President Volodymyr Zelensky has officially legalized gambling in Ukraine. Bill 2285-D was approved by the Ukrainian Parliament by 248 votes to 95 at its second reading last month.
President Zelensky was known to be in favor of regulating gambling in the country and has now seen through a commitment to speed up legislation following several delays.
The Gambling Act legalizes bookmaking, online gambling, gaming halls, poker and land-based casinos, although the latter may only be located in hotels.
Lotteries are already legal in the country, but all other gambling was outlawed following a fire at a gaming hall in 2009.
The last draft presented to Parliament sets the fees for five-year licences at UAH30.7million (€1million) for online gaming, UAH70.8million (€2.2million) for bookmakers, UAH121.6million (€3.8million) for hotel casinos in the capital Kyiv, UAH70.8million (€2.2million) for hotel casinos elsewhere in the country, and UAH23.7million (€731,000) for online poker.
Only entities legally registered in Ukraine will be granted licenses and there is a prohibition on Russian residents acting as shareholders or owners.
The the taxation policy for gaming has been proposed as 5 per cent on GGR bookmaking, 10 per cent for online gambling and lotteries and 12.5 per cent for slot machines.
