SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The government of Colombia has authorised a decree to reset the tax rate on online gambling licences to a fixed charge of 19% on value added tax (VAT).
On Friday, the Federal Gazette announced that Decree-0175 had been approved, introducing tax changes affecting Colombia’s online gambling, energy, and financial services sectors.
Effective from 14 February, Colombia’s Ministry of Finance will impose a 19% tax charge on online gambling, charged as a VAT rate or 19% on customer deposits.
The measure will be applied alongside a 1% tax charge on coal and gas sales and a 1% stamp duty on share and securities transactions exceeding COL$300 million (€72,000).
In 2024, the General Assembly of Colombia debated tax initiatives proposed by President Gustavo Petro, which have caused divisions among senior members of the Pacto Histórico coalition.
The controversy arose from Petro, the leader of the Colombia Humana (CH) party, proposing a budget expenditure of COL$523 trillion (approximately USD 130 billion).
Opponents of the 2025 budget argued that Petro had presented an unaccounted plan without input from coalition parties, structuring the budget to favour CH’s programme of revamping Colombia’s welfare system and rewarding civil service members.
To raise new funds, Petro proposed a 19% value-added tax (VAT) on sales generated by digital platforms (including online gambling). This controversial measure was rejected by the Treasury, which deemed the tax technically inapplicable for Colombia to enforce on either foreign or domestic businesses.
Since taking office in 2022, Petro has been critical of the online gambling tax framework, which currently applies a tiered tax structure of 15-17% on GGR, depending on whether licensed operators maintain a return-to-player (RTP) rate above 83%.
Colombia was the first South American nation to launch a regulated online gambling regime in 2017, with tax revenues directly allocated to national public health programmes.
Asojuegos, Colombia’s trade body for online gambling, has warned the government that CH’s proposals demonstrate a fundamental misunderstanding of gambling, as a tax reset would favour the black market by prompting operators to reduce their offerings below the 78% return-to-player threshold.
In light of these changes, opposition to Petro’s policies may push the Ministry of Finance to adjust or temporarily modify the tax charges, as any changes must be approved by all coalition parties.
