Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed Provisional Measure No. 1,182, revising the country’s sports betting framework, according to reports. The measure raises the gross gaming income tax from 16% to 18% and is effective immediately, but must receive legislative approval within 120 days.
Sports betting operators face a higher gross gaming income tax, subject to legislative approval.
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ANJL, IBJR and Anseja asked Brazil’s Federal Supreme Court on 3 November to suspend Provisional Measure 1.394/2026 until Congress votes on it or the court rules on its merits. The associations said operators had each paid BRL30 million for five-year licences and warned that the measure could leave those fees unrecoverable; Anseja estimated potentially affected tax revenue at BRL12.7 billion or more.
Brazil's main betting sector associations have asked the Federal Supreme Court (STF) to suspend Provisional Measure 1.394/2026 until Congress rules on its content or the court decides the merits. The National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL), the Brazilian Institute for Responsible Gaming (IBJR) and Anseja presented their arguments to the court on 3 November, at a hearing where they questioned the legal certainty and economic consequences of the decision. The hearing ended without Justice Luiz Fux issuing a ruling or granting the requested interim suspension. No date was set to decide the merits, so the measure remains in force.
Brazilian gaming and legal associations argued at a Supreme Court public hearing that Provisional Measure 1.394 could push betting towards organised crime and undermine legal certainty, according to a report. ANJL representative Pietro Lorenzoni disputed the government’s premise that prohibition would eliminate gambling; Abracrim representative Milton Jordão warned that bettors could face money-laundering liability under an existing law.
The Supreme Court (STF) devoted the afternoon of its public hearing on Provisional Measure 1.394/2026 to gaming-sector associations and lawyers. The hearing was convened by Luiz Fux, who is the rapporteur. ANJL, Abracrim, Abracopel, ANSEJA and IBJR argued that the measure hands the market to organised crime, breaches legal certainty and does not meet the urgency requirement. Their shared position was that the government assumes prohibition ends gambling, and that Brazilian history contradicts this.
Brazil’s regulated online betting market remains at a standstill, reportedly raising questions about legal certainty, company investments and economic effects linked to Provisional Measure No. 1,394/2026. The available report does not identify a decision-maker or give further details.
Brazil's regulated online betting market has not moved forward, and the pause keeps legal certainty, corporate investment and the economic impacts of Provisional Measure No. 1,394/2026 in question. According to the president of ABRAJOGO, the provisional measure on the betting industry has produced a situation of profound legal uncertainty.
Brazil’s betting sector was negotiating with interlocutors for presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro to seek revisions to Provisional Measure 1,394, the report said. The sector had expected Bolsonaro to win, according to the supplied text.
Brazil’s Provisional Measure 1.394/26 ended betting authorisations and suspended operations in October, according to the report. It says 85 authorisations had brought R$2.55 billion into public coffers, with each operator paying R$30 million for a five-year authorisation. The measure provides no compensation, and its outcome is before Congress and the Supreme Federal Court.
Brazil's Provisional Measure 1.394/26 ended the betting authorisations granted by the state, suspended operations in October and set out no compensation mechanism, according to an analysis by Luan Sperandio published in Gazeta do Povo. The regulated betting market had begun operating in January 2025. The measure's outcome is before Congress and the Supreme Federal Court.