Chile Senate committee backs amendments to ban online betting
Regulation2 min read
Chile’s Senate Economy Committee reportedly approved two amendments on 9 November 2026 that would prohibit online betting instead of introducing licensing. Three members supported them, one opposed them and one abstained; the bill must still complete committee stage and receive a full Senate vote.
Two amendments proposing a ban, rather than licences, for online betting platforms won approval from the Senate Economy Committee on 9 November 2026. T13 and CNN Chile reported that the vote had three in support, one opposed and one abstaining.
The first proposal would ban the operation, provision and promotion of online betting platforms; it came from senators Gastón Saavedra, the committee chair, of PS, and Diego Ibáñez of Frente Amplio. Those acting for profit would face prison ranging from 541 days to five years, plus fines ranging from 200 to 1,000 UTM. Access, downloads and transactions would have to be blocked by payment companies, app stores and internet providers. The proposal exempts authorised racecourses and casinos regulated under Law 19.995, as well as Lotería de Concepción and Polla Chilena de Beneficencia.
In aggravated cases, the second amendment provides for fines of up to 10,000 UTM and up to 15 years in prison; it came from Renovación Nacional senators led by Senate President Paulina Núñez. It also provides for courts to order illegal platforms blocked permanently.
The decision displaced a government plan filed in late October that proposed licences, an effective tax of 22% and an advertising ban introduced in phases. Separately, the Chamber of Deputies voted 133 to two for a 2027 budget amendment preventing SII, the tax service, from funding tax mechanisms for unauthorised online betting platforms, Mala Espina reported.
The bill, Boletín 14.838-03, was submitted in March 2022 and is in its second constitutional stage in the Senate. Saavedra said the amendments would be merged at the committee’s next session, for which no date has been given. The bill must complete the committee stage and go to a full Senate vote, which has not been scheduled. If the Senate changes the Chamber of Deputies’ text, the bill will return to the Chamber.