Bulgaria’s new Budget raises the tax on gross gaming revenue for sports betting, lotteries, random-event betting and online gambling from 20% to 25%, effective January next year. The Budget does not specify a gambling-related use for the additional proceeds, which are described as general state revenue for 2026.
Operators in the covered gambling segments will face a higher GGR tax rate from January.
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Estonia intends to phase in a gambling tax cut to 4% of gross gaming revenue by January 2029. The report says the reduction has allowed the country to present itself as a prospective iGaming hub. The source gives no further detail on the measures.
Brazil’s betting GGR tax rose from 12% to 13% in 2026 under a measure approved by Congress and sanctioned by the executive in late 2025. The rate is scheduled to increase to 14% in 2027 and 15% in 2028; industry representatives warn that higher taxes could encourage betting activity to move to illegal platforms.
Brazil’s government issued rules for the Contribuição Social sobre Bens e Serviços and the Imposto sobre Bens e Serviços, which together are expected to carry a rate of about 26.5%. The framework taxes betting and lottery GGR after prizes and specified mandatory allocations are deducted, while the GGR levy is scheduled to rise from 12% to 15% in 2028.
Brazilian betting CEO Marco Tulio Oliveira said rising taxes could undermine efforts to reduce illegal betting. Brazil’s GGR tax rate has risen from 12% to 13%, and could reach 15% next year; Oliveira estimated that about 50% of the market remains unregulated. He also said operators generated approximately BRL 2.5 billion in tax revenue during the first two months of 2026.
AIEJA president Miguel Ángel Ochoa Sánchez warned that Mexico’s 50% GGR tax, effective 1 January 2026, could push players towards illegal gambling platforms. He said higher taxes may also reduce government revenue, while noting that he remained optimistic about market growth around the 2026 World Cup.