GST may be increased on e-gaming, casinos, and racecourses to 28 percent by a panel of ministers from several states. This proposal is expected to be taken up at the next meeting of the GST Council.
The group of Ministers (GoM) compromising representatives from many states completed its recommendations on Wednesday and is likely to submit its report over the next few days. " The GoM on racecourses, casinos and online gaming has agreed," Conrad Sangma chief minister of Meghalaya, who chairs the panel, post a tweet, without any further details.
However, the segment faces an 18 percent levy and triggered the proposal to increase intense lobbying to stall the move or at least give it a slightly tweaked.
Secretly, some tax experts said that this is a step in the right direction, given that many other items, such as cement are also in the 28 percent bracket.
"With the number of online gamers in India predicted to reach 650 million by 2025, the Indian online gaming sector is well on its way to revolutionizing the global gaming market, and favorable taxes is one of the most significant contributors to this growth."
Our suggestion to the GoM is to collect GST on operators' GGR or platform fees. This is in the best interests of the industry and is also consistent with worldwide norms.
"We hope the verdict reflects this," stated lobby organization the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports.
"The rise in the GST rate on casinos, racecourse, and internet gambling is expected to result in a significant boost in government income from these industries." "However, because many online games are purely for enjoyment, all types of online gaming should not be considered for GST at 28 percent," said Saurabh Agarwal, tax partner at consultancy company EY India.
