For the first time in over 12 years, Ukraine has established clear rules for the lottery business. The Cabinet of Ministers has approved licensing conditions that should bring operators out of the shadows, force them to pay fixed contributions to the budget, and operate under the supervision of state accounting systems.
For the first time in over 12 years, Ukraine has established clear rules for the lottery business. The Cabinet of Ministers has approved licensing conditions that should bring operators out of the shadows, force them to pay fixed contributions to the budget, and operate under the supervision of state accounting systems.
According to the Ministry of Digital Affairs, the new government resolution introduces a transparent competition for obtaining a license, and all operations on ticket sales and payouts of winnings will be recorded through an electronic betting system in real time. Each lottery operator will now pay UAH 22.4 million in license fees per year, so only three operating companies will provide the budget with more than UAH 67 million in official revenues. Separate control over turnover should reduce shadow turnover and increase tax payments.
The key innovation is the complete «digitization» of the industry. All tickets and terminals will receive unique QR codes, which will allow you to check the place of sale and the legality of the equipment. The data will immediately enter state registers, which will make it impossible to disguise gambling as lotteries or sell unregistered tickets.
According to Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation Natalya Denikeeva, for decades the lottery industry existed almost out of control: a powerful lobby of operators blocked the updating of rules, and the state lost billions of hryvnias. Now, she emphasizes, the market is returning to the legal field and starting to operate under conditions understandable to business and the state.
At the same time, the approved licensing conditions are only an interim step. They will be valid for the period of martial law plus one year after its end, but for at least three years. During this time, the government plans to update the law «On State Lotteries», which currently provides almost no grounds for inspections and cancellation of licenses for violations. It is the amendments to the law that should eliminate the de facto monopoly of a few players, strengthen the responsibility of operators, and open the market to international companies and investors.
Thus, the state is trying to transform lotteries from an opaque «gray-black» segment into a full-fledged regulated industry, where every ticket and every payment goes through official accounting systems, and the budget receives its share of every hryvnia in circulation.
Previously, dev.ua wrote about how the PlayCity state agency is looking for a contractor to develop a state Register of people who are restricted or prohibited from participating in gambling. A single digital procedure for self-restriction and blocking access to gambling services is also being introduced.
