Key points:
- The French Government is said to be organising a public consultation for online casino legislation
- Industry stakeholders, including the nation’s leading operators, are said to be in attendance
- The latest update swiftly follows reports that the nation has postponed its upcoming plans to legalise online casino
A public consultation meeting between the French Government and gambling operators in France is understood to be taking place next week, following reports from multiple French media outlets that the upcoming online casino legislation has now been postponed.
Just one week after the French Government announced plans to regulate its online casino market in 2025, multiple media reports from the nation cite an announcement made by the Minister of Budget and Public Accounts on the radio this Sunday – stating that the plans had been postponed. The Minister, Laurent Saint-Martin, appeared on Radio J this weekend to make the announcement, citing that more work on the legislation is still required.
Now, however, Gambling Insider has been made aware of a public consultation meeting between the government and industry stakeholders – including leading local operators within the nation – that is set to take place next week.
Good to know: Currently, France and Cyprus are the only EU member states in which online casino operations are not allowed
Looking back, the regulation of online casino in France has been in the works for some time, with the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) calling for the country to regulate its market back in December 2023. This statement came in the wake of a study which found that black market’s gross gaming revenue generates up to €1.5bn ($1.6bn) annually.
Details of the proposed regulatory framework were released last week – a key factor of which was a suggested tax rate of 55.6%. Land-based casinos, however, have expressed concerns around the proposal.
As the Government attempts to buy itself some more time to finalise the decision, it appears to be considering the opinions of its key gambling operators and tax contributors before moving forward.
