German States Vote on Yet Another Revision of Online Gambling Laws

Schleswig-Holstein was the first German state to allow online gambling and now the reaming states are voting on what is turning out to be a completely different legislation to govern online gambling in Germany. The current plan, which the other states voted on, proposes to offer 20 sports betting licenses and impose a 5% turnover tax.

Monthly betting by one individual is to be capped at €1,000 with many additional restriction making the bill not worth even a five day old Schnitzel. The new gaming bill still prohibits online casinos and online poker sites in Germany. The chances of EU approving the latest proposal, backed by 15 out of 16 German states, are slim to none.

Schleswig-Holstein has a different approach to German gambling laws and sees a 20 percent tax on gross profits as the right measure. To find out more about the breakaway state’s view of online gambling regulations, read our (German Schleswig-Holstein State Named Prices for Gaming Licenses) article.

Industry analysts agree that it’s highly unlikely that any authority will be able to stop residents of our states from gambling with gaming operators registered in Schleswig-Holstein. This will ultimately lead to more controversy in already strange saga of German online gambling.

German federal approach to online gaming has already come under pressure from Remote Gambling Association (RGA). CEO of RGA, Clive Hawkswood, told Germany gambling news: “The European Commission has repeatedly stated that the draft State Treaty falls foul of EU law and the latest version appears to make little headway in meeting the Commission’s concerns.”

He went on to add: “In fact, such an approach simply makes the Schleswig-Holstein proposal more attractive and creates a fragmented, confusing and undesirable situation for German consumers.”

Let’s wait until January 2012, when Schleswig-Holstein will start awarding licenses to online gambling operators. By then we’ll be able to judge if their approach is the right one.