India tax council to meet on Aug 2 to finalise online gaming tax - source

Delta

26/07/2023 12:41

NEW DELHI, July 26 (Reuters) - India's Goods and
Services Tax (GST) Council will meet on Aug. 2 to decide on a
28% tax on funds that online gaming companies and casinos
collect from customers, and finalise other rules, a government
official said on Wednesday.
    The council, chaired by India's Finance Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman and comprising state finance ministers, will decide
if the tax should be imposed only once on the total funds
deposited to play an online game, or each time a bet is placed -
something the industry fears will lead to repeated taxation.
    The official asked not to be named because he was not
authorised to speak to the media. The Finance Ministry and GST
Council Secretariat did not immediately respond to a Reuters
request for comment.
    Since the government first announced its plan for the tax on
July 11, the gaming industry and its investors have asked it to
review the decision, which will increase the tax burden on both
companies and consumers. 
    Last week, Tiger Global, Peak XV and Steadview Capital were
among 30 foreign and domestic investors that asked Prime
Minister Narendra Modi to review the tax, saying the levy would
adversely impact $4 billion in prospective investments.
    India's revenue secretary, Sanjay Malhotra, told a local
television channel on Tuesday that "the taxation, as has been
claimed by the gaming industry, becomes very high in case it is
taxed at each and every bet. That's true, it's a fact."
    This would be taken into account when a final decision is
taken by the GST Council, Malhotra told NDTV.

 (Reporting by Nikunj Ohri; Editing by Savio D'Souza)
 ((nikunj.ohri@thomsonreuters.com; +91 90284 60730; Reuters
Messaging: twitter.com/nikunj_ohri))