Peru’s Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Mincetur) has approved regulations for sports betting and online gaming, iGaming Business reported October 13.
The document spelling out technical and regulatory requirements for gambling operators to be licensed is called Supreme Decree 005-2023-Mincetur.
The gaming law will become effective February 29, 2024, 120 days after regulations are issued. This doesn’t leave operators long to comply. They will have one month to apply for a license and will face heavy fines for operating without one.
Fines will range from S/990,000 (€245,394/£212,401/$257,838) in the upper limit but S/742,500 at a minimum. Criminal prosecution is also a possibility.
Mincetur Minister Juan Carlos Mathews said in a statement: “It is the first time that this important economic activity has been regulated in the country. In South America, Peru becomes the third country to regulate it, after Colombia and Argentina, in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Mendoza.”
He added, “The regulations will allow the Peruvian State to collect close to S/162m annually, to be invested in the reactivation of tourism, tourist infrastructure works, promoting sports and attending to mental health programs.” The fees don’t affect betting wagers or payment of prizes.
The regulations flowed from a public consultation process where stakeholders and other interested parties submitted 772 opinions. Government agencies that contributed opinions included the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, and Ministry of the Economy and Finance. Stakeholders included gaming operators, suppliers, legal firms and international consulting firms, reported iGaming Business.
The Ministry met with professional representatives, the public, unions and tech providers.
Matthews said, “This result is of utmost importance as it demonstrates the coordinated work carried out by Mincetur with transparency, predictability and openness, considering that all actors involved in the issue participated in the process of developing the regulations.”
The first step in legalization came August 2022 when President Pedro Castillo signed Law No 31,557 into effect. It sparked considerable initial criticism, especially that foreign operators didn’t pay taxes under it.
It was amended to address such criticisms. Among changes was tripling license fees S/2.97m or 3 percent of net income, whichever is higher. Online games are allowed, but only if their domain names originate in Peru.
