NEW DELHI – India’s government expects to collect up to 140 billion rupees ($1.7 billion) in goods and services tax (GST) in the next financial year by taxing online gambling companies, Revenue Minister Sanjay Malhotra told Reuters on Saturday.
The government in October imposed a 28% tax on the funds online gaming companies collect from their customers for each bet, shocking the fledgling $1.5 billion industry, which is backed by global investors. The government defended the move citing addiction concerns.
In the fiscal year ending March 31, the government will collect about 75 billion rupees in tax, Malhotra said in an interview, up from 16 billion rupees the previous year.
The tax generated 35 billion rupees in the October-December quarter, he said.
“The industry has stabilised, but it’s too early to make conclusive remarks,” he said. There will be a review of the framework for taxing online gambling companies by April, but that doesn’t mean tax rates will change, he said.
The government’s total GST tax collection averaged 1.7 trillion rupees per month, Malhotra said, adding, “We expect an average monthly collection of 1.80 trillion to 1.85 trillion rupees from the next fiscal year”.
