EUROMAT urges Croatia to pause gambling reform, cites EU procedure breach
EUROMAT filed an objection with the European Commission on Friday, stating the Croatia government’s proposals to reform its gambling regulations had not been notified under the EU’s Technical Regulations Information System (TRIS) procedures.
The gambling lobby has argued that the proposed changes, which include advertising restrictions and mandatory player identification for access to venues, amount to market restriction and a breach of EU laws.
“The Croatian government should have halted its legislative process and followed the correct procedure,” EUROMAT president Jason Frost said in a released statement.
“Europe’s single market is undermined by member states if they cherry pick legal compliance. Business needs legal certainty and we are hopeful that the Commission will play its role in ensuring that Croatia respects its obligations.”
Croatia’s updated gambling act was set to come into force in eight days. The European Commission has reached out to Croatia, according to its regulator, and reminded them of EU procedures.
Croatian gambling reforms
Croatia outlined its plans to change the country’s gambling laws with a presentation outlining how it planned to “combat addiction to games of chance and betting” last month.
The nation’s prime minister, Andrej Plenković, said he would tighten Croatia’s gambling laws to tackle gambling addiction concerns.
The government cited data that suggested 72.9% of high school students have gambled at least once. Of that number, 12.9% were determined to have met a high-risk criteria for gambling problems.
Croatia’s plans included a robust approach to gambling advertising, such as a ban between 6am and 11pm on television, internet and radio as well as a prohibition on influencer or celebrity endorsements. It also planned to introduce a self-exclusion register.
Addressing EUROMAT and the European Commission’s concerns, the general secretary of the Croatian Gaming Association, Filip Jelavic, said the regulator welcomed the EU’s reminder of its procedures.
“Legal certainty and predictability are essential for market stability and any potential financial consequences arising from procedural shortcomings are ultimately borne by businesses and citizens,” Jelavic said.
“Therefore, we consider it important for the Croatian government to respect its obligations and allow the European Commission to verify that the adopted text is compatible with EU law and the internal market principles before it applies.”
Croatian tax reforms and reasonings
As part of its proposed gambling act reform, Croatia also planned to tweak the country’s gambling tax systems and licensing fees.
Under the proposed regulations, online operators would face a 50% increase in licensing fees to €398,168, while land-based casinos would see a 50% rise to €600,000. Betting shops would be charged €200,000, up from the previous €132,722.
Speaking to iGB last month, Marko Tomic, partner at local law firm Siketić & Tomić, noted the Croatian government was under political pressure to push for stronger regulations as international operators take an interest in the market.
Additionally, the government wants to take on illegal gambling sites operating in the country.
“The second leg is of course the illegal gambling operators and restricting them as much as possible in the market,” Tomic said.
“[While], of course, protecting the tax revenues and the revenues of the regulated operators who are paying quite high fees for their licences here. This I think is the main focus.”
Taking on payment providers
The government said it would work closely with financial entities and payment providers in order to take on illegal operators.
“The focus is going to be on the payment service providers. The tax authority will aim to basically prohibit any type of suspicious transaction, especially to these illegal providers in Croatia,” Tomic said.
“Since the IP blockade was introduced, now currently there are over 900 websites that are blocked by the government order. But I think the main tool they are introducing is the control over the payments.”
Tomic noted that the changes were supposed to come into force by January 2026. However, the EU’s interjection could delay that date.
If its reforms are brought into force, Croatia would join a raft of EU nations that are currently installing tighter regulations across their gambling markets.
Ireland, which launched its new gambling regulator last month, will enforce a gambling advertising prohibition between 5.30am and 9pm to protect children and vulnerable people.
The UK is also reforming its rules to bring about tighter restrictions on online slot stakes and marketing rules for operators.