The Republic of Cyprus has presented a draft of its new gambling law. The Ministry of Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism published a copy online, with the idea to gather feedback from the public before the draft is officially submitted at the House of Representatives.
Anyone, who wants to contribute or has any ideas how to improve the bill, can submit inquiries until the 19th of October. One of the highlights of the bill is the allowance of one casino at any 5-star resort with more than 500 rooms.
There is a certain limit of gaming tables and machines allowed for each facility. If an organization wants to increase that limit, it should ask for approval from the CGC – Cyprus Gaming and Casino Supervision Authority. Other features allowed in the casino law draft are allowed smoking and credit for approved customers. If junket operators wish to sign up for such a license, they must apply at the CGC as well.
The Greek Government intends to submit a similar tax to the 15% tax for gambling revenue in the U.K. It plans to set a 15% tax on gaming income each month. Value added tax will be removed from all gaming revenue. All other financial inflow will be subject to VAT.
The cost of the licenses is not yet determined, however it is known that the license will have an exclusive 15 years (plus another 15). The first 4 years will cost €10 million for the license, while the next 4 will be worth €25 million. There are also clauses of the bill which state what the punishment for illegal practices are, going from €100,000 to €1 million as well as serving time in prison for extreme law violations.
The Government has also taken a decision, to let all the operators interested in building a resort in Cyprus to choose their own location. In this way, there will be no auction and no winners and losers. The Government authorities however keep their right to oversee any of the projects in case the local authority intends to intervene in any way.
Casino operators are also eligible for building 4 additional gaming facilities in other locations apart from the main location. Those facilities aren’t eligible for table games, and can have up to 50 gaming machines each. Also, each district can have a maximum of one of those additional facilities, and the owner cannot give its license rights to a third party.
After all operators who wish to build a casino resort in Cyprus have sent their project proposals, the Government will select those who answer the regulations and requirements. The project which passes will go onto a second session of examinations which will consist of detailed interviews and reports. The law is said to be accepted before the 15th of April, and will be able to provide licenses later in 2015. That promise, however, has already been given in 2013.
