Austria Doubles Gambling Fines in First Half of 2023
Officials in Austria have levied a total of €2.8 million ($3 million / £2.3 million) in penalties for infractions of gambling regulations in the first six months of this year.
This represents a doubling of the €1.4 million in fines imposed in the initial half of 2022.
In total, law enforcement officers issued €11.2 million in fines during the six-month enforcement period. This signifies that gambling-related penalties constituted a quarter of the overall fines issued during the same period.
Austria’s Finance Minister, Magnus Brunner, stated: “The financial police are concentrating on combating social fraud, informal economic organizations, tax avoidance, and illicit gambling activities to guarantee a level playing field.”
“This is how we safeguard legitimate businesses, secure tax revenue, and strengthen the business environment.”
Austrian financial police reported that 265 gambling machines were confiscated during this period, a 10.4% increase from the first half of 2022.
One operation was conducted in Salzburg, where police seized 76 illegal gambling machines in multiple raids.
In the initial three months of this year, financial police issued €492,000 in fines.
Austria’s plans to re-regulate gambling have been postponed.
While Austria declared intentions to revise its gambling regulations in 2021, the nation has persisted in enforcing its existing gambling rules. In February 2021, the then-Finance Minister, Gernot Blümel, unveiled plans to create a new regulatory entity and implement stringent control measures, including wagering and deposit caps, as well as granting the regulator expanded enforcement authority.
This regulatory overhaul was proposed after an examination of Austria’s gambling monopoly, which reached its zenith in 2019 when the operator became the focal point of a political controversy.
Austria’s gambling monopoly encompasses casino, poker, lottery, and bingo operations. This monopoly will endure until 2027. Nevertheless, the European Court of Justice has determined that this monopoly clashes with EU law.
Nonetheless, these proposals appear to have stagnated in the subsequent years.
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