The UK government’s tax changes raise remote gaming tax to 40% from April 2026 and remote betting duty to 25% from the following April. The report frames the changes as a potential source of pressure for operators and consumers, but provides no further analysis in the available text.
Operators face higher tax rates on remote gaming from April 2026 and remote betting from the following April.
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Entain and Evoke reported lower profits amid the UK increase in Remote Gaming Duty, according to the companies’ statements cited in the report. Entain’s underlying profit fell 2% to £479m, while Evoke’s adjusted profit declined 10% to £150.2m and it reported £46m in additional gaming taxes during the period. The tax rate rose from 21% to 40% in April.
It was reported that Inspired Entertainment’s chief executive criticised the UK remote gaming duty increase to 40% in April. He expressed hope that any machine games duty rise would be smaller.
HM Revenue & Customs said provisional gambling and betting tax receipts in the UK reached £1.93bn between April and July 2026, up 19% year on year. Remote Gaming Duty accounted for about half of the total after its rate rose from 21% to 40% on 1 April 2026. The report says the government expects further changes to betting duties from April 2027.
The UK government announced higher taxes on online gambling in its latest Budget. Online gaming duty will rise from 21% to 40% from April 2026, while remote betting duty will increase from 15% to 25% from April 2027; UK horse-racing bets and land-based gambling rates remain unchanged, and bingo duty will end in April 2026.
Estonia has yet to establish whether its reduced remote gambling tax has produced the intended effect, six months after the rate was lowered. The Riigikogu approved the change in December as part of amendments to the gambling act introducing a multi-year remote gambling tax.