling without the law,” he added.

PL for sports betting online casinos in the Senate
Photo: Waldeir Barreto / Agência Senado

Rapporteur of the sports betting PL supports deputies to recover sections barred in the Senate

With this modification, designed by the opposition, the rapporteur estimates a significant reduction in revenue. Therefore, Senator Angelo Coronel supports that deputies recover the portions of the sports betting PL left out by the senators.

“Online games, according to information we obtained throughout this report, are responsible for around 70% of betting revenue. As it was approved in the Senate, the government will only have 30% of what it expected to collect”, declared Coronel.