Greece gambling regulation, licensing and taxation

According to Article 3(7) of Law 2206/1994, the games that are allowed to be played in casinos are:

• Blackjack or 21.
• French roulette.
• American roulette.
• Baccarat.
• Bango-Punto.
• Dice.
• Machines with coins that do not have screens.
• Screen-operated coin machines.
• Chemin-de-Fer.

• Hellenic Gaming Commission (HGC)

Licensing procedures can be found in Article 1 and Article 2 of Law 2206/1994.

Casino licences are issued through public tenders (Article 1(7), Law 2206/1994).

Casinos can only be located in specific locations as established by legislation. These locations are specified in Article 1 of Law 2206/1994.

Law 3139/2003 provides regulations for the casinos of Parnitha and Corfu, as well as other provisions.

Law 4512/2018 provides for arrangements for the implementation of the Structural Reforms of the Economic Adjustment Program and other provisions. Any casino that does not have a licence under either Law 2206/1994 or 3139/2003 will need to be granted a licence under Law 4512/2018 to operate a casino (Article 357(1), Law 4512/2018).

If a casino is granted a licence under Law 4512/2018, then it will be regulated by this law.

Under Article 359 of Law 4512/2018, casino licences are categorised into:

• Simple type casino licences.
• Wider range casino licences.

Simple type casinos have gaming areas and auxiliary facilities. They can have accommodation with a classification of at least four stars or three keys, in accordance with the provisions of Law 4276/2014. They can also have commercial establishments, catering, leisure, entertainment or other activities related to or associated with the leisure industry. 

Under Article 2(7) of Law 2206/1994, a fee of up to 10bn Greek Drachmas (GRD) also needs to be paid to the Greek state by each casino depending on the location of the casino.

Articles 372 and 374 of Law 4512/2018set out the taxation of casino gross gaming revenue (GGR).

State participation in casino GGR applies on a progressive scale:

• GGR of up to €100,000,000 = 20 percent.
• GGR from €100,000,001 to €200,000,000 = 15 percent.
• GGR from €200,000,001 to €500,000,000 = 12 percent.
• GGR above €500,000,001 = 8 percent.

In addition:

A municipal fee of 2 percent on GGR is levied in favour of the local municipality where the casino is located (Article 372(3) of Law 4512/2018).

A special annual licence fee equal to 1 percent of GGR is payable by land-based casinos (Article 374(6) of Law 4512/2018).

According to Article 60(1)(b) and (d) of Law 2961/2001, player winnings are defined and separated into two categories in relation to taxation of players, which are tax paid on earnings per ticket and tax paid on gaming sessions.

Tax paid on earnings per ticket

A “ticket” means one or more bets placed by the player at the same point in time. Tax is withheld on net profits per ticket as follows (Article 60(1)(b), Law 2961/2001).

Earnings per ticket tax is paid at the following rates:

• Profits of up to €100 = 0 percent tax.
• Profits from €100.01 to €200 = 2.5 percent.
• Profits from €200.01 to €500 = 5 percent.
• Profits greater than €500 = 7.5 percent.

(Article 60(1)(b), Law 2961/2001).

Tax paid on gaming session

A gaming session is the period from the moment a player enters an individual player card into a gaming machine or from the moment they connect to the central information system (CSF) of an online gambling provider. The gaming session ends the moment the player extracts their playing card or disconnects from the gaming provider’s CSF. The session ends after 24 hours regardless of the above factors (Article 58(1)(c), Law 2961/2001).

Gaming session tax is paid at the following rates:

• Profits up to €100 = 0 percent tax.
• Profits from €100.01 to €500 = 15 percent.
• Profits greater than €500 = 20 percent.

(Article 60(1)(c), Law 2961/2001).