Taxes in Bingo Change

For the past several months, we have witnessed a lot of bingo halls failing and closing. This big gambling industry has been shrinking after the smoking ban was enforced in the UK. But that’s not all. There’s also the double taxation to blame plus the credit crunch that is being felt all over the world. The bingo industry was the only one paying fifteen percent of VAT or value added tax aside from the other fifteen percent tax from gross profits. That’s a big ouch to the industry, considering that other gambling sectors didn’t have to pay as much as those in the bingo sector. Now the good thing is that they are changing bingo taxes regulations once more. The UK’s chancellor has eventually given in to the industry’s demand to stop the double taxes of fifteen percent. But was it for the better? Let’s find out more about this news below.

So it must be good news to hear that UK is ending the double taxation on the bingo industry. But there is a catch. According to Alistair Darling, the VAT or the value added tax levy will be scrapped even if it will cost the UK Treasury fifty million Pounds or about seventy million in US Dollars. Good news to bingo operators. But the thing is, they will be increasing the Gross Profit Tax to twenty two percent, getting back the thirty five million Pounds. So was it a good trade off?

Well actually, this scrapping of VAT and increasing GPT may seem to be good because every little bit counts. However, Alistair Darling’s announcement also included an increase in machine duties and will be up by nine percent. So how much will those cost the bingo gambling industry? It will cost another twenty million Pounds. So let’s see. Since the VAT was removed, about fifty million Pounds will no longer be taken from the bingo industry. That’s a good thing. However, increasing the GPT which will increase the taxes to thirty five million, plus the increase in machine duties costing about twenty million, will amount to fifty five million Pounds. Think about that. Bingo operators were disappointed and also surprised with this change.