Gambling Regulatory Authority Mauritius
- Gambling Regulatory Authority Mauritius Website
- Gambling Regulatory Authority Mauritius
- Gambling Regulatory Authority Act Mauritius
(c) The Mauritius Institute of Professional Accountants supervises professional accountants, public accountants and member firms under the Financial Reporting Act; (d) The Gambling Regulatory Authority supervises the gambling sector and (e) The Registrar of Companies supervises Company Service Providers. This appeal, which is brought by leave of the Supreme Court of Mauritius, arises out of judicial review proceedings taken by Peerless Ltd, a Mauritius bookmaker (“the appellant”), against the respondent, the Gambling Regulatory Authority (“the GRA”), which is charged with the regulation and control of gambling activities in Mauritius.
Gambling Taxes
The term gambling taxes encompass gaming taxes, betting taxes and betting duties which are imposed under Sections 60 (1) (d) and114 of the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) Act.Some Operators licensed under the Act are subject to gambling tax and responsible gambling levy in respect of some of their activities.
Gambling Regulatory Authority Mauritius Website
Table below summarises the taxes and duties to which a licensed operator is subject.
Licence type | Tax or duty | Levy |
Casino | 15% of gross takings in respect of games specified in the First Schedule 35% of gross takings in respect of gaming machines | 2% of gross gambling yield |
Hotel casino Hotel casino operator |
| 2% of gross gambling yield |
Gaming House 'A' | 30% of gross takings in respect of games specified in the First Schedule 35% of gross takings in respect of gaming machines | 2% of gross gambling yield |
Horse-racing Bookmaker conducting fixed odds betting on local race | 10% of gross stakes and Rs 24,000 in respect of each race meeting (operating at race course inside stand) 10% of gross stakes and Rs 16,000 in respect of each race meeting (operating at race course outside stand) | 2% of gross gambling yield |
| Bookmaker conducting fixed odds bet through remote communication | 10% of gross stakes and Rs 24,000 per week | 2% of gross gambling yield |
Totalisator operator – (a) at the race course (b) outside the racecourse (c) operating bets through remote communication | 10% of gross stakes | 2% of gross gambling yield |
Bookmaker conducting fixed odds betting on any other event or contingency other than a local race | 10% of gross stakes and Rs 24,000 per week per place of business | 2% of gross gambling yield |
Operator of Mauritius National Lottery (Lotto) | 47.16% of net proceeds from lottery games | No levy applicable |
(a) Sweepstake organizer (b) Local pool promoter (c) Agent of a foreign pool promoter (d) Limited payout machine operator (e) Amusement Machine operator | 10% of gross Proceeds 12% of gross stakes 12% of gross stakes 10% of gross takings or Rs 500,000 whichever is the higher Rs 5,000 | 2% of gross gambling yield No Levy applcable |
Return submission
Every return and payment should be submitted electronically through the Value Added Network (VAN) provider, Mauritius Network Services.
Penalties and Interest
Section 116 of the GRA Act provides that a penalty of Rs 2,000 per month or part of a month up to a maximum of Rs 20,000 is payable in case a return is not submitted by due date.
Penalty for late payment representing 5% of the amount of tax, duty or levy payable should also be paid whenever a payment is made after its due date.
A penalty of Rs 5,000 per month up to a maximum of Rs 50,000 is payable in case a return is not submitted electronically.
Interest at the rate of 1% of the tax, duty or levy payable is applicable for any payment made after its due date.
Tax on winnings
Under Section 111O of the Income Tax Act, the Mauritius National Lottery Operator, a casino operator, a hotel casino operator or a gaming house operator is required to withhold a tax of 10% on any amount payable to a punter if ever the total amount exceeds Rs 100,000. The tax is remitted on a monthly basis to the Mauritius Revenue Authority.
Statement of winnings
Casino operator, hotel casino operator, gaming house operator, bookmaker, totalisator, operator of Mauritius National Lottery and an agent of a foreign pool operator are required to submit a statement providing details of winners in respect of whom any payment exceeding Rs 50,000 has been made. The statement should be submitted at the same time a return for gambling tax under Section 115 of the GRA Act is submitted.
Lottotech, the operator of Mauritius’ national lottery Loto, has announced that it will suspend operations until further notice, as a result of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
The operator said that the prize draw held on Saturday 21 March would be the last for the time being, while its retail network would also cease paying out prizes in order to protect players and ticket sellers.
Tickets for future draws would remain valid, Lottotech added, with players advised to hold onto them until draws are resumed.
The decision was taken after discussions with the island’s gambling regulator, the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA), with talks ongoing about alternative strategies to resume activities. Lottotech currently only operates in the retail sector.
Lottotech becomes the second national lottery operator to shut down prize draws, after Spain’s Sociedad Estatal Loterías y Apuestas del Estado (SELAE) suspended ticket sales last week.
Gambling Regulatory Authority Mauritius
The news came after the island went into lockdown on 20 March, before announcing its first death from the virus a day later. This individual was just the third to die from Covid-19 in sub-Saharan Africa.
As of 22 March, there were 18 confirmed cases on the island, which has now set an 8PM daily curfew for citizens.
In related news, Lottotech reported a 30.5% year-on-year increase in revenue for the 12 months to 31 December, 2019. Revenue for the year amounted to MUR1.36bn (£29.5m/€31.9m/$34.4m), with an operating profit of MUR185.7m – up 39.6% – left after costs were stripped out.
The business generated a further MUR3.1m in finance income, offset by MUR1.3m in financial costs, for a pre-tax profit of MUR187.5m, up 40.5% year-on-year.
Gambling Regulatory Authority Act Mauritius
After paying out MUR31.8m in income tax, its net profit for 2019 was up 41.7% to MUR155.7m.