The Colombian government has issued a regulation to change the tax rate on online gambling licenses to a fixed fee of 19% of gross gaming revenues (GGR).
On Friday, the Federal Gazette revealed that Decree-0175 had been authorized, bringing tax adjustments to Colombia’s online gaming, energy, and financial services sectors.
Colombia’s Ministry of Finance will implement a 19% tax on internet gaming GGR beginning February 14. This proposal will be combined with a 1% tax on coal and gas sales and a 1% stamp duty on share and securities transactions above COL$300 million (€72,000).
In 2024, Colombia’s General Assembly examined President Gustavo Petro’s tax proposals, which sparked disagreement among senior Pacto Histórico coalition members.
The dispute occurred after Petro, the leader of the Colombia Humana (CH) party, proposed a budget spending of COL$523 trillion (about USD 130 billion).
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Opponents of the 2025 budget claimed that Petro submitted an unaccounted plan with no consultation from coalition parties, designing the budget to favor CH’s objective of overhauling Colombia’s welfare system and rewarding state servants.
To collect cash, Petro proposed a 19% value-added tax (VAT) on digital platform sales (including online gambling). The Treasury rejected this contentious move, deeming the tax technically inapplicable to Colombia’s enforcement of either international or domestic firms.
Since entering office in 2022, Petro has been critical of the online gambling tax policy, which now imposes a tiered tax structure of 15-17% on GGR, depending on whether licensed operators maintain a return-to-player (RTP) rate of more than 83%.
Colombia was the first South American country to implement a regulated internet gambling system in 2017, with tax profits going straight to national public health projects.
Asojuegos, Colombia’s online gambling trade association, has cautioned the government that CH’s ideas reveal a fundamental misunderstanding of gaming, as a tax reset would promote the illicit market by forcing operators to lower their offerings below the 78% return-to-player standard.
In light of these changes, opposition to Petro’s policies may force the Ministry of Finance to revise or temporarily modify tax rates, as such adjustments must be authorized by all coalition parties.
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