Estonia is home to many gambling/gaming companies. In the Baltic state, the body responsible for granting operating licenses and operating permits is the Estonian Tax and Customs Board (EMTA).
Definitions
Games of chance: games the outcome of which depends on chance and which are played by means of a mechanical or electronic device or by mediation of the organiser of the game. Games of chance can be: 1) games organised on gaming tables and gaming machines; 2) additional games of chance.
Lotteries: games the outcome of which depends on chance whereas the prize pool constitutes up to 80% of the selling price of the circulation of the lottery tickets, and the outcome of the game is not determined more than three times per 24 hours or it is determined by opening the ticket field on the lottery ticket. Lotteries can be: 1) classical lotteries; 2) instant lotteries.
Totos: games the outcome of which depends on whether an event bet on by the player occurs or does not occur or how it occurs, whereas the event bet on by the player is beyond the control of the gambling operator, the winning of a prize depends on whether the bet turns out to be true or not and the amount of the prize depends on the amount of the bet and the winning coefficient determined before the making of the bet (betting) or percentage of the total amount of the bets as determined by the gambling operator, the number of people who bet correctly and the amount of their bets (totaliser).
Games of skill: games the outcome of which depends predominantly on the physical skills or abilities or knowledge of the player, and which are played by means of a mechanical or electronic device.
Remote gambling: the organization of gambling in a manner where the outcome of the game is determined by an electronic device and the player can participate in the game by electronic means of communication. Gambling is not remote where electronic means of communication are used only for receiving bets, informing about the outcome of the game, or transferring payments to the player.
General requirements
- Gambling must be the sole activity of the company
- The shareholders with a qualifying holding (10%+), the beneficial owners and the members of the management body cannot be: persons with criminal records; persons appointed as members of the board of legal entities that have organised gambling without an activity license/operating permit or whose license has been revoked; Persons responsible for the insolvency of a company, under a court decision made in bankruptcy proceedings
- Permanent establishment in Estonia
- Auditing is mandatory
- Adequate organisational structure
- Adequate technical organisation
- Compliance with the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing law and regulations
- Compliance with the GDPR
- Minimum share capital: from EUR 25.000 to EUR 1.000.000, depending on the type of games to be offered.
Taxation
Gambling operators must submit gambling tax returns to EMTA and pay gambling tax by the fifteenth day of the calendar month following the period of taxation. The period of taxation with gambling tax is the calendar month.
For games of chance, the period of taxation is the period during which one tournament of a game of chance is organised, starting on the first day of accepting the participation fees set out in the rules of tournament of the game of chance and ending on the day when the acceptance of participation fees set out in the rules of tournament of the game of chance is terminated.
The rates of gambling tax are the following:
- Games of chance on a gaming machine: EUR 300 per gaming machine + 10% of the amount received from the bets (net of winnings)
- Games of chance on a gaming table: EUR 1.278,23 per gaming table
- Games of chance or games of skill as remote gambling: 5% of the amount received (net of winnings)
- Tournament of games of chance: 5% of the amount received from participation fees in the tournament
- Totos: 5% of the amount received out of bets (net of winnings)
- Lotteries: 18% of the amount received from the sale of lottery tickets
- Games of skill on a gaming machine: EUR 31.95 per gaming machine.
Passporting / Operating abroad
The European Union does not have standardised requirements about organising gambling. This means that an activity licence acquired from another Member State within the European Economic Area does not grant the right to offer gambling in Estonia, and vice versa.
We can assist you in getting a gambling license both in Estonia and in other selected jurisdictions.
Timeframe
EMTA makes a decision on the application for an activity licence and for an operating permit within 4 months. This timeframe can be extended to up to 6 months. EMTA provides the applicant with a preliminary reply within 3 working days from the application.