Poland to authorize online slots, poker but mum’s the word on gambling tax rates

Poland plans to include legal online slots in its revamped gambling laws but there’s still no confirmation on giving locally licensed gambling operators a badly needed tax break.

On Monday, Poland’s Ministry of Finance dropped its latest hints about overdue revisions to the country’s gambling laws, which include allowing Polish-licensed online operators to offer online slots, provided they toe the line regarding responsible gambling protections for consumers.

The Ministry of Finance also plans to authorize land-based slots, but these “have to be covered by the state monopoly performed by a designated entity.” The Ministry notes that slots are “extremely addictive” and thus their use will be confined to “dedicated areas under control.”

The plan to authorize online slots play contradicts last week’s public comments by Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslaw Gowin, who claimed verticals like sports betting and poker were less socially harmful than “hard gambling” products, which he defined as including slots and other “casino games.”