The European Union’s regulatory body has okayed the UK’s plan to impose a levy on online race betting, even as the UK continues its plans to detach itself from the EU.

On Friday, the European Commission (EC) announced it had endorsed the UK government’s plan to impose a uniform 10% levy on all race betting revenue above the first £500k – land-based and online – to replace the old Horserace Betting Levy system.

The EC’s approval was necessary to determine whether the new plan amounted to illegal state aid of a domestic industry, a highly frowned upon practice under EU trade rules. But the EC determined that the UK plan was “essential for the improvement of horse breeding and horseracing without giving rise to undue distortions of competition.”

The EC also stated that the new 10% levy “creates a level playing field among betting operators while at the same time supporting entry of new operators and the development of competition between betting operators.”