Czech Republic is a landlocked country located in the central part of Europe and shares its borders with Germany to the west, Austria to the south, Slovakia to the south-east and Poland to the north-east. This nation has a long and documented history, and its gambling business is also quite organized. In this guide, we will try to learn more about Czech Republic bookmakers, including the key rules of sports betting legislation, general and specific types of bets allowed and prohibited, licensing requirements.
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Table of Contents
Summary of Key Events
Legal System Concerning Gambling in the Czech Republic
Thus, the Czech Republic has a well-developed legislative base that regulates the sphere of gambling and provides all the necessary conditions for its further development. The key pieces of legislation include:
- Act No. 186/2016 on Gambling: Provides the background for the development of gambling laws in the country.
- Act No. 187/2016 on Gambling Tax: Specifies the tax liabilities for gambling operators, rates of taxation, how taxation is done and the time frame under which it is done.
- Act No. 280/2009 the Tax Code: Responsible for managing all the taxation processes that include those of gambling, income, and VAT.
- Act No. 500/2004 on the Administrative Code: Presents a set of guidelines for the administrative actions like licensing and blacklisting.
- Act No. 586/1992 on Income Tax: Describes the aspect of income tax.
- Act No. 40/2009 the Criminal Code: Outlaws operating a gambling business without a license.
- Act No. 40/1995 on Regulation of Advertising: Control the standards of advertising for gambling.
- Act No. 253/2008 the Anti-Money Laundering Act: Regulates actions against money laundering in the sphere of gambling.
- Municipal Decrees: Many city ordinances regulate gambling operations within the certain geographical area of a city.
History of Gambling of Czech Republic Bookmakers
The history of gambling in the Czech Republic starts from the year 1355 when Maiestas Carolina, an imperial code banned gambling for money. Here are some key historical milestones:
- 18th Century: Some of the legal documents refer to the lottery and gambling shops and their license.
- 1919–1939: It must be noted that gambling was rather popular during the interwar period with thousands of original Czech slot machines available.
- 1948–1989: The more reputable forms of gambling that were allowed in the country under the communists were state-controlled scratch cards and lottery, sports books and horse racing betting.
- 1990: The Law on Lotteries and Other Like Games was passed in the post-Soviet period thus legalizing casinos and gaming machines.
- 2012: Online lottery and sports betting were allowed by an amendment of the 1990 law.
- 2016: The Gambling Act was passed and signed into law, which further expanded the legalized gambling in the country especially online gambling.
Regulatory Agencies
The regulatory and licensing of gambling in the Czech Republic is under the Ministry of Finance. This entails checking if it adheres to the provisions of the Gambling act and other legislations that may apply in the area. The ministry also regulates, oversees and ensures compliance of the industry standards in the issuing of licenses and controlling of operators to prevent cheating.
Types of Gambling of Czech Republic Bookmakers
Gambling is divided into several types in the Czech Republic depending on the legal framework. Any game that is gambling in the general meaning of the word, but does not qualify for one of the above mentioned categories is banned. Here are the main types of gambling:
- Lottery: A type of lottery is a numerical lottery, cash prize lottery, in-kind prize lottery, and instant lottery.
- Odds Betting: This is a way of betting for an outcome of a certain event such as sports and the winnings to be made depend on the likelihood of the outcome happening that is the odds.
- Totalisator Game: Like with odds betting, though, the prize depends on the number of winners, the entire pot of the bets made will be divided among the winners.
- Bingo: Involves players having to get a specified pattern of numbers on a ticket and the payouts depend on the numbers picked at random.
- Technical Game: Controlled through technical means such as the slot machines, electromechanical roulette and the dice.
- Live Game: Players have to face the house or other players at live game tables and the number of players or bets is not fixed.
- Raffle: The winners are chosen through a process of draw from the sold betting tickets.
- Small-Size Tournament: It means that the tournaments with fixed or agreed teams and the total bets placed by the participants.
Licensing Requirements and Fees
In order to run a gambling business legally in the Czech Republic, a license is required to be obtained by the entities. These licenses guarantee that operators adhere to certain rules and regulations as well as provide the credibility of the gambling business. Key licenses include:
- Gambling Premises Location License: All the operating information that must be provided to the authorities includes the type, location, and time of operation of gambling premises, types of gambling, and the technical equipment used. For the application, basic license, proof of additional surety and operational worthiness certificates among other documents must be provided.
- Additional Surety: The operators have to pay the money into a special account of the Ministry or give a bank guarantee. The surety amounts depend on the type and number of gambling rooms or casinos and range from CZK 1,000,000 to CZK 50,000,000.
Taxes on Gambling
Gambling operators in the Czech Republic are subject to various taxes:
- Gambling Tax: According to the gross gaming revenue (GGR) which is the total amount of money accepted from the customers in the form of bets and other wagers minus the payouts. The tax rate is 35 percent for lotteries and technical games while for other games it is 23 percent. The minimum amount of tax for slot machines in the field of land-based technical games is set at CZK 9,200 per slot machine for a calendar quarter.
- Corporate Income Tax: Gambling operators are also subjected to corporate income tax at the rate of 19% on the companies’ profits.
- Player’s Income Tax: Lotteries or raffles winnings more than 1,000,000 Czech crowns is taxed at the rate of 15% as income tax. Other types of gambling are taxed if the annual winnings minus bets are more than CZK 1,000,000.
Betting on Sports and Bookmaking in the Czech Republic
Sport betting is very developed in the Czech Republic and there are several laws that govern this activity and make it more reliable. Czech Republic Bookmakers offer a variety of betting options, including:
- Fixed-Odds Betting: People bet for the results of certain games and the winnings are paid according to their set odds.
- Totalisator Betting: As with fixed-odds betting, the winnings are paid out in relation to the sum total of bets placed, but the winnings are distributed among the winners.
Sporting Event Glory Milestones
- 1998: Czech Republic clinches the first Olympic gold medal in ice hockey at the Winter Olympic Games in Nagano Japan.
- 1999-2001: Czech national ice hockey team becomes the World Champion three times in a row.
- 2003: The Czech international footballer, Pavel Nedvěd claims the Ballon d’Or award thus becoming the best football player on the planet.
- 2008: Martina Navratilova admitted to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
- 2010: Czech national ice hockey team makes a victory at men’s world ice hockey championship and gets the gold medal.
Conclusion
The Czech Republic can be considered as relatively new and broadly legalized country in terms of gambling business, which has a clear and quite strict legal framework. Starting from the early ages up to the present time, Czech Republic Bookmakers and Sports Betting have been in the growth process with the rules that are clear and legal for all the bettors. Thus, the further development of the industry will be possible only with observance of the existing norms and regulations and the constant enhancement of the same.
FAQ of Czech Republic Bookmakers
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