Italy’s 5Star-DP coalition government plans to cut the number of online gaming license holders from 85 to 50 by 2023.
The country’s ADM customs and monopolies agency will oversee the new licensing framework for iGaming incumbents. Operators will be charged €2 million to acquire or renew their digital concessions.
According to SBC News, the new online licensing framework forms part of the coalition government’s planned “sweeping reform” of Italy’s gambling marketplace, which will be limited to 250,000 slot machines, 58,000 video-lottery terminals, 35,000 bars and tobacconists and 2,800 gaming halls. The new online licenses will be granted for a period of nine years.
Taxes will be increased on VLT and AWP machines as the government’s budget looks for an additional €600 million in taxes from the gaming sector. The new coalition will also enforce a mandatory registry controlled by the ADM to monitor all gaming-related transactions and financial exchanges.
New ADM powers will allow the customs department to prohibit national banks from processing payments for gambling companies without an Italian license, with the agency allowed to sanction fines ranging from €300,000 to €1.3 million for banking institutions that do not comply.
