Taxes
Lottery and gaming tax shall be paid by legal persons that operate lotteries in accordance with the Law on Lotteries and gaming in accordance with the Gaming Law and is regulated by Law on Lottery and Gaming tax. The tax duty regarding the other taxes and fees shall be determined according other respective tax laws. The standard rate of tax for all corporation in Lithuania is for the year 2005 15%.
The taxable period in respect of lottery and gaming tax shall be one quarter of a calendar year.
The lottery and gaming tax base shall be:
– in respect of lotteries, the total face value of the tickets distributed in a lottery,
– in respect of bingo, totalisator and betting, the total amount of proceeds less the amount of prizes actually paid out,
– in respect of machine gaming and table games, a fixed amount for each gaming device (gaming machine, roulette, card or dice table).
When operating lotteries, a tax rate of 5% shall be imposed on the lottery and gaming tax base.
When operating bingo, totalisator and betting, a tax rate of 15% shall be imposed on the lottery and gaming tax base.
When operating machine gaming and table games, a fixed tax amount shall be imposed on each gaming device:
1) LTL 1 800 (app. 521 EUR) per gaming machine of category A (A gaming machine of category A means a gaming machine with unlimited winnings where the maximum single winning is not limited.) for each taxable period;
2) LTL 600 (app. 174 EUR) per gaming machine of category B (A gaming machine of category B means a gaming machine with limited winnings where the maximum single winning does not exceed LTL 200, the maximum amount of a stake made per game does not exceed LTL 1 and the duration of a single game is not less than 3 seconds.) for each taxable period;
3) LTL 12 000 (app. 3.475 EUR) per roulette, card or dice table for each taxable period.
Legal persons operating lotteries, bingo, totalisator and betting shall assess the lottery and gaming tax on the basis of the tax rate specified above and pay it to the budget after the end of each taxable period before the 15th day of first month of the next taxable period.
Lottery and gaming tax paid by legal persons operating national lotteries in accordance with the Law on Lotteries and gaming in accordance with the Gaming Law shall be entered in the state budget. Lottery and gaming tax paid by legal persons operating local lotteries in accordance with the Law on Lotteries shall be entered in the budget of the municipality which has issued a lottery operating licence.
LISTING
LEGISLATION ENACTED
– Lietuvos Respublikos azartinių lošimų įstatymas (Law on games 17.03.2001)
– Lietuvos Respublikos loterijų įstatymas (Law on lotteries 01.07.2003)
– Lietuvos Respublikos loterijų ir azartinių lošimų mokesčio įstatymas (Law on Lottery and gaming Tax 17.05.2001)
– Azartinių lošimų licencijavimo taisyklės (Regulation on Gaming Licencing 09.12.2003)
– Didžiųjų ir mažųjų loterijų licencijavimo taisyklės (Regulation on Local and National Lotteries Licencing 09.12.2003)
– Valstybinės lošimų priežiūros komisijos nuostatai (Regulation of State Gaming Control Commission 09.12.2003)
– Lošimo įrenginio tipo tvirtinimo tvarka (Rules on Gaming Devises Type Approval 25.04.2003)
– Totalizatoriaus ir lažybų punktų steigimo tvarka (Rules on Establishment of Totalizator and Betting Stations 05.10.2001)
– Lošimus organizuojančių bendrovių finansinių ataskaitų sudėties ir jų pateikimo valstybinei lošimų priežiūros komisijai tvarka (Rules on Financial Statement Composition and of its Supply by Gaming Operators to the State Gaming Control Commission 11.01.2002)
– Lietuvos lošimo įrenginių registro nuostatai (Regulation on gaming Devices Register of the Republic of Lithuania 25.04.2003)
BARRIERS
Panorama
According to Art. 8 of the Law on games (17.05.2001) only joint stock companies incorporated according Lithuanian business law in Lithuania may receive a licence for gambling business in Lithuania (All of the shares of a gaming company shall be registered shares).
It is prohibited to operate gaming which is not provided for in the Law on games or to operate it in violation of the procedure established in the Law on games.
The operation of gaming shall be prohibited in the following locations: 1) residential houses, except those where non-residential premises located on the ground floor have been adapted for other activity according to the design and use of the building and which have a separate entrance from the street, which does not coincide with the stairwell entrance; 2) pre-school establishments; 3) general education schools; 4) vocational training establishments; 5) higher schools; 6) higher educational establishments; 7) additional and non-formal educational establishments; 8) health care establishments; 9) children’s sanatoriums; 10) cultural establishments; 11) libraries; 12) theatres; 13) museums and exhibition halls; 14) credit and other financial institutions; 15) shops, except for betting and totalisator stations in shopping centres which are designated not only for shop activities and which, according to the building layout plan, have separate premises; 16) state and municipal institutions and establishments; 17) cinemas, railway and bus stations, airports, seaports, except for machine gaming where it is operated in separate premises which are not related to the direct functions of such establishments; 18) post offices, except for betting and totalisator stations established therein.
A gaming company is further prohibited from ensuring the fulfilment of the obligations undertaken by other entities as well as from granting any kind of loans to other persons. It is also prohibited by the Law on games to use bank (debit, credit) cards for payment and install ATM machines in premises where gaming is operated.
The advertising of gaming shall be prohibited in the territory of the Republic of Lithuania, except where it contains only the name of a gaming company, gaming establishment (casino), bingo or machine hall, totalisator or betting station, the address of places at which gaming is operated, types of gaming and the number of gaming devices in a gaming establishment (casino), bingo or machine hall.
The right to operate a lottery belongs according Art. 6 of the Law on lottery to the following persons:
1) in respect of national lotteries, only to enterprises of the Republic of Lithuania and those foreign enterprises with a registered branch which act in conformity with the procedure established by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania, comply with the requirements of this Law and which have been issued a licence to operate a major lottery;
2) in respect of local lotteries, to legal persons of the Republic of Lithuania and those foreign legal persons with a registered branch which act in conformity with the procedure established by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania, comply with the requirements of this Law and which have been issued a licence to operate minor lotteries.
© European Union
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